Watching Violence Abroad, Nashville Kurds Call On U.S. Support Against ISIS

At a rally in Nashville on Oct. 10, 35-year-old Halmat Qazi, left, says he believes it’s time for the international community to start backing Kurdish fighters. Credit: Emily Siner / WPLN

Kurds in Nashville are calling on the U.S. to help stop what could become a massacre in the Syrian town of Kobane.

The militant group known as ISIS had taken control of nearly half the town as of Friday afternon, according to Reuters. They have also seized the headquarters of the Kurdish military, which has been defending the town.

Salih Doski, who moved to the U.S. 18 years ago, was among the couple hundred people rallying for support in downtown Nashville on Friday. His family lives in northeast Iraq, not in Kobane, but he says it’s too close for comfort.

“It’s the same. There’s no difference,” he says. “Kobane today, tomorrow will be Dahook city, where my family lives.”

Doski says he wants the U.S. to supply Kurdish fighters with tanks, helicopters and weapons.

Halmat Qazi, 35, has lived in the U.S. his whole life, but says he’s watched “genocide after genocide” take place against Kurds in the Middle East.

“Kurds are always used to being oppressed … but at the same time we are tired of this,” he says. “It’s heartbreaking.”

During previous bouts of oppression against Kurds, many refugees were relocated to Nashville. The city now has the largest Kurdish population in the U.S., according to community leaders. Kurds here have been vocal the past several months about garnering support for the region in the fight against ISIS.