Kurdish Diaspora Mobilisation in Denmark

Anne Sofie Schøtt is Assistant Professor at the Royal Danish Defence College. She has been teaching conflict and strategic studies for several years at the Royal Danish Air Force Academy focusing on the Danish international military interventions. In 2019, she received her PhD degree from the University of Copenhagen defending her thesis on Kurdish diaspora mobilisation in Denmark.

A unique account of how the Kurds in Denmark mobilised in support of the Kurdish struggle in Syria. Schøtt convincingly introduces an interactionist approach that interconnects the analysis of diaspora activism and diaspora identity. The book is a significant contribution to Peace and Conflict Studies, Kurdish Studies and Diaspora Studies.

• Acknowledgements 7 Abbreviations 8PART I: KURDISH DIASPORA MOBILISATION AND IDENTITY FORMATION1. Introduction *Introduction *Focus and delimitations *Outline of the book *2. Conceptual and theoretical framework *Kurdish diaspora studies *Diaspora and transnationalism - discussion of terms *Theoretical framework *3. Methodology and fieldwork *Methodology *The fieldwork *Ethical considerations *The way ahead *PART II: THE EMERGENCE OF KURDISH ACTIVISTS IN SYRIA AND IN DENMARK4. The Kurds of Syria: From the forgotten people to world-stage actors *Introduction *The becoming of the ‘Syrian Kurds’ *The Ba’ath era and the silence of the Syrian Kurds *The 2011 uprising and the birth of Kurdish autonomy in Syria *Transformation of the Syrian Kurdish identity for the future *5. Becoming a Diaspora: The Kurds and the Kurdish activists in Denmark *Introduction *The emergence of a Kurdish diaspora in Denmark *Kurdish groupings in Denmark in the 2010s *PART III: AMBIGUOUS INTERPLAYS6. The castle and the square: political lobbyism *Introduction *The Square *The Castle *The addressees of the political activism *Kurdish rivalry *The success of Kurdish lobbyism *7. The courtroom: legal struggle for military support *Introduction *The military activism *The courtroom activism *Responses to the courtroom activism *Last call *Prospects for Kurdish courtroom activism *8. The suburb and the field: charity work *Introduction *Motivation *Upholding humanitarian principles *The Suburb – mobilising the donors *The Field – delivering humanitarian aid *Outcome of Kurdish humanitarian activism *PART IV: FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS9. Ambiguous interplays and reformulations of Kurdish identities *Findings *Kurdish activism in Denmark *From Kobane to Afrin *Final remarks *Appendix *References *