Teaching at Kobané University, Zizek: We will learn to rebuild democracy from the Kurds 

2021-04-19 11:27:52


	 

	NEWS CENTER - Sociologist Slavoj Zizek said in an online lecture he gave at Kobanê University, "Kurds, you have created a utopia. Democracy must be radically rebuilt. We will learn this from you."

	 

	Slavoj Zizek, a Marxist sociologist, philosopher and cultural critic, gave a lecture on "Is Democracy Still a Choice Today?" at Kobanê University.

	 

	The course, which started at 20:00 local time, was broadcasted live on the university's social media accounts.

	 

	The messages Zizek gave in his lessons are as follows:

	 

	* Kurds! You have created a utopia that actually exists with an intellectual community. You are not only a symbol of resistance, but also the symbol of establishing a new order.

	 

	* Except for some exceptions like you, the Kurdish people, the humanity have intensly divided itself and there is no more liberal democracy. The task of a revolution is not only to represent people, but also to realize what people want.

	 

	* Instead of striving for what is here to work better, we should try to build a better world. Ideology is not an abstract system of values. Ideology is engraved in your daily practice. How we get married, how we eat, how we love; this is ideology.

	 

	YOU CAN'T SOLVE THE CRISIS WITH ELECTIONS

	 

	* You can't solve the crisis with grand elections today.  While there is a certain solidarity here, elections become functional, we can oppose each other, but we come to terms within the framework of basic rules. This is not something we can imagine today.

	 

	* Liberal democracy requires a basic social contract. Something specific, as Hegel points out, is everyday traditions. This is what holds the society together. Rules, but unwritten rules. This is exactly what is resolved today, and this is what caused the crises.

	 

	* Remember when the Americans left you, you were accused by anti-imperialists of working with Americans? This is the fundamental lie embodied in your case. A basic fact does not mean that everyone should sacrifice their life for it.

	 

	DEMOCRACY MUST BE RADICALLY REBUILT

	 

	* The basic lesson of Marxism embodied by you Kurds: In a country where there is oppression, truth is not neutral. You can only formulate the truth from the position of the most radical, the most oppressed, in that country. It is a real, interactive category.

	 

	* Democracy must be radically rebuilt. We will learn this from you. We must rethink what you mean by democracy. "

	 

	Kobané University was oficially started lessons on December 10, 2017.