Love is one of the great themes of literature. Yet it can be more than a private emotion. It can challenge boundaries, resist violence and open up new ways of imagining our relationships with others and with society.
In his novels, Bachtiyar Ali has repeatedly explored love alongside questions of freedom, oppression, memory, exile and human dignity. During this evening at the Evangelische Akademie zu Berlin, he will reflect on the role of love in his own literary work as well as in Kurdish and broader Middle Eastern literature.
Love as a form of moral resistance
At the heart of the evening lies a question that reaches beyond literature: Can love become a force capable of resisting hatred and violence?
Against the backdrop of increasing political polarization, the rise of neo-fascist movements and Islamist extremism, the conversation will approach love not simply as an emotion, but as a form of moral resistance, spiritual endurance and transformative political imagination.
The evening combines literature, intellectual conversation and music, creating a space for reflection, dialogue and cultural exchange.
The event is organized in cooperation with The Amargi, an independent, grassroots-funded media platform founded by journalists, activists and academics across Europe and operated by Amargi e.V., a non-profit organization based in Leipzig (Germany). With a particular focus on Kurdistan, as well as Turkey, Iraq, Syria, Iran and the wider Middle East, the platform combines journalism, in-depth analysis and cultural perspectives to amplify voices that are often marginalized in public debate.
Französische Friedrichstadtkirche
Gendarmenmarkt 5
10117 Berlin
