he smell of gunpowder ( an exploded RPG round , perhaps ?) is pervasive . A choking sandstorm has finally relented , but now a bone-chilling cold has set in . Fires lit in empty oil barrels provide precious warmth , and also remind us we ’ re in oil country . The wailing of desert jackals can be heard in the distance . A bandolier of ammunition hangs from a post nearby . Where am I ? At an art gallery , wandering through Born in
Kurdistan , an exhibit by GlitterPrincess Destiny ( aka Storie ’ s Helendale ), showing through August at the Black Label Exhibitions Corner , whose LM is Eternal Possession ( 60 , 1 61 , 11 33 ).
Glitter ’ s work , which sprawls across a large , darkened exhibition space , captures the desperation and loneliness of war . But we ’ re not surrounded by your usual rugged , bearded soldiers sharing smokes . These are young girls , some brushing their hair to look pretty . That ’ s the nature of this war and this band of courageous women .
What is sometimes referred to as Southern Kurdistan , Kurdistan is not a sovereign country at all , but an autonomous region of 5-1 / 2 million people situated within northern Iraq having its own democratically elected parliament , independent of Iraq , where its own Kurdish language is spoken side by side with Arabic .
The Kurds were systematically oppressed during the Iran-Iraq war in the early 80s , but its well-known fighting force , the Peshmerga ( meaning “ those who face death ”), expelled Saddam Hussein ’ s army from the region in 1 991 , giving it some semblance of autonomy . The Peshmerga fought alongside U . S . troops during the Operation Iraqi Freedom and has had a proud heritage of fearless fighters since the days of the Ottoman Empire .
What is less reported , though , is the role that women play in the Peshmerga , and this is the focus of Born in Kurdistan . Glitter ’ s