I recently attended a small Hill event on a beautiful day to remember a dark anniversary: Eleven years after the Islamic State began its genocide against Yezidis in Iraq, Yezidi speakers shared about their challenges and needs.
Convened in a small room deep in the Capitol Visitors Center, Yezidis shared stories of courage and pain. But no members of Congress attended, nor did any senior administration officials. It was a troubling symbol for how policymakers have forgotten their plight, as well as a warning sign for decreasing interest from both Republicans and Democrats in the issue of religious persecution.
In August 2014, in northern Iraq, a genocide began. ISIS slaughtered men and boys while enslaving and raping women and girls, all because they believed in something different. Eleven years later, the Yezidi community still struggles to recover.
I have been deeply involved with this community since my time in government, first at the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, and then later at the State Department in a special envoy role focusing on religious minorities in the Middle East during the Obama and Trump administrations.
The Yezidi community has been clear on their needs for years: they want peace, to return to their homes to live in safety and dignity, to account for missing loved ones. But they need help.
Unfortunately, thousands of Yezidis still live in squalid displaced person camps around northern Iraq, a glaring failure by the international community and the Iraqi government. Despite global recognition of the ISIS atrocities, efforts have fallen short to see Yezidis return in large numbers.
But many Yezidis may not be ready to leave the relative security of the camps, due to fear of the Islamic State reemerging and Turkish airstrikes. And although efforts have been made to resolve the situation of Sinjar and other disputed areas, Yezidis have largely been excluded from discussions affecting their future.
Tragically, more than 2,500 Yezidi women and girls remain missing and unaccounted for. There are occasional good news reports of survivors finding their way home from Syria, but these reports are increasingly rare.
Eleven years after the genocide, many Yezidis believe loved ones reside with their captors in the Al-Hol camp in eastern Syria. But time is running out to rescue children who are growing up and being indoctrinated. The U.S. and the international community can do more to help search for the missing, given the limited progress made so far.
The Yezidis are surviving because that’s what they’ve had to do for thousands of years. But as one Yezidi youth, who now lives in Lincoln, Nebraska, said, “the next generation deserves more than survival.”
Yezidis need Congress –– both chambers and both parties –– to remember their plight and provide resources. They need the Administration to revive efforts begun during the first term to help them survive through political support and reconstruction assistance. However, the no-shows at the event were not encouraging.
Yezidis are one of the most vulnerable religious minority communities in the entire Middle East. They face dangers similar to those of Christians and others like the Druze, who also need support. But Yezidis don’t have broader networks to rally assistance.
For more than a quarter century, since Congress passed the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, the U.S. has been a global leader in promoting freedom of religion or belief internationally. We have placed this front and center while advancing our foreign policy, simultaneously grounded in values and our interests. Was it perfect? No, but it was good, and it was more than most other nations combined.
However, in years past, their memorial events were well attended. I fear the lack of participation by Members and officials signals an overall decline in support for U.S. religious freedom promotion abroad.
Since 2014, I have come to know the Yezidi people and consider many of them my friends. I have visited their holy city of Lalish and their American homes in Lincoln — two global centers of Yezidi life. I have been continually impressed by their kind spirit, steadfastness in the face of impunity, and commitment to maintaining their way of life and beliefs. And they are brave and tough, but not indestructible.
Toward the end of the event, a community member said, “Please remember the Yezidis.” Will we? Will the U.S. remember them and the millions of other faiths suffering under oppressive systems that violate religious freedom? The persecuted people of the world are praying we don’t forget. And that we find a way to act.
Knox Thames served in a special envoy position during the Obama and Trump administrations focused on religious minorities in the Middle East and South/Central Asia. His book, Ending Persecution: Charting the Path to Global Religious Freedom, was released in September by University of Notre Dame Press.
