Mesopotamia Movement for Democratic Culture and Art (TEV-ÇAND)
Since 2012 TEV-ÇAND has been the voice of art and culture in the Rojava revolution. It established cultural centers in all of Rojava’s cities and villages and organizes exhibitions, music events, theater, film screenings, and the cultural education of children and young adults.
The movement holds a conference every 2 years. At the 6th Conference, held in June 2019, the name “Democratic Culture and Art Movement” was changed to “Mesopotamia Movement for Democratic Culture and Art.”
TEV-ÇAND’s 7th conference took place on January 2021 in the guerrilla-controlled Medya Defense areas in South Kurdistan with the participation of 93 delegates. The conference expressed determination to counter fascist forces with art and culture support: “All artists, intellectuals, authors and writers … more than ever should defend the values of freedom, equality and democracy and be united in the fight against fascism.”
TEV-ÇAND has a revolutionary, democratic and communal understanding of art. It rejects an individualistic approach and says instead that art should promote the society’s communal values. It seeks to expand the struggle under the motto “We will defend the culture and the arts of the democratic nation in the spirit of revolution.”
