By Nazila Jamshidi
Some Afghan women drastically reinvented their lives after the United States invaded Afghanistan in 2001. They became journalists, thought leaders, business owners, and professors. This summer, many of them had to flee when the Taliban returned to power. Their journey to the United States has placed them in exile and put their dreams in a state of suspended purgatory.
For other women, living in Afghanistan was hardscrabble, and they see the political turmoil of the summer as a bittersweet opportunity for a better life in America. How Afghan women view their status as refugees in America is primarily defined by how they saw themselves as Afghans back home.
This summer marked the end of twenty years of the United States’ war in Afghanistan. But living in exile as refugees and immigrants has once again become the defining experience of many Afghans’ lives. Desperate Afghans clinging to the side of a moving military plane and the chaotic scenes at the Kabul airport are unforgettable moments for the many Afghans who have fled. Women who were celebrated in the West as the true beneficiaries of the invasion are now condemned to live in fear after the fall of Kabul. Hundreds of degrees, certificates, pictures, and any other documents that could label them as independent, free-thinking human beings were destroyed, burnt, or buried in the first weeks of the Taliban takeover.
August 2021 witnessed an exodus of Afghan women seeking refuge in Afghanistan’s neighboring countries and as well as far-flung countries around the world, heartbreaking social media posts of women describing their experiences in Farsi and English, and stories of fear and despair in the headlines of international newspapers. For some women, it was the first time they left their country of birth. Others were leaving their country again, having already reclaimed their home after a first exile.
Read the rest in The National Interest.