Meet Bashar, from Jordan. Bashar teaches Circassian, the language spoken by the Circassian ethnic group.
Bashar is one of the few fluent Circassian speakers in Jordan. Circassian is a Northwest Caucasian language spoken by the Circassian ethnic group from Circassia in the North Caucasus. Due to the Circassian genocide and the Russian-Circassian War in the late 1800s, most Circassians now live outside their ancestral homeland, primarily in Southwest Asia, including Jordan.
For over a decade, Bashar has been deeply engaged in community work and the advocacy of indigenous and cultural rights both in Jordan and across the diaspora. He’s often asked by parents to introduce their children to the Circassian language early, aiming to preserve their cultural heritage which has already been lost across more than one generation.
Bashar is dedicated to bridging the gap between individuals and their heritage, employing practical and empowering methods of learning that foster self-expression rather than self-blame. One of the ways he does that is through music.
For Bashar, peacebuilding needs to start from a place where the problems and challenges of communities are recognised and advocated for in a bottom-up approach. Otherwise, we risk the entire process beginning from framing the issue to applying peacebuilding capacities.
As a descendant of Circassian heritage who is also close to Gaza and witnessing the horrors of genocide up close, Bashar believes that in cases of crimes against humanity, true peace cannot be achieved unless these atrocities are immediately halted and the institutions perpetuating them are dismantled.
