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WATCH: The Best “Happy” yet Is Danced by Syrians in a Camp You’ve Never Heard Of

  • May 30, 2014
  • 15 comments
  • 1 minute read
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Darashakran Camp is so new that everything about it has a fresh, raw feel, from its bare graveled roads to its just-planted lines of saplings. But as spring covered the rolling countryside in Iraqi Kurdistan with a lush new green, residents of the six-month-old camp welcomed in the season with fresh smiles and moves of their own.

The beauty of this latest Pharrell cover is in how unadorned its expressions of joy are. There’s no glitz, no airbrushing, no special effects: just the pure glee of spring. With green stretching behind them out to the horizon, little girls twirl each other in circles, laughing, while boys show off their cartwheeling and leapfrogging skills. Meanwhile, who would have guessed that inside those identical white tents, the empty floor space can double as a dance floor, perfect for doing a hip, bopping two-step—or a cool handstand?

Darashakran is home to over 8,000 Syrian refugees, many of them Kurds, and the majority under 18, who were relocated there from other, overcrowded camps. “Life in the camp is of course not easy,” writes the video’s editor, who teamed up with its amateur director, a volunteer named Maiko. “But they are not only grieving. They celebrate their birthdays, or newborn babies, or someone’s wedding…They are really living their lives.”

For more information:  Watch the video here.

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Jennifer MacKenzie

Poet, writer and teacher Jennifer MacKenzie grew up on Bloomcrest Dr. in Bloomfield Hills, MI, which inspired her to wonder about places with patterns other than floral. Following her education at Wesleyan University's College of Letters and the University of Iowa's Writers Workshop, she followed a zig-zag course that included a pilgrimage across the top of Spain and a long sojourn in Syria in pursuit of the language of Muhammad al-Maghout and Moudthaffar al-Nawwab. While in Damascus she completed the books of poems "Distant City" and "My Not-My Soldier" (forthcoming from Fence Books) and edited the magazine Syria Today. Her poems and essays can be found in numerous journals including the Kenyon Review online, Guernica, Quarterly West, and Lungfull. She currently lives in New York.

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15 comments
  1. rama says:
    May 30, 2014 at 8:25 pm

    I can’t tell you how happy this makes me feel.. despite everything that’s happening to these amazing kids.. they’ve maintained their spirit and childhood fun. thanks for sharing this Jennifer.

    Reply
    1. Sakher Al-Mohamad says:
      June 3, 2014 at 12:39 am

      All of us want Syria Like this..

      Reply
      1. wael mattar says:
        June 9, 2014 at 5:22 am

        yes

        Reply
  2. lulu Bull says:
    June 4, 2014 at 2:19 pm

    truly the most moving “happy ” yet

    Reply
  3. Linaakhoury@hotmail.com says:
    June 4, 2014 at 3:46 pm

    Amazing! Great job! This is what those kids needs. Joy and a way to express themselves away from morales and discipline.

    Reply
  4. Pingback: Happy | Hikayat Shamiyya
  5. AB says:
    June 5, 2014 at 7:54 pm

    Hope they’re blessed with happiness forever!! Hope – amongst all this tragedy… Truly Inspirational.

    Reply
  6. Bassel Diebo says:
    June 6, 2014 at 7:05 pm

    You are great! Keep going, you are the Syria future.

    Reply
  7. Wendy says:
    June 7, 2014 at 10:07 am

    Yeah! Still going strong! Respect!

    Reply
  8. Judi says:
    June 7, 2014 at 2:38 pm

    They deserve all the happiness and I really hope they dance happily in their homes next time instead of dancing in a camp. Love to each and everyone of them.

    Reply
    1. Hicham Al says:
      June 8, 2014 at 3:12 am

      Go go guys. Believe in hope and better future

      Reply
      1. Jennifer MacKenzie says:
        June 8, 2014 at 11:30 pm

        Yes!

        Reply
  9. MOUHAMMED FAKKAS says:
    June 8, 2014 at 1:08 am

    HOW NICE . LOVELY PEOPLE …

    Reply
  10. Tarek says:
    June 8, 2014 at 7:28 am

    They are full of life, joy and truthfulness. Those are our hope to rebuild what the tyrant destroyed in Syria.

    Reply
  11. Maggie says:
    June 11, 2014 at 5:51 am

    This blew my heart wide open. Sending love and good wishes to all these lovely people and their families. May you be well and safe.

    Reply

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