By Tahir Imin Uyghurian
Dilnaz Kerim, a young Uyghur student based in London, is gaining recognition not only for her beautiful handcrafted embroidery but also for her courageous cultural and human rights activism. From walking the runway in traditional Uyghur attire to organizing cultural events and raising her voice against the Uyghur genocide, Dilnaz is one of the most engaged voices in the diaspora. As a commentator for Uyghur Times, I spoke with her about her inspirations, identity, and the future she hopes to build through fashion and activism.
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: We saw you recently walked the runway at the Cultural Fashion Show on May 17 at Wood Green Mall, proudly wearing traditional Uyghur clothing. Before we dive deeper, could you please introduce yourself? Are you a professional fashion designer? What inspired your journey into design?
Dilnaz Kerim: My name is Dilnaz Kerim, I am a student in London. What inspired me to join the fashion show was the Uyghur culture! I love my culture from every aspect, including the clothes. I am not a fashion designer, in fact, on the day of the event, people wore the traditional clothes they already owned.
What inspired me to start my business Kanvay was my interest in embroidery. I learned how to do Kanvay embroidery myself by hand, and I wanted to share that with a wider audience.
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: Regarding the fashion show, you mentioned: “Every colour, every pattern, every stitch tells a story of who we are.” What story are you hoping to tell through your designs?
Dilnaz Kerim: I would like to introduce my people’s culture to wider society, showing them that it’s actually much more vibrant than what they expect. The Chinese government is propagating our culture, introducing it as Chinese culture. They are eradicating the Uyghur culture, language, and history, and it’s our responsibility to protect and preserve this beautiful culture that was passed down to us for generations.
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: How did the audience respond to your show—the models, the outfits, and the cultural presentation overall? What’s next for you in terms of Uyghur cultural events? Do you plan to grow your cultural fashion line in terms of design and outreach? Are you leaning more toward building a business or raising cultural awareness among both Uyghurs and non-Uyghurs?
Dilnaz Kerim: The audience’s response was great. They were interested in our culture and wanted to know more about it. It was obvious that the majority of them were not familiar with the Uyghur culture.
My next goal is to organise events and workshops to introduce the Uyghur culture to non-Uyghurs. I would like them to get the most authentic experience possible.
I would like to grow my business Kanvay, where I simplify Uyghur embroideries and incorporate them into everyday clothes, but I would also like to take part in projects that could help Uyghur youth in exile. As a young person myself who was born and grew up in exile far from my homeland, I personally know the struggles of learning the Uyghur language, traditions, and culture, as well as understanding the Uyghur mindset. It was especially a struggle for me to find who I really am in terms of identity, and I believe that many young Uyghurs who grew up in exile go through similar identity crises.
I would like to introduce my people’s culture to non-Uyghurs, however, I would especially like to do something for my people in exile.
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: You’ve been quite active in protests and campaigns calling attention to the Uyghur genocide and ongoing human rights abuses—more so than many of your peers. What drives your activism? What made you step forward in such a powerful way?
Dilnaz Kerim: It is impossible for me to just sit down and do nothing when my people are going through suffering. No one should be abused due to their ethnicity. When everyone can easily contact their relatives in today’s era, I am deprived of seeing and building a relationship with my relatives. This is my basic human right, yet it’s not something possible for me.
I don’t think I’ve done much to say I’ve made a bold move, but I am just a Uyghur who is trying to show people that there is actually an ethnicity called Uyghur and that we also have a vibrant culture that is worth knowing. It’s tiring to constantly reintroduce my culture to people, but I want people to know that we are not Chinese. We have a long history and rich culture.
Everyone has their own choices and can make decisions for themselves. But I choose to stand in solidarity with innocent people. I stand against the genocide happening to my people. I might not be able to bring much change, but I can at least be the voice of the voiceless.
At last, this is what I saw growing up. It’s because of my parents’ teachings that I thrive to do activism and have the enthusiasm to do something for my people. Many people think that I am wasting my time and should focus on my education to get a good job, but a good-paying job isn’t enough for me, I want to make sure that my conscience is good. For this reason, I am okay with managing my education, part-time job, business, and organising cultural events/activism. There are times I feel tired and unmotivated just from people’s negative reactions and talks, but I always go back on track because I know what I am doing and it makes me feel even more driven to do more.
I would like to be like our past female heroes such as Tumaris, Rizwangul, Nuzugum, and more, who fought for their people and country. I believe that every Uyghur girl should definitely hear their stories. Their strength, bravery, and intelligence are very inspirational and we should take example from them.
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: You seem to have a special talent for engaging young Uyghurs and encouraging them to take part in events like these. How do you connect with younger children, and how do you inspire them?
Dilnaz Kerim: By force? 😂
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: How would you describe your level of Uyghur language proficiency? Do you read Uyghur books and have any favorites? And based on your learning experience, how important do you think it is for parents to speak Uyghur with their children at home?
Dilnaz Kerim: I speak Uyghur well. According to people, I speak advanced 😂
I understand Uyghur well. Of course, there are times when I might not understand, but it’s quite rare. In fact, I feel quite comfortable speaking the Uyghur language.
I don’t read much, but I try to listen to Uyghur audiobooks as much as possible. The last book I completed listening to was Iz, and I started another book called Nuzugum, but I couldn’t complete it.
I believe it’s very important to speak the Uyghur language at home. In fact, I think that parents betray their children by not teaching the Uyghur language.
So far, I’ve realised that language is the key to a community. In order for those children to be part of the Uyghur community, to be able to understand Uyghur traditions, culture, and people, they definitely need to know the language. If they don’t, there will be a barrier between them and the community, and in this case, how could you expect these children to learn an important part of their identity?
There are traditions that take place in Uyghur gatherings and it wouldn’t be easy to understand those traditions without living them in the native language. For example, the way we greet, show respect to elders, and listen to their life advice—who would be able to interpret these exactly with the feelings they could go through if they knew the language?
So, in this case, I can’t appreciate enough my parents who taught me the Uyghur language, who banned us from speaking any other languages at home and made us speak Uyghurche only at home. If they hadn’t done this, I don’t think I would have understood my people and their struggle to the point I do today. The main reason why I do activism is because I understand my people’s struggle.
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: You’ve spoken to several media outlets and appeared on podcasts discussing the Uyghur genocide. In one podcast, I noticed both you and the host were very passionate about Uyghur culture and the Doppa Cultural Festival. Do you think cultural activism is a more effective tool for raising awareness? And in your view, are diaspora communities doing enough on that front?
Dilnaz Kerim: Cultural activism is definitely a tool for raising awareness. People should know that a culture is being erased—we need to prevent that.
The communities in the diaspora are slowly starting to organise cultural events. However, I don’t think it’s enough. More can be done in this part. I see some to be staged (especially in Central Asia). I don’t think many people understand the authenticity—but rather want to do it to impress people. It can be seen that the originality is slowly fading away in the diaspora too, and this issue should be solved.
Tahir Imin Uyghurian: There’s often a sense of discouragement and fatigue in diaspora circles. How do you stay motivated and keep your energy up in the face of so many challenges? Do you face any challenges in preserving your identity and culture while living in London?
Dilnaz Kerim: From time to time it feels heavy and difficult to handle the stress and face the challenges. But at the end of the day, I have to lift myself up and continue to do what I am doing.
So far, I haven’t faced many challenges preserving my identity in London. I really enjoy wearing my cultural clothes such as atlas köynek, tumaq, and more to my workplace, school, and other places too.