ABSTRACT
The Yezidis have been immune to the political changes of the past quarter century in the Near East — notably the Kurdish insurrections, the Shia and Sunni revivals within Islam and the war between Iraq and Iran. But the structure of Yezidi society still endures. Education, compulsory but secular, is provided in every country where Yezidis live. The eyes and ears of a new generation are opened to the accumulated wisdom of mankind, sometimes filtered to reflect the culture and philosophy of dominant groups. Military service is now an accepted fact of life. The Yezidis have survived many persecutions. Today they still face discrimination in many areas, while the spread of education exposes many to the more subtle dangers of a secular society.
