Remembering John Gallagher, a Canadian soldier and York graduate killed fighting ISIS

A York student was killed fighting against ISIS in Syria last week. John Gallagher’s death has shocked and saddened the York community, his friends, and his former classmates.
Professor Saeed Rahnema, who tried to stop Gallagher from going to Syria, said he was a “brilliant and bright student” and he could have made significant contribution to social justice in Canada.
[su_pullquote]“We live in a neoliberal society which constantly reproduces and reinforces a sense of individualism,” he further states, “and the alienation of individuals from their communities, their work places, and their immediate environment, leaves very little space for open-minded and progressive students to materialize their passions and political convictions.”[/su_pullquote]
Gallagher, who received his MA in political science, joined the Kurdish peshmerga forces in Syria known as YPG, or People’s Protection Units, to fight the religious fundamentalism of ISIS.
“If today I have any intellectual or spiritual existence worth fighting for, it is because it was impossible for the religious forces in my life to have their way and shield me from the assaults of reason and conscience,” writes Gallagher, shortly before his departure last spring.
Months later, Gallagher posted on Facebook, “Things are going swimmingly, we’re winning and we’re going to continue winning, and being part of it is an amazing privilege. Hope to see you all again soon.”
Unfortunately, a short while after, he was killed by a suicide bomber, leaving behind his mother and two sisters.
Gallagher’s family and friends remember him as a kind, passionate, and opinionated person and praise him for his political conviction and strong commitment to human rights and social justice.
[su_pullquote]“He thought this was such an important fight and he has always been a man of principle, who believed very strongly in human rights and justice,” said Valerie Carder, John’s mother, referring to his trip to the Kurdish region in Syria to fight ISIS.[/su_pullquote]
Review of Gallagher’s candid essay reveals the strong conviction he had for the protection of human rights, justice and freedom, a conviction so strong that he risked his life.
Although he was conflicted about interventions in the Middle East, he was also very uneasy with the idea of watching things unfold from a distant computer screen. Above all, Gallagher was troubled by the idea of watching yet another war unravel in the Middle East, a war that has threatened human emancipation, justice and freedom, all of which were important principles to him.
More to follow on Robert Gallagher.
Behzad Mohammadi
Contributor