RE: Does anyone know why the press is now calling them Yazidis instead of Kurds?
It is used to DIFFERENTIATE the diverse religions the Kurds have.
The Kurds are more religiously tolerant than most Muslims and resist Islamic radicalism ( I have a few Jurdish friends here in New York. They are not very “religious” at all and are not into the praying 5 times a day thing ).
Although most Kurds are Sunni Muslims, there are Kurdish Yazidis, Kurdish Yarsans, Kurdish Jews (SURPRISE!), Kurdish Zoroastrians, and Kurdish Christians.
The stark division of the sexes in orthodox Islamic regimes does not exist among Kurds. To these people, who have struggled so long to have a nation, Kurdish independence trumps religious militancy.
Thanks, you did an excellent job explaining that.