Yes, we use weapons to protect ourselves, but our society has not fallen into chaos. Those who use violence must be held accountable, even when they use it as a last resort. We have established supervised local units of fighters that are allowed to use violence only for self-defense. Meanwhile, Mr. Assad’s military continues to attack civilians with chemical weapons. Whereas we employ fighters whose power is limited by the rule of law, Mr. Assad’s weapons are the law.

We have not abandoned other means of struggle, either. We organize protests in Syria and abroad, and have set up fair elections in areas protected by the Syrian Democratic Forces. We have proposed a decentralized solution to governance, as we believe that power in the hands of only a few has been responsible for so much of the recent bloodshed and oppression in Syria.

Our efforts serve as a reminder of what democracy really is: the rule of the people, by the people, for the people. Since Mr. Assad’s ascent to power, democracy has served as little more than a cover for expanding his control. The government held elections in 2016, but only in regions it ruled. As a result, the vote overwhelmingly favored the regime, propping up its legitimacy. In the background, activists, journalists and even whole populations continued to be imprisoned, displaced or murdered.

Today, the Syrian Democratic Council helps maintain an educational system for more than 80,000 students in the Jazira region, and for more than 50,000 in the Afrin region. We provide education in Kurdish, Aramaic and Arabic, and have established universities in Afrin and in the cities of Qamishli and Kobani.

Building a new Syria helps ensure a proper balance between violent and peaceful resistance. While war may make a new democracy possible, a democratic society cannot survive in peacetime without infrastructure and education.

Managing such reconstruction amid the ravages of war is a constant struggle. We are literally rebuilding Kobani from ruins. Even while under Turkey’s economic embargo, we began industrializing and diversifying Afrin’s economy. Then the city of Afrin was invaded and occupied by jihadist mercenaries, sponsored by the Turkish government, who have displaced its people and engaged in widespread looting.

As long as Syria, or any other country, has a leader who desires more control than a liberal democracy can provide, violence will continue to spread. At a time when hundreds of thousands of people have been killed simply to consolidate power for a few, democracy must be defended by more than just rhetoric. To believe otherwise is to resign oneself to a world of nothing but tyrants and graves.