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Following in Gezi’s Steps: Women’s Activism After the Gezi Protests

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The Palgrave Handbook of Gender, Media and Communication in the Middle East and North Africa

Abstract

The Gezi Protests, with no centralized leadership, created many different interest groups uttering their demands. Women’s groups were among the most visible. This chapter demonstrates that women’s activism, started with the Gezi Protests, marks an important era in the Turkish feminist movement and created a broad alliance between feminist groups. Years after the protest, the ‘Gezi Spirit’ is still transferred to the outside world and the concept of utopia became more and more visible in women’s activism. The End Violence Platform’s demands of revoking proposed changes in the Turkish Penal Code (Türk Ceza Kanunu, or TCK) reflect the organization and mobilization strategies inspired by Gezi Protests. This chapter answers the following questions: How do the Gezi Protests help us theorize transformations in the women’s movement in Turkey? What has been the mechanism of political mobilization used by women and women’s organizations in the campaigns for change in women’s rights following the Gezi Protests? By studying feminist activism using social media platforms, the chapter concludes that the mobilization of women and women’s organizations in the wake of the Gezi protests has marked the beginning of the fourth wave of the feminist movement in Turkey.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    http://www.wwhr.org/platforms/ Accessed (22.01.2021).

  2. 2.

    http://www.trt.net.tr/anasayfa/canli.aspx?y=tv&k=trt3tbmmtv. Accessed (22.01.2021).

  3. 3.

    Hürriyet Daily News, ‘Abortion sparks raging debate in Turkey’. 28 May 2012. Available at: http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/abortion-sparks-raging%20debate.aspx?pageID=238&nid=21740 [accessed 25 April 2017].

  4. 4.

    Radikal, ‘Bakan o sözlerine açıklama getirdi’. 31 May 2012. Available at: http://www.radikal.com.tr/politika/bakan_o_sozlerine_aciklama_getirdi-1089678 [accessed 27 April 2017].

  5. 5.

    Haberturk, ‘Cocugun ne sucu var., anasi kendisini öldürsün’. 6 June 2012. Available at: http://www.haberturk.com/polemik/haber/747352-cocugun-ne-sucu-var-anasi-kendisini-oldursun- Accessed (20.01.2021).

  6. 6.

    The original names (respectively) are Uçan Süpürge Kadin İletisim ve Araştırma Derneği, LGBTI Barış Girişimi, Kayseri Kadın Dayanışma Derneği, Birleşik Kamu İşçileri Konfederasyonu, Eşitlik İzleme Kadın Grubu, Dış Politikada Kadınlar, and Devrimci İşçi Sendikaları Konfederasyonu.

  7. 7.

    http://kadinkoalisyonu.org/siddete-son-platformu/ Accessed (22.01.2021).

  8. 8.

    Mor Çatı, ‘Views on Amendment of Articles 102, 103, 104 & 105 of Draft Turkish Penal Code (TPC)’. Available at: https://www.morcati.org.tr/en/home/264-views-on-amendment-of-articles-102-103-104-105-of-draft-turkish-penal-code-tpc [accessed 27 April 2017].

  9. 9.

    Mor Çatı, ‘Views on Amendment of Articles 102, 103, 104 & 105 of Draft Turkish Penal Code (TPC)’. Available at: https://www.morcati.org.tr/en/home/264-views-on-amendment-of-articles-102-103-104-105-of-draft-turkish-penal-code-tpc [accessed 27 April 2017].

  10. 10.

    Abbasağa is one of the neighborhoods where regular forums are hosted to keep the demands of the Gezi protesters alive.

  11. 11.

    ‘@esitiz:Av @hlyglbahar buaksam 19:20de @HaberturkTV de 270 #kadin orgutunun #tckgericekilsin talebini konusacak @AbbasagaKadin @MorMansetler’.

  12. 12.

    ‘@esitiz:Av @hlyglbahar buaksam 19:20de @HaberturkTV de 270 #kadin orgutunun #tckgericekilsin talebini konusacak @AbbasagaKadin @MorMansetler’.

  13. 13.

    ‘Çocuk Psikiyatrisi Derneği TCK’ya karşı uyarı yayınladı TCK #TCKGeriCekilsin #yenicinselistismaryasatasarısı’.

  14. 14.

    ‘@ttborgtr TTB uyarıyor! Cinsel Saldırılarla ilgili yeni kanun düzenlemesi mağdurları korumuyor http://bit.ly/1kG08QI#TCKGeriCekilsin’.

  15. 15.

    ‘#TCKGeriCekilsin Cinsel suçlarda zaman aşımı olmaz! #sozdecezaartirimiozdecezasizlik’.

  16. 16.

    ‘@earmutcu Çocuk yaşta evlilikleri sorun etmeyip akranlar arası ilişkileri potansiyel suç olarak gören #TCKGeriCekilsin’.

  17. 17.

    ‘Tek bir STK’ya danışılmadan hazırlanan yasal düzenleme #sozdecezaartirimiozdecezasizlik #TCKGeriCekilsin’.

  18. 18.

    ‘#TCKGeriCekilsin! Kadın/Çocuk STK’larıyla tartışılıp yeniden düzenlensin. @ailebakanligi pic.twitter.com/zn5SM5ECny’.

  19. 19.

    ‘Flirt eden gençlerle değil çocuklarla evlenen tecavüzcülerle uğraşın #sözdecezaarttirimiozdecezasizlik’.

  20. 20.

    ‘#TCKGeriCekilsin Cinsel suçlara ceza artırımı değil cezasızlık getirecek bu tasarı sadece tecavüzcüler ve çocuk istismarcılarına yarayacak!’.

  21. 21.

    ‘#TCKGeriCekilsin Seks suç değildir; cinsel istismar psikolojik bozukluk değildir’.

  22. 22.

    ‘Çocuk yaşta evlilikleri sorun etmeyip akranlar arası ilişkileri potansiyel suç olarak gören #TCKGeriCekilsin’.

  23. 23.

    ‘#TCKGeriCekilsin Bugün 16.00–17.00 arası pamuk eller klavyeye! TCK tasarisi geri çekilsin!’.

  24. 24.

    Hürriyet. Available at: http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/gundem/26580958.asp [accessed 27 April 2017].

  25. 25.

    ‘HDP Kadın meclisi 4. genel kurulu “kadınlar vardır” ezgileri ile başlamak üzere #tckgericekilsin #HDP’.

  26. 26.

    ‘TBMM.de tartışılan yeni torba yasa sadece TCK.yı değil, yargı sistemini de alt üst edecek. CHP, HDP, MHP tasarıyı reddedin!’.

  27. 27.

    ‘#TCKGeriCekilsin az önce @HasipKAPLAN torba yasayı sorgulayan iyi bir konuşma yaptı TBMM’.

  28. 28.

    Bianet, ‘270 Kadın Örgütünden Cumhurbaşkanına Çağrı’. Available at: http://bianet.org/bianet/kadin/156586-270-kadin-orgutunden-cumhurbaskanina-cagri [accessed 27 April 2017].

  29. 29.

    ‘TBMM’DE Cinsel Suçlar Yasa Tasarısı görüşülüyor! İZLİYORUZ! http://www.tbmmtv.gov.tr/ #yenicinselistismaryasatasarısı #TCKGeriCekilsin’.

  30. 30.

    ‘Yeni Cinsel İstismar Yasa Tasarısı’na göre bir babanın 15 yaşındaki kızıyla cinsel ilişki kurması sonucu alacağı ceza 12–23 yıl iken, kızı 16 yaşında ise cezası 6–15 yıl olacaktır! #cocukbedenimedokunma’.

  31. 31.

    ‘Kimi korumaya çalışıyorsunuz? RT @ifkfeminist: #TCKGeriCekilsin

  32. 32.

    Notes: Soma refers to the mining disaster in the town of Soma which claimed the lives of 301 workers.

  33. 33.

    This hashtag refers to the Turkmen population in Iraq, which was at risk.

  34. 34.

    This hashtag refers to the developmental projects, specifically the third suspension bridge over the Bosporus, which would have led to the destruction of the forests north of Istanbul.

  35. 35.

    ‘#SOMAUNUTULMAMALI #GeziyiUnutma #SaveTurkmen #KuzeyOrmanlarınıUnutma#tckgericekilsin #HayvanlarİcinSokağaCık #pedofilesavasactik’.

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Acknowledgments

Thanks to the members of the End Violence Platform for their continuous fight for women’s rights in Turkey. We would like to thank the anonymous reviews received on this paper. Our sincere gratitude goes to editors, whose suggestions were exceptionally useful for the revisions.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Stavanger, Norway

    Hande Eslen-Ziya

  2. Istanbul, Turkey

    Itir Erhart

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  1. Hande Eslen-Ziya
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  2. Itir Erhart
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Correspondence to Hande Eslen-Ziya .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Washington Program, University of California, Washington, DC, USA

    Loubna H. Skalli

  2. Nido R. Qubein School of Communication, High Point University, High Point, NC, USA

    Nahed Eltantawy

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Eslen-Ziya, H., Erhart, I. (2023). Following in Gezi’s Steps: Women’s Activism After the Gezi Protests. In: Skalli, L.H., Eltantawy, N. (eds) The Palgrave Handbook of Gender, Media and Communication in the Middle East and North Africa. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-11980-4_10

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