18th LGBTT Pride Week in Istanbul

Prejudice in society against lesbian, gay, bisexual, transvestite and transsexual people (LGBTT) can be carried inside the family as well. Many governments exclusively recognize a family model based on a relation between a woman and a man. Certain representatives of Islam might easily speak of 'perverts' and 'sin'. The Minister for Women and Family Affairs can even say that "homosexuality is a disease".

"Family" was the topic of this year's pride week. Participants and especially the feminists discussed a different kind of family concept criticizing the prevailing hetero-normative point of view and the family as an institution run by social norms and government mechanisms.

Different models of living together

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transvestite, transsexual, intersexual and queer individuals shared their views and ideas in panel discussions, forums and workshops. The pride week saw a Family Room, African, Transgender and Pride exhibitions, theatre performances, movies and discussions about simple ignorance or an unconditional acceptance regarding the concept of family.

Activities were organized on topics such as different forms of living together and utopias, arts, transsexual associations, religion, migration, achievements from the world, sexuality or feminist criticism of the hetero-patriarchal family.

The Pride Week was hosted by the Turkish LGBTT organization LambdaIstanbul in co-operation with Istanbul LGBTT, Kaos GL, Pink Life and LGBTT clubs of universities.

The Hevjin LGBTT formation from Diyarbakır participated in the Migration and LGBTT panel. The Purple Hand Organization from Eskişehir, Pink Life from Ankara and the sex workers association Women's Door delivered speeches at the panel on Hate Murders and Trans Association. Activists from the Çukurova Homosexual Initiative and the Black Pink Triangle Association form Izmir furthermore contributed to the discussions.

Transsexual struggles gains strength

In the Migration and LGBTT panel, Peace and Democracy Party (BDP) Istanbul Deputy Sebahat Tuncel mentioned the extensive forced migration of Kurds. Tuncel pointed to reasons such as discrimination that create problems such as poverty and migration for LGBTT individuals. Therefore, the Kurdish movement and the struggle of homosexual and transsexual individuals should be combined, the politician suggested.

The panel on Hate Murders and Trans Association drew attention to the fact that almost 90 percent of transvestite and transsexual individuals were exposed to physical and sexual violence and also police violence. The abrogation of legally based monetary fines for misconduct, the recognition of social security for sex workers and the lifting of regulations regarding compulsory sterilization during sex reassignment surgery for transgender individuals were among the demands voiced during the panel.

Meeting of homosexual families

The panel discussions were attended by people from Germany, Lebanon, Palestine, USA, Portugal, England, Spain, France and Italy. They discussed legal processes and achievements and argued that common rights for homosexual marriages, adoption and discrimination against transsexual people were also problematic areas in developed countries.

LGBTT parents met at the gathering of the LambdaIstanbul Family Group (LİSTAG) and family organizations from four European countries. They discussed gaps in legal regulations and emphasized the increasing involvement of transsexual individuals in families. They furthermore pointed out the important contribution of family associations.

Homosexuals in Turkish arts

The panel on the Queer and Feminist Approach to the Hetero-patriarchal Family broached the issue of a family concept beyond the heterosexual marriage which is not based on blood ties and obligations.

Pride March

A bar owner in Taksim (Istanbul) and his employees attacked volunteers of the pride week the night before the Pride March. However, the spirit was quickly restored with the crowd that gathered on Taksim Square for the Pride March on Sunday (27 June). About 5,000 people carried rainbow flags and conveyed their calls for freedom and equality.

* Photograph: akbaba