Halil Kandok

Halil Kandok on Figen’s death: “Alert alert, another trans committed suicide”

Source: Halil Kandok, “Dikkat dikkat, bir trans daha intihar etti! (“Alert alert, another trans committed suicide”), Kaos GL, August 25, 2014, http://www.kaosgl.com/sayfa.php?id=17383

Is this a suicide, or a hate murder committed with a secret weapon, a weapon of hatred? To remain silent in the face of discrimination is a weapon that kills gay and trans people.

News about trans activist Figen’s suicide dropped on one of the LGBTI news websites. Yes, just the news of it; did we take any other action? Everyone continued with their everyday life. Let alone the heterosexual world, even the LGBTIs did not care. Today I witnessed a speech that fails to act on the discrimination and murders that LGBTIs face. “They should not openly behave in a way to disturb the social order,” it said. This sentence was the expression of the universal approach towards gays, lesbians, and transsexuals. What this conveys is that LGBTIs do not have the right to live as self-defined selves. They can breath only in a manner that will not discomfort the heterosexual world. If they cross those boundaries, they deserve all forms of discrimination and hateful attacks they are subjected to.

Can LGBTIs, who are deprived of their right to life, tolerate this vegetative state, and if so, for how much longer? Always on pins and needles, always the target of lovelessness and hatred, deprived of the right to work, the right to socialize, the right to become part of the social environment… If we are able to live despite homophobia and transphobia, this is a great success. Because LGBTIs are supported neither by the institution of the family, nor by the state, nor by any other unit. No one cares about the LGBTIs who die. For instance, lately, everyone has been taking the ALS ice bucket challenge. Yet, the diversity of sexual orientation and of trans gender identity are not illnesses; they are the dispossession of healthy individuals’ right to life by heterosexism. So, why are people not trying to draw attention to this? Even LGBTIs make themselves shiver with ice water to raise awareness of ALS, yet they remain apathetic to their own sexual identity.

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Homosexuals Won, TRT Lost Again!

Source: Halil Kandok, “Eşcinseller kazandı, TRT gene kaybetti!” (“Homosexuals Won, TRT Lost Again!,” ), Radikal Blog, 11 May 2014, http://blog.radikal.com.tr/Sayfa/escinseller-kazandi-trt-gene-kaybetti-59346

The Eurovision contest took place, again without TRT (Turkish Radio and Television Corporation) this year, and the Europeans did not miss TRT at all. The same enthusiasm and thrill were present. For several years some countries like Italy and Austria boycotted the contest and refrained from participating. Did we miss them then? No. Why would they miss us? TRT may continue to present the point system as an excuse to boycott the contest and pretend like it sits at the center of the world when in fact everyone is off having fun.

Actually, TRT is probably glad that they were not a part of Eurovision this year. Because this year would have been devastating for them. They would not have been able to tolerate a trans woman with a beard. Given that even our homosexuals and transsexuals have trouble coping with this sight, which contradicts gender perceptions, TRT would not have been able to indulge this at all, being the sexist institution that it is. As far as I know, they did not even air the show. As they declared last year, it seems that they were unwilling to spend money on a show that brings no ratings!

The winner of this year’s Eurovision is not just Austria’s contestant Conchita Wurst. Homosexuality and transsexuality are also winners. Conchita ranked at the top from beginning to end, receiving 10 or 12 points from nearly all of the participating countries. This shows that Europe no longer has a problem with homosexuality or transsexuality. Obviously, LGBTI communities would have voted for Conchita as well. This shows that LGBTI communities have been able to organize together.

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