Malatya Youth Initiative Against Homophobia and Transphobia

Malatya Pride: We are neither alone, nor wrong!

Source: “Malatya’da onur yürüyüşü: Ne yalnızız, ne de yanlış!” (“Malatya Pride: We are neither alone, nor wrong!”) Kaos GL, June 23, 2014, http://kaosgl.org/page.php?id=16931

The Malatya Youth Initiative against Homophobia and Transphobia held the first ever pride parade in the city.

“At school, at work, in the parliament, gays are everywhere – Malatya Youth Initiative against Homophobia and Transphobia”

The eastern city of Malatya hosted participants from the surrounding cities such as Adiyaman, Antep, Bingol and Elazig as well as from Istanbul. Although the police did not let the parade take place in the planned route, those who watched the parade from their balconies showed their support with their zilgit (tongue lashing) and those driving by honking.
The rainbow family group “Families of LGBTs in Istanbul (LISTAG)” who came to Malatya for the screening of the documentary “My Child” which tells the stories of families that have LGBT kids also joined the parade.

“I am a mother of a gay, My child is gay, My daughter is lesbian”

Malatya Youth Initiative against Homophobia and Transphobia is one of the local LGBT groups that have formed after the Gezi Park protests last year.

“Faggots, do not organize in Malatya or else it will be bad!”

Yıldız Tar, “İbneler, Malatya’da Örgütlenmeyin Kötü Olur” (“Faggots, do not organize in Malatya or else it will be bad!”), KaosGL.org, 2 May 2014, http://kaosgl.org/sayfa.php?id=16484

On April 29, in Malatya, “unidentified individuals” assaulted and threatened a gay youth: Do not organize in Malatya or else the result will be bad!”

Attacks continue against  LGBTI people’s (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and intersex) struggles for freedom, equality and existence.

A member of the Malatya Youth Initiative Against Homophobia and Transphobia was assaulted by “unidentified individuals” on April 29th in Malatya. The assailants seized the gay youth’s phone and threatened them: “Do not organize in Malatya, if you go further, we are not responsible for what happens.”

“Do not organize in Malatya; we are not responsible for what happens!”

Emir Çoban, the threatened person’s roommate and member of the Malatya Youth Initiative Against Homophobia and Transphobia, told kaosGL.org what happened:

“My roommate left work to go home on April 29th. On his way home, at around 10:00 pm, they blocked his way. They held his arms; they asked for his phone and money. My roommate gave it to them. They then threatened my roommate. They said, “Do not organize in Malatya; if you go further, we will not be responsible for what happens.”

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