Dursun Ali Bulut

An Ugly March…

Source: Dursun Ali Bulut, “Çirkin Yürüyüş” (“An Ugly March…”), Milli Gazete, 29 June 2014, http://m.milligazete.com.tr/haber/Cirkin_Yuruyus/325704

The kinds of sexual perversion that stand opposed to human nature and are strictly banned by God as well as the efforts to legitimize these perversions are becoming more daring by the day.

Gays who have been able to form associations for years now and who receive support from various circles, especially the European Union, roamed the streets during Ramadan. The 22nd LGBTI march to be organized on the second day of Sacred Ramadan aims to throw the biggest party in Istanbul with 100 thousand participants. Members of the organizing committee say that they have been working like crazy and are moving forward very fast adding the following: “This year, our goal is to include the entire city. We have been organizing the march in Istanbul for 12 years. Twelve years ago, we only had fifty people walking or delivering the press declaration. Now, we are organizing a march that is to be attended by over 100 thousand people. We are a huge family and we cannot be stopped!

They want to enter each home

LGBTI member Görkem Ulumeriç says, “We want to enter each home and communicate with everyone and we have a lot more left to do.” Another LGBTI organization committee member Şevval Kılıç says, “We have been working like crazy. We were able to achieve our current day success by communicating with everyone around us: With Kurds, feminists, socialist, anti-militarists, and environmentalists… We wish to highlight this. When there were 20 or 30 thousand of us marching, we thought ‘Wow, it is so nice that there are so many of us this year.’ Then we saw last year that the march included 60 or 70 thousand people. There were too many of us for Istiklal Avenue to hold. And this year, we expect 100 thousand people.”

“Twelve years ago we were 50, now we are 100 thousand people”

Ulumeriç claims that the disgrace they put forth is the greatest activity in Istanbul. He adds, “They start preparing days in advance; they pick out their costumes. They share photos on social media websites and they tweet. This year, we are preparing for 100 thousand people. Istanbul is a huge city; our aim is to organize this march with a million people. This should be a festivity, like any other. You know like, when you think about what you will wear for some occasion and anticipate it with excitement, like the new years’, and when you know you will have a great time and see your friends and your loved ones…”

They spread all over the country like cancer

This disgrace that has spread all over the country like cancer continues to expand each day. LGBTI individuals state that they are active in many parts of Anatolia: “Many LGBTI persons have the courage to organize. Take for instance, Hewi LGBT, which is the Kurdish LGBTI initiative. There is an organization now in Malatya and one in Trabzon called the Purple Fish. Dersim LGBTI is newly founded; the Mersin organization became an association and the Hebun formation in Diyarbakır also became an association. There is the Kars LGBTI organization. And last year Pride Parades were organized in Izmir and in Antalya. This year, there will be one in Malatya too. Finally, the panel on local Anatolian LGBTI organizations will take place on 27 June.”