On this day in 2013, Turkish protesters began occupying Gezi Park to oppose its demolition, an act with led to widespread protests and strikes with approximately 3,500,000 participants, 22 deaths, and more than 8,000 injuries.
The wave of civil unrest across Turkey began after the park occupation was violently evicted by police, who used to tear gas, pepper spray, and water cannons to try and break up the protests, injuring more than one hundred people and hospitalizing a journalist.
The protest quickly grew in size - by May 31st, 10,000 gathered in Istiklal Avenue. In June, the protests became national in scope and transcended any particular demographic or political ideology. Among the wide range of concerns brought by protesters were issues of freedom of the press, expression, and assembly, as well as the alleged political Islamist government's erosion of Turkey's secularism.
Millions of Turkish football fans, normally divided by intense sports rivalry, marched in unity against the government. Protesters displayed symbols the environmentalist movement, rainbow banners, depictions of Che Guevara, different trade unions, and the PKK and its leader Abdullah Öcalan.
On June 4th, Taksim Dayanışması (Taksim Solidarity) issued a set of demands that included the preservation of Gezi Park, an end to police violence, the right to freedom of assembly, and an end to the privatization of public spaces. Deputy Prime Minister Bülent Arınç met the group on June 5th and rejected these demands.
Erdoğan blamed the protests on "internal traitors and external collaborators", demonizing his political opposition as the former. Despite the popular mobilization, Erdoğan remained in power and no major concessions were won from the government.
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Although I'm glad Tiktok is allowing people to grow conscious of the crimes the US perpetuates internationally through foreign policy, especially with isntreal, I'm worried about the consciousness people are developing as they can still be un/mis informed and reluctant to develop greater understanding outside the platform.
It's so hard to see how intellectually incurious allistic people are. I need information like I need air.
I can't even get people in my life to take ten minutes to read Why Marxism? yet they will watch six hours of reality TV sewage
It breaks my heart because if you aren't inclined to struggle with yourself to educate, then you'll really just fall for whatever somebody says that sounds nice.
Maybe the solution is bite sized theory or something where it's like picture books and info graphics.
at least I will be able to say "I told you so" to the other members of my cannibal raider gang
Consciousness is built through irl organizing. You can become interested and horrified by a TikTok video but our efforts are best spent by doing good work organizing protests, supporting/organizing the campus occupations, that kind of thing. Get people to go to one event and use that event to have direct conversations about going to your own organization's events.
If you're in an org, do the above authentically. Your org should recruit because it is doing good work, not do half-assed work because it's trying to recruit. But recruiting is essential. And it can begin by simply having a reading group that is funneled into doing work or having a field group that is funneled into doing readings.
If you're not in an org, join one!