LGBTQ activists in Turkey brutally beaten by police while celebrating Pride Month
As Pride kicks off around the world, queer communities everywhere are reminded time and time again that many places in the world still have a long ways to go when it comes to legitimizing their queer populations. On Sunday, a small group of LGBTQ activists in Turkey was beaten by police for peacefully protesting LGBTQ issues on the street at the beginning of Pride month.
On Sunday evening, members of the organization that is responsible for Istanbul Pride gathered to read a statement and welcome the beginning of Pride 2022. According to reports, the small group of activists was soon swarmed by hundreds of riot police. Allegedly, 11 arrests were made.
While Turkey is not known to be super progressive when it comes to LGBTQ matters, this seems like a bit of an overkill. The national police force, the General Directorate of Security, and the riot squad were all deployed to tend to the very small group of activists. Community members on the street booed the police as they rounded up the activists into vans and carted them away.
Some of the LGBTQ activists arrested were later released. These folks took to social media to post pictures of the injuries obtained at the hands of police while in custody in the vans.
In 2021, Istanbul’s Pride Parade ended in tragedy, with law enforcement showering attendees with tear gas and rubber bullets. In 2021, approximately 20 people were arrested then, too. Parade organizers are allegedly expecting much the same show from law enforcement this year, as well, especially in light of this show of force from this weekend’s event.
Turkey’s president has tried to erase the queer population in Turkey, calling them perverts and pretending that they don’t even exist. It’s because of homophobic efforts like this that the parade organizers stated that more than ever, this year’s parade will not only be a celebration of queerness but also a protest – just like pride parades started out as.
“We are strong together, we continue to exist,” İstanbul LGBTİ+ Onur Haftası said. “Happy Pride.”
Istanbul’s Pride Parade is scheduled for June 26. We wish them a safe, prosperous, and peaceful day of celebration and protest.
