A recent article on the Independent talks about the “changing face of tourism” in Turkey and how it supposedly “burnt a vital bridge between East and West.” In the article, Şebnem Arsu writes about the recent hike of Arab tourists; basically freaking out because some Arab shops have opened instead of Turkish ones and because European tourists have become less visible.
Read MoreTo write, to remember, because one feels a duty to do so can be exhausting, and there's nothing wrong with recognizing that the occupied, the exiled and those in-between can also fail. But even in failure, a way out is possible.
Read MoreThese views are like the intellectual manifestation of those inflatable things with flailing arms outside car dealerships. They’re ugly and they don’t make sense. We need to finally dispense with the unconditional celebration of Sovietism. 2017 is over. It’s now 102 years since the Bolshevik revolution, and 102nd anniversaries don’t mean shit.
Read More“Cities are unpredictable’’ says writer Teju Cole in his book Open City; “Once you give up insisting on stereotypes, you can really start to see’’. Seeing beyond one’s sight is often difficult especially in project-streets like İstiklal which are designed to hide the unwanted with either a secular Western facade or AKP’s money-drawing-shopping-star-project-district. In both cases, the real makers of the city are sacrificed in the name of formal, structural change.
Read MoreAs for my identity in Turkey well, for the Moros I am a Filipino, for the Filipinos I’m an American, and for the Americans, I finally get to be a fucking American. At least the Turks were consistent in labelling me a yabancı.
Read MoreThis is a reflection of how society is already polarised in terms of morality. This polarisation exists in ideas of taste and status but most importantly in the tendency of privileged circles to guard “their” scene against newcomers. It can be argued that this is contemporary Turkey in a nutshell. The ruling class who had the upper hand in setting cultural norms is now faced with the risk of losing things it took for granted.
Read MoreMorrissey's career has thus far gone unharmed and his views have not been collected. He has an overwhelmingly white fanbase, yet the alternative scene is not adverse to social justice and calling people out. I see a lot of activists in various political realms fighting great fights while failing to confront (or at least distance themselves from) The Problem of Morrissey.
Read MoreIf I had felt my own confusion about identity as a knot in my stomach, somebody else could have felt it as a compression in their chest, another as an ache on their shoulder.
Read MoreThose who identified with Charlie, who joined the march and claimed “Je suis Charlie” took part in the conjured unity of the attacked République and were part of that blood relationship, mourning their fathers.
Read MoreShould Syrians start demanding the right to return while knowing that it is a far-fetched dream - according to the current status quo at least? Will the experience of building “New Ratyan” give birth to a new Ghouta, new Daraa, new Daraya, etc in northern Syria?
Read MoreAs Mangal Media, we support every initiative which prioritises the wellbeing of students in hostile institutional environments. In this spirit, we share the open letter penned by concerned parties.
Read MoreAt that moment I realized that abolitionist laws — which were primarily pushed by the American Christian Right and were later adopted by Western feminist schools — are now being lobbied for by middle class feminist activists from developing countries who care little about actually protecting women, but would rather turn to the West for their moral compass.
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