25/03/2015 | Writer: Ömer Akpınar
Islamist daily Vahdet accused students in headscarves supporting LGBTI rights at Ankara University of ‘being insensitive to society’s values’.
Islamist daily Vahdet accused students in headscarves supporting LGBTI rights at Ankara University of “being insensitive to society’s values”.
Islamist daily Vahdet, known for its hateful news against LGBTI (lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, intersex) people, targeted social work students at Ankara University who organized an event in support of an on-campus LGBTI group.
Muslims supporting LGBTI rights under attack
“Some ‘turbaned’ students organizing an event for ‘the rights of perverts’ together with sexual perverts reveal the last point of emptying the meaning of headscarf,” wrote Vahdet, blurring the faces of students in headscarves.
Vahdet continued to call Kaos GL Association as “the association of perverts” that gave support for the panel titled “A non-heteronormative social work is possible” and claimed that Social Worker Teaching Assistant Nazli Gizem Yildirim is known for her collaboration with perverted groups.
“Social work should stand up against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity”Yildirim underlined that social work is a discipline based on human rights and social justice and told kaosGL.org:
“Social work tries to empower power against oppression rather than adapting them to it. Therefore, social work must stand up against the male/female dichotomy and heterosexism which try to adapt people to some socially-accepted standards as ‘normal’. Since discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity prevents people from realizing themselves, it is important for social work to focus on it.”
Photo: Nazli Gizem Yildirim carrying a banner which reads "whose morality is general morality?"
“There are Muslims supportive of human rights of gays”
Umut Guner from Kaos GL Association criticized the daily for trying to create Muslim and gay enmity and expressed his gratitude to social work students supporting LGBTI rights:
“The article labels students in headscarves as ‘turbaned’ just like those who support the argument that headscarf is a political symbol. It is important that our friends in headscarves stand together with lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans people just like anyone else as a requisition of their field. The picture tells us: There are Muslim gays, there are Muslims supportive of human rights of gays. In this picture, I see social work students who are concerned about human rights issues of gays. It is also pleasing to see some people in headscarves among the group.”
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