17/10/2019 | Writer: Kaos GL

IGLYO member organizations from Turkey wrote an open letter to IGLYO: “Unfortunately the times which we dwell inside, remarks our differences rather than our similiraties. Under this circumstances, the class unbalance between activists intensifies.”

Open letter to IGLYO from IGLYO member organizations from Turkey Kaos GL - News Portal for LGBTI+

IGLYO member organizations from Turkey wrote an open letter which remarks economic imbalances and difficulties regarding participiation to international events. The letter was written by Genç LGBTİ+ and signed by Özgür Renkler, SPoD, Pembe Hayat and Kaos GL.

“Firstly we would like to mention, we are deeply saddened by the fact that we aren’t able to attend general assembly this year, as much like the previous one. But we have to clarify that the reason we are not able to be here, is not simply because we couldn’t find an available delegate.”

“Even though we are following closely your, our European friends, works and successes with a huge interest, unfortunately we, activists from Turkey, are having a hard time in making our voices heard. Although there are several reasons for that, we would like to focus on some specific ones today.”

“Like all developments throughout the world, financial problems are affecting us like all countries. And even more, we are being affected more roughly compared to our Western and Northern European friends. Let alone coming up with a budget to send a delegate to an assembly abroad, we are having hard times with finding funds and support for the projects we are already working on. At the final state, we are even having a hard time in reaching out to funds that are necessary in keeping our offices open and working.”

“In such conditions, imbalances between activists from different regions based on class are getting stronger. Sadly, even though we all are struggling for our identities and for a free world, and that we come together with our love for struggle and our survival strength, our resilience, like all worsening global conditions - whether climate change, or financial depressions - these last times draw attention to our differences, rather than our similarities.”

“As you can understand, as organisations having trouble with supplying fundamental resources for ourselves, let alone the required contribution fee, even if it is reimbursed later, finding budgets specifically for transportation expenses, the visa fees that are really expensive especially when converted into original currency is almost impossible for us. This condition can lead to diminishing of our voice, that we got hardly, and sadly we guess that we activists from Turkey aren’t the only ones in this sense. And though it seems as if we have at least one shared language, sometimes the language barriers prevents possible participations and/or our communication.”

“We needed to write this statement to make a call for working on problems that are arising in Europe, and in the World generally, keeping in mind the advantages and disadvantages of everyone, and coming up with intersectional solutions. Because we fear that, in a saddening future, if we do not come up with solutions to problems that seems to be happening only a group of people, the voice of those groups may get lost in activism area. We are thankful that you are trying to come up with spaces for our voices to be heard, and we wish for no one to lose their voices, and to say keep up with the struggle!”


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