25/02/2022 | Writer: Yıldız Tar
“I had to use my trans woman journalist identity for the first time because of this case, I was forced to do it. This is also sorrowful. Since I want to exist only with my ‘journalist’ identity.”
Journalist Deniz Elin Deniz announced that her articles were removed from Ocak Medya without any notice. Deniz told that they had offered her authorship five months ago however they announced that they had removed her articles without giving an account to her, in the previous days.
Telling her experience to KaosGL:org, Deniz told that following their proposal, they desired to benefit from an international fund thanks to Deniz’s trans woman identity and she accepted, however her articles were removed after five months.
Reminding that she was fired from Yeni Şafak, where she had been working for six years, 20 years ago in 2002, due to her gender identity and this time her articles were removed from Ocak Medya similarly, she said: “No one is forced to work with certain people, they could say that my articles did not suit them. My articles in which I did demolition job on Kaos GL, are still there. My articles for Yeni Şafak, where I was fired from due to my gender identity, are still there. What’s up with removing archive?”
“Your LGBTI identity is not a problem, even you may write about LGBTI”
As the story goes, directors of Ocak Medya made an offer to Deniz for taking place among their authors five months ago. Deniz answered the proposal as: “I do not think they would prefer to work with me. I know some of the team from Yeni Şafak. They know my trans identity.” She decided to work with them and started to write having received the answer: “Your LGBTI identity is not a problem, even you may write about LGBTI.” Just then, they told her they would apply an international fund and they desired to mention that they were working with a trans woman journalist. Deniz explains her motive of admission as follows:
“I thought that my queer identity, which was as useless an ashtray on a motorbike till then, may serve a useful purpose and I accepted. I told them: ‘I know your economic conditions, I do not have much financial expectation but at least do not neglect my insurance.’ And they told that they would both insure and remunerate as soon as they find a fund. Nothing happened along passing months. They always postponed the salary and insurance, they strung along.”
“Did the articles disturb someone?”
While Deniz was going on her articles for Ocak Medya, her press card has reached her. It seemed that everything was right on track, a statement of employment was made, and two days later statement of discharge was made. And all articles, that belong to Deniz, in the website of Ocak Medya were removed,
“I didn’t see around it, if my articles disturbed someone or not. I don’t want to accuse them wrongly. If they had told me they were not able to pay either salary or the insurance fee, I could go on writing occasionally. It would not be sorrowful for me, either. What is the reason of goings-on? I am rattled. Following the positive result of my celiac test in the beginning of January, I had written a spiffing article on celiac and it was shared in-between all celiac groups. I was very happy on my own behalf. That article has also gone away. An author may depart from somewhere however the articles remain in the archive.”
Deniz has not received an explanation from Ocak Medya yet. Her e-mail, which was about reloading her articles to website, written three days ago, was also left unanswered. As for the other authors, on her own words, who lined up for writing “welcome” message when she started to write, keep their silence.
The most boring part of this experience for Deniz was being forced to become the main topic of conversation with her trans identity:
“I had to use my trans woman journalist identity for the first time because of this case, I was forced to do it. This is also sorrowful. Since I want to be exist only with my ‘journalist’ identity.”
Translation: Selma Koçak
Tags: media, labour
