2011: The Istanbul Feminist Collective’s Statement on Participation in the March 8 Daytime Rally
Hello,
During the contentious process in the March 8 Platform’s preparatory meetings for the rally, the platform had reached agreement on naming the sexual harassment that occurred at KESK and including it in the rally statement. Afterwards, DÖKH stated that it did not consider the expression “woman subjected to sexual harassment” correct and demanded its removal from the text. At this point, because we did not consider it right to debate the wording and seek a compromise expression, we withdrew as the Istanbul Feminist Collective from the process of organising the rally. This stance by DÖKH, with whom we place great importance on struggling together, against saying “sexual harassment exists”, damaged trust for us. However, despite this stance, we see the collective will shown within the platform to oppose sexual harassment and act in solidarity as very important.
At the end of this process, our own enthusiasm for the rally and sense of solidarity were damaged, and different views emerged about whether to attend. There is no difference of opinion among us about naming what happened at KESK sexual harassment, but as a result of the process some friends think it right to attend and others not to attend. For this reason, we decided not to participate as an organised group in the March 8 Rally to be held on March 5. As the Istanbul Feminist Collective, we will not be at the rally this year.
Istanbul Feminist Collective