Everywhere is Taksim, Everywhere is Resistance

Tuesday, Prime Minister Erdogan will be at our hotel….  I don’t think we’ll be there but that’s still pretty amazing.  He’s coming to Vilayetler Evi for a conference, will make a few remarks and then leave.  We can't be in the building unless we want to be sequestered or our rooms so we're headed to a mall for the afternoon following our morning at an Ankara private school.  The school is kindergarten through 12th grade.  We get to tour the facility and meet some Turkish teachers... now you're speaking my language!  At the mall we can shop, hit up the book store, sit in a cafe and work and relax a bit.  We've been on the go since we landed 8 days ago.  

Here is a brief update on the protests.  We’ve been in the countryside for most of the week and weekend but we’re hearing news from the people and still trying to follow things closely.  I would be in the thick of things but perhaps I shouldn’t get tear gassed or arrested….. just a thought.  We continue to hound Suat, our guide, for information.  Prime Minister Erdogan and his political party have gone on the defensive.  He has announced there will NOT be early elections and he’s NOT resigning.  The next elections will be held in 2014.  Under his order the police have pulled out of Taksim Square, leaving the protesters be in an “Occupy Wall Street” type manner.  In Izmir the protests have turned into a festival with fireworks and celebrations.  Here also, the police are leaving the people alone.  However, in Ankara, the police continue to intervene using tear gas and plastic bullets.  The young people of Ankara seem to have created a “game” out of inciting the police and then heading out to the local bar. 

While at the Open Air museum two days ago, we heard some people chanting from atop one of the large rock structures.  Suat immediately joined in.  We leaned they were saying in Turkish, “Everywhere is Taksim, Everywhere is Resistance.”  This is just one of the phrases recited by the protesters.  “We are the soldiers of Atatürk” is another.  Atatürk is the beloved first president of Turkey.  Under Atatürk's leadership people had many personal freedoms.  Atatürk staunchly believed in secularism and created a Turkish nation where although Islam is the main religion, it doesn't mix with politics and the goverment.  Erdogan is mixing the two and it's created the tension that lead to the current status of people in the streets protesting.  (click here for more on this)   

The movement grows daily.  Unlike the “Occupy” moment in America which it’s been compared to, this truly has the potential to make change.  We’ll know more and more during our stay, especially during our time in Istanbul and watch the progression before leaving at the end of June.  Stay tuned.  

I spoke too soon... it's now early Tuesday afternoon and we're hearing that as of 7:27 am today, the police in Istanbul have attacked the protesters and are forcefully removing them from Taksim Square.  While at the school today (which was beautiful and so welcoming to our party) we had lunch with the staff and students.  During lunch we heard the clink of silverware on the glasses.  All the students joined in and it got quite loud.  This is sign of their solidarity to the protest movement.  The teachers allowed it to continue and the noise died down after about a minute and a half.  The teachers and administrators shared with us they are part of the protests too!  After work they join the protests and demonstrate their support for the removal of Erdogan.  Erdogan's tactics of pushing his ideas on the people and essentially doing whatever he wants has isolated him from the people and caused this discourse.  Turks want Ataturk's legacy to live on with the continuation of democracy.  Now that I'm Turkish, this is what I want too!  Actually, I'm just for civil rights for all humans, even though Turkish humans are my favorite right now.