Turkish authorities have ordered an exhibition in Istanbul on trans history to shut down. Turn and See Back: Revisiting Trans Revolutions in Turkey opened at non-profit space Depo Istanbul on 26 June.
According to organisers, a notice from a district governor claimed that the show incited hatred amongst the public, the Art Newspaper reports.
Located in a former tobacco warehouse in central Istanbul, Depo was converted into a cultural space in 2008 after undergoing renovation work. In 2017, its founder Osman Kavala was arrested in on the accusation of attempting to overthrow the government during the 2013 Gezi Park protests and the failed coup d’état attempt in 2016. In 2022, he was sentenced to life in prison despite a European Court of Human Rights order for his release.
The censorship marks a rare case where an exhibition has been directly banned by the authorities in Turkey. The intervention comes amid Turkey’s increasingly rigid stance regarding LGBTQ+ issues after the election and reelection of its populist president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, who referred to Turkey’s queer communities last year as ‘deviants’ who threaten Turkey’s ‘family structure’.
‘Verbal and physical violence against LGBTQ communities has slowly risen and Pride and Trans marches have been banned,’ since Erdoğan became president, writes Kaya Genç of Turkey’s LGBTQ art scene shortly after this year’s pride month. ‘With Erdoğan’s reelection, it remains unclear what the future holds for the LGBTQ community.’
