‘We will keep on painting everywhere in colors’

* Photo: METU students

Click to read the article in Turkish

The students of Middle East Technical University (METU) in Turkey's capital city of Ankara object to the de facto ban imposed on rainbow flags at the campus of Boğaziçi University in İstanbul and they stand up against the attempts to "intimidate" differences in all areas of life.

Students, with this objection in mind, "colored" the stairs at their campus on March 28. Then, the METU administration painted them in gray. Students colored them back in colors. This time, the Rector's Office used red and white colors, which it defined as "the colors of METU".

But the METU students "insisted" on rainbow colors and helped the stairs at their campus "reunite with their colors" one more time.

Similar to what has been happening in Boğaziçi for nearly 4 months, they are now also struggling against the appointed rector of METU.

Investigation against students

Yesterday (April 21), the students of the university who painted the stairs at the METU campus with the slogan "Everywhere is Boğaziçi, everywhere is resistance" were informed that an investigation would be launched against them over their protests from a week ago.

In an email sent from the Rector's Office of Prof. Verşan Kök, who is also an appointed rector, the students were told that "the freedom of painting anywhere they like at the university campus or doing whatever they want in campus life without getting a permission cannot be considered a freedom to be enjoyed by a certain group of students among 26 thousand students."

According to the Rector's Office, the reason for the investigation is the slogans written on the walls such as "We don't want a trustee-rector", "A longing for being without Bulu", "No to trustee." The Office also said, "The process of painting stairs has reached very different dimensions."

METU students Yaprak Delfin Turgan and Tunahan Gözlügöl have spoken to bianet about "the process of painting the stairs."

'We are here, we exist'

Yaprak Delfin: We insist on struggling against practices that involve violence against LGBTI+ individuals and community. There is already a climate of pressure exerted on our differences and colors by the appointed trustee-rectors. Painting the stairs in rainbow colors, we started this struggle, saying, "We are here with our colors, we exist."

'We painted them, they covered it'

Tunahan: Some friends were detained for openin rainbow flags at Boğaziçi University. They have started to criminalize LGBTI+ colors starting with this. In order to draw attention to this, we painted the most frequently used stairs of METU. We painted them, they covered it, we painted them again, they also covered it again.

'We stand in solidarity with Boğaziçi'

Yaprak Delfin: We experience the pressure of trustees together at the universities and in the country. We demand the same thing as our friends at Boğaziçi University. We solidarize with them. Here, Verşan Kök makes a move to directly intimidate LGBTI+ and our colors. Therefore, he is in the position of the government's pawn.

What Verşan Kök has been doing

Tunahan: We can summarize what Verşan Kök has been doing as follows: "He has done everything other than students' problems." For instance, after he was appointed in 2016, he made a presentation in the 2nd semester. We talked about the deficiencies at school. He mocked students, in a sense, saying, "I bought washing machines for the dorms and a machine to dry the trays at the dining hall." Then, he was "positioned" similar to the government. Investigations were launched against students, reprimands were given. They have started to use the students that they profile as a punishment.

'Until the trustees leave...'

Yaprak Delfin: All university students and LGBTI+ community experience this pressure together. We are aware that unless we struggle against trustee-rectors, we will be unable to exist freely at our campuses. We will not get tired of saying that we will not accept them. Verşan Kök cannot be a rector of METU and Melih Bulu cannot be rector of Boğaziçi. We will not be intimidated until all trustees leave.

'Free paint' to support students

Tunahan: Our protest has started to get so much support. For instance, a few days ago, an alumnus bought us paint. People said they wanted to offer support, they made a contribution and we now have eight boxes of 'free paint'. So, we are supported by both the alumni of our university and the people living in the vicinity of the school. We will keep on painting as long as we have paint. In fact, the stairs have turned into a site of festival for us. We have started to perform the pride parade that we cannot hold because it is banned. As long as they do not stop, we will keep painting everywhere in colors.

(DŞ/SD)

RAINBOW FROM METU TO BOĞAZİÇİ