“It is time to be us!”

How does a society’s outlook towards minorities change? When we understand that the mindscapes that have been in place for many years, the marginalisation, in short, the realities that have been forced upon us do not answer our questions; that is the point in which we need to change our point of view. The elections on June 7th were not only the victory of one party; they are a hope for the future for “minorities” who have never before been able to express themselves in their true colours.

The meaning of June 7th election for the minorities living in Turkey is that the “mosaic of Turkey” that we always feel the absence of may be reconstructed. For the first time since 1955, three separate parties have nominated Armenian citizens as MP candidates and all three have been elected for parliament. Despite the general lack of information, the disinformation and their own societies, these candidates that were regarded as “Incognito” have provided courage to those who are remaining. Undoubtedly, the minority MPs that have entered parliament have not only offered hope to the Armenians, Assyrians and Alevis, they have also provided hope to Jews that we can all live as equal citizens. Have you ever seen a party leader who has also thanked our “Jewish” citizens, minutes after passing the electoral threshold? Or a leader with the courage to acknowledge that the votes cast for him were “entrusted” votes and was able to continually emphasize this fact? The majority who voted for Selahattin Demirtas for the first time, believed in his dedicated to change, despite his power base. This change is not only the Kurdish issue, the cessation of terror and the establishment of lasting peace; it is the struggle for existence of all marginalised communities ranging from femicide to the problems of the Alevi, Armenian and Jewish communities. As it can be seen from the Guardian declaring this victory under the heading “Kurdish Obama”, the voters who believed that HDP should pass the threshold and be represented in parliament believed in, first and foremost, the language of “peace” used by Demirtas and his sincerity.  The image of the modern family that we had all missed and was pictured by the media frequently even from the first day of campaigning, his steeping up to the podium with his party co-leader Figen Yuksekdag, who he announced by saying “He was her co-leader”, his calls to the ruling party that were sometimes harsh but proud, and were many times ironic, all showed that he was a candidate for a party for all of Turkey, not just one community. Some voted for him because they appreciated him playing the saz like “one of us”, others because of how he lovingly stroked the hair of the child who enthusiastically approached him to take a “selfie” and in the excitement referred to him on a first name basis. Just like many of my young friend around me, a significant amount of the Gezi youth also cast their vote for the HDP, even if these votes were being entrusted. Even though it was said that the votes were shifting from one side to another, it was not the case; as the youth was consciously casting their vote in this election and giving him a chance. It is obvious that those who view every Kurd as a separatist, every Armenian as a traitor and every Jew as a conspiring superior mind must now understand that the language of anger and hatred gain favour in any society. It is time for the voters of a party that is still representing almost 20 million votes to willingly join this peace, to collectively tackle our problems and sensitivities, overcome our fear and become us.    

Let me state without any reservation: in this period in which we were unable to breathe, when Jews were accused of being behind every problem, where many of us thought that we would someday have to leave the country, on the morning of the 8th of June many Turkish Jews woke up with the belief that we could live in harmony under this flag as equal citizens. It is now the time to build bridges and set tables of friendship, without discarding the gains made in recent years during the present administration. During these past five years, as we have been pushed to the edges as a society, when we have been unable to even grieve together, it is now the time to tend to our pains and celebrate our common joy. If you will excuse me, we are this country’s minorities, the Armenians, Jews, Greeks, Kurds and Alevis who have been unable to express themselves for 13 years, who have been ignored. Is it not time to leave our common fears behind and just be “us”?

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