LGBTQ Art Arrests Inflame Turkey Student Protests
On 2/1/21 at 11:06 AM EST
Turkish authorities arrested four people over LGBTQ-themed artwork displayed at the country's most prestigious university, fuelling on-campus protests over academic freedom and human rights.
Unrest at Istanbul's Bogazici University began last month with the appointment of a new university rector. Academic Melih Bulu, who assumed the role, has ties to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's Justice and Development Party, which protesting students and faculty believed would stifle academic freedom at the top school.
On-campus tensions were further stoked following an art exhibit meant as a form of resistance against Bulu as rector. Bogazici student art collective BOUN Sanat Direnisi said it had posted an open call for artwork to display, resulting in hundreds of submissions from artists in Turkey and beyond.