HeForShe Türkiye celebrates its 8th anniversary together with HeForShe lawyer Kerem Bürsin and young people from all over Turkey
HeForShe Türkiye has left behind seven years of advocacy for gender equality.
To celebrate this anniversary, renowned actor and HeForShe advocate Kerem Bürsin and young activists gathered to discuss issues related to gender equality and the transformation of harmful masculinities.
Photo: © Photo: İlkin Eskipehlivan, UN Women
Young people from all over Turkey met with HeForShe lawyer and famous actor Kerem Bürsin in a workshop to celebrate the eighth anniversary of the HeForShe movement. Held on September 20 in Istanbul, the gathering provided a conducive space for young women and men to have an honest debate about gender equality and harmful masculinities together with Kerem Bürsin. Putting young activists at the center of the meeting, the workshop facilitated conversations about gender inequalities, ways to notice these inequalities and how to transform society to achieve an egalitarian future.
At the event, actor Kerem Bürsin, who was announced as a HeForShe Defender in December last year, highlighted the importance of solidarity against inequalities and the important role men play in it: ” I am very grateful to meet young friends and work with them to achieve gender equality. Hearing their challenges and ideas to overcome them makes me feel that change is possible and that together we can do it. According to the latest UN Women report, gender equality will only be achieved after 300 years if we keep going at this rate. We need to accelerate progress, and men should take an active role in it. Men should bring together – themselves more often, talk about their experiences and be persistent in finding ways to eliminate inequalities. This event is the first of the meetings we will do together with young people and young people. We will continue to meet with young people , raising awareness and discussing the transformative role of men in construction of an equal future.
After the discussion, young women and men created slogans based on the main results of the discussion and placed them on banners. The workshop arrived and counted the voices of young people by placing the messages on banners that were posted under the hashtag #IfNotMeWho on Twitter.
Şerif Esin, a student, studying Computer Engineering in Urfa, a city bordering Syria, shared his opinion on the discussion with the following words: “Hearing new perspectives made me aware of gender inequalities what is in our society and what kind of privileges I have. I have only because I am a man. I understood the reasons for some behaviors that I didn’t realize before. There are certain expectations in society, such as “men should not cry or dance”. What if I want to cry, or what if dancing is the best way to express myself? I don’t want to get caught up in other people’s expectations just because I’m a man. Gender roles that negatively affect men affect women to a greater extent and lead to inequalities for all. Being in a room full of people who had similar goals was hopeful. I believe with all my heart that there is no challenge we cannot overcome as we work together to live in an equal world.”
Sinem Aydın, coordinator of HeForShe Türkiye, stated that working with Kerem Bürsin is essential to mobilize young people against gender inequalities. “Questioning the factors that give rise to prejudice and discrimination is one of the first steps to transform our societies. The traditional norms and values assigned to men and women from birth are the root causes of the inequalities we witness today. Men should realize the privileges they have just because they are men and stand shoulder to shoulder with women to achieve gender equality. The efforts and positive examples that men make for gender equality should be more evident in society. To carry out this idea, we will continue to work side by side with young people and prominent figures such as Kerem Bürsin”.
HeForShe Türkiye and Kerem Bürsin will continue to meet with young men and women across Turkey and facilitate discussions to raise awareness about gender equality, harmful masculinities and the role men play in transforming society. The banners created throughout the workshops will become an exhibition, sharing the messages of young women and men from across the country.
