Gay life in Turkey has taken a tumble over the past decade but it wasn’t always like this. Gay local, Saf from Ankara tells about his experiences growing up as an openly gay man in Turkey.
“There was a time when Turkey was way more progressive and Western-facing. It had a high level of freedom of speech and Istanbul even had one of the biggest Pride Marches in the world”.
So said our buddy Saf, an openly gay born-and-bred local from Ankara. In fact, there was a time when Turkey was a gay haven – at least it still is for LGBTQ people in the Middle East and in the Arab world which are home to some of the most dangerous places in the world for gay people.
We fell in love with Turkey when Sertab Erener won Eurovision in 2003 with the banger of a track “Everyway That I Am”, which became a staple in every gay club around the world. Sadly, Turkey withdrew from the Eurovision Song Contest in 2013, and hasn’t participated since! The Turkey we know today went the other way – Pride events are banned each year and LGBTQ laws in Turkey are almost non-existent.
We got the lowdown on what gay life is like in modern-day Turkey from Saf, who also told us about the gay scene across the country, and what life was like growing up there.
Hello Saf, please introduce yourself
Hey guys. My name is Saf Dogan. I was born in 1984 and I am an Account Director in a Global Marketing & PR Agency based in NYC. I am openly gay and in a long-term relationship with my boyfriend Doug who is originally from St. Louis.
I was born in Balikesir then grew up in Bursa and Ankara until the age of 25 before I moved to the US.
Were you openly gay growing up in Turkey?
Like most gay kids, I always knew I was “different”. I actually had a crush on this blonde boy back in kindergarten who I kissed on the cheek so hard that it left a mark and apparently his family complained. (My mom had told me this laughingly after I came out at 18).
From the age of 18, I started coming out to family and friends. I was fully out to everyone in my personal life, and over the years some relatives learned via my social media.
How did your parents react when you came out to them?
The first person I came out to was my mom. I had to come out as I was being harassed by someone I had met online back in 2003. I was in the US for a summer program and over the phone, I told her I was bisexual, (which is how I identified myself back then) to explain what was going on.
She said…
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