Türkiye’deki gay erkeklerin kültürel kimlik müzakeresi: Aitlikten yabancılaşmaya ve küresel gay diyasporasına geçiş

Öz

Bu makale, Türkiye’deki gay erkeklerin Türk kültürünü nasıl tanımladıklarına ve kendilerini Türk kültürünün sıradan tüketicileri ya da onun yabancıları olarak tanıtmalarına odaklanarak, kültürel kimliklerini nasıl inşa ettiklerini ve Türk kültürüne ne kadar aidiyet hissettiklerini bulmayı amaçlamaktadır. Bu çerçevede, makale ayrıca kültürel kimliğin oluşumunda oldukça etkili olan küreselleşmeye de önem vermektedir. Yani, Türkiye’deki mevcut şartların yanı sıra küreselleşmenin ve küresel gay kültürünün tanıdığı imkânların da gay bireylerin kültürel kimliklerini oluşturmada nasıl bir rol oynadıklarını da tartışmayı amaçlamaktayız. Dolayısıyla sorularımızı gay bireylerin Türk kültürünü nasıl tanımladıklarını, kendilerini bu kültürün içinde nasıl konumlandırdıklarını, ne kadar içinde hissettiklerini ve küresel gey kültürünü Türkiye'deki koşullarla karşılaştırarak nasıl yorumladıklarını göz önüne alarak şekillendiriyoruz. Görüşmelere dayanarak, Türkiye'deki geylerin kendilerini yalnızca organik olarak ilişkili oldukları ve kendilerini genellikle yabancı hissettikleri Türk kültürüyle özdeşleştirmedikleri sonucuna varıyoruz. Ayrıca, küreselleşmenin etkisinin bir sonucu olarak kendilerini kültürel olarak diyasporik gey topluluklarının üyeleri olarak hissetmektedirler.

Anahtar Kelimeler

• Kültürel kimlik
• Türkiye’deki gay erkekler
• yabancı
• küresel gay kültürü
• diyaspora

Negotiating cultural identity among gay men in Turkey: From belonging to becoming Strangers, to the diaspora of global gay

Abstract

This article aims to figure out how gay men in Turkey construct their cultural identities and to what extend they feel a sense of belonging to Turkish culture by focusing on how they define Turkish culture, whether they identify themselves as ordinary consumers of Turkish culture or as strangers to it. While doing so, the article also pays attention to impact of globalization which is considerably influential upon the formation of cultural identities. That is, in addition to the circumstances available in Turkey, we aim to discuss how the possibilities enabled by globalization and global gay culture play a significant role for the ways gays construct their cultural identities. Thus, our questions are formed in accordance with the way they define Turkish culture, how they position themselves within it, to what extend they feel as a part of it, and how they interpret global gay culture by comparing it to the circumstances available in Turkey. Based on interviews, we conclude that gays in Turkey do not identify themselves merely with the Turkish culture that they are organically related to and within which they often feel as strangers. Moreover, they culturally feel as members of the diasporic gay communities as a result of the impact of globalization.

Keywords

• Cultural Identity
• Gay Men in Turkey
• Stranger
• Global Gay Culture
• Diaspora

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