From national discontent to urban rights claim : Gezi Park protests

Cities, with all their social economic and cultural connotations, are primary entities representing our hopes for a better future through better life conditions gained in them. At the same time, they are the battlegrounds of the conflicting classes struggling over the advantages that the city provides in a limited way. This makes cities both a promise and an obstacle for a satisfactory life. This contradictory characteristic encapsulates a collective right that is called the “right to the city”. The term refers to a claim of a better life by changing the unjust conditions of the city. The requirement for this right becomes more visible when cities’ development processes are solely subjected to profit-oriented mechanisms. In this context, May 2013 witnessed a clear demand for the right to the city in Turkey. Gezi protests showed how a profit-oriented urban transformation process can result in the strong opposition of people who demand an alternative and just approach to the production of urban spaces. Within the framework of this study, the analysis starts with the explanation of the controversial condition of political economy and its urban reflections in Turkey to define the problem. Following this, the theoretical background concentrates on the evolution of “Cities for People Not for Profit” slogan and right to the city concept. The final part covers the Gezi Park movement. Its background in different scales of personal, public, national and symbolic dimensions is discussed to provide information about the causes of the movement and their relationship to the presented theoretical framework