Don't Tell Me to be Safe in Turkey
I’ve been in Turkey for a little over a month. In that time, it still feels like the world is literally ending in the United States. Coronavirus rates are only beginning to drop despite the possibility of another wave. Another Black man was nearly killed by the police. Wildfires have tormented the western part of the nation with blinding smoke, the skies seeming to signal an apocalyptic demise.
At the same time folks have been asking me since I left: “Are you sure it’s ok to travel right now?” or “Is it safe in Turkey? There’s so much going on …”
Coronoavirus travel is risky, and understandable to question (despite the changes of getting the virus on airplanes being quite slim). But dig deeper, and you’ll realize COVID is only one part of the inquisition.
Turkey still remains a bit of an anomaly for Americans. Is it more like Europe? Or is it the Middle East? To answer the latter, no -- and it’s also one of the best ways to annoy a Turk.
To answer the other question, I’ll flat out say that I have never felt more safe in İstanbul and the places I’ve been to in Turkey. İstanbul is a highly-industrialized, world-class city with 15 million residents and over 50 million visitors that entered Turkey last year. Despite challenges with the language barrier, the hospitality and humility of the people just can’t be compared to other metropolises. I’ve never, ever felt generally threatened or fearful, even as a queer Black person.
The idea of Turkey being unsafe is wrapped up in our own western and colonized ideas of safety, privilege and sadly, Islam, even though Turkey identifies itself a secular nation. If it’s not Paris, Tokyo, Hawaii or somewhere grossly familiar – or worse, somewhere where Muslim people live – it’s unequivocally questioned. But since explaining what privilege is to the average traveler isn’t enough, here are some statistics:
Number of homicides in 2019
NYC: 319 total or 3.98 per 100,000 people
İstanbul: 282 total or 1.88 per 100,000 people
Number of robberies in 2019
NYC (transit crimes) – 4714 or 59 per 100,000 people
İstanbul (pickpocketing incidents) – 1074 or 7 per 100,000 people
Gun incidents
NYC: 776 or 9.7 per 100,000 people
İstanbul: 472 (2018 figure) or 3.14 per 100,000 people
Stats collected from NYC.gov CompStat, NYPD and Hurriyet Daily News.
Not a full picture obviously, but if going by those figures alone, you can see my life is in much more peril just walking the streets of NYC than in Istanbul. And threats to my livelihood accelerate when we talk about Black people and law enforcement in the United States.
Imagine having to hear repeatedly, “Is it safe to visit the US?” I picture my Turkish friends reacting to the same question, and seeing their slight discomfort, but politely remaining so inviting and kind. Except that they have to hear it all the time and it breaks my heart.
In light of the pandemic continuing to loom, coming to Turkey has unregretfully been one of the most incredible things I’ve ever done as a traveler. Every time I’ve sailed across the Bosphorus, wandered up a hilly alleyway and heard hoşgeldiniz whenever I entered a shop (and learning to reply hoş bulduk), I remain so thankful for the multitude of connections, experiences and impressions that will never leave me. As if the çok güzel tattoo I got on my wrist wasn’t proof enough.
There’s always questions to ask when visiting a new destination, and curiosities to unveil, sometimes in the midst of exploring. But please, don’t let a misguided and colonized fear of safety prevent you from exploring the richness that Turkey has to offer.