At first glance, Istanbul’s Gezi Park is underwhelming – an uninviting green patch at the edge of iconic Taksim Square. But in 2013 this shabby little park became the unexpected focal point for a series of explosive events that highlighted serious faultlines within Turkish society.
The Gezi Park events began peacefully as people gathered in Taksim Square to protest the government decision to replace the park with a shopping mall. But they ended in a pitched battle between police and unarmed civilian protesters, with the aggressive crowd control garnering global criticism. Tech-savvy youth showed the world damning photos of police brutality but the government responded with severe crackdowns on social media use.
