Abstract (eng)
This paper examines the strategies and practices developed by the members of the female student group Kampüs Cadıları (Campus Witches) in İzmir for their politicisation of femicides and male (state) violence. Both the group's specific forms of action and the actors' individual and collective way of dealing with their emotions are taken into account. The aim of the thesis is to elaborate a Turkey-specific perspective with regard to the interconnectedness between state, media and society in the context of femicides. To this end, four qualitative interviews were conducted with members of Kampüs Cadıları in İzmir; in addition, several of the group's actions were accompanied during a research visit. The collected data were analyzed based on constructivist grounded theory. The analysis showed that the political practice of Kampüs Cadıları is characterized by high willpower and hope as well as a strong sense of duty and responsibility. The actors succeed in dealing with challenging emotions by means of deep trusting mutual relationships, described as sisterhood (kız kardeşlik). Commemorating the victims of femicide and publicly denouncing (alleged) perpetrators serves to criticize the victim blaming by the state and media, and at the same time contributes to the formation of a feminist counter-narrative. Furthermore, the strategies of the Kampüs Cadıları consist of self-organized teaching of self-defense techniques, taking up space by loud shouting at demonstrations, and forming alliances with other groups. Central to the politicization of feminicides in Turkey is an understanding of the state as an active perpetrator and (re)producer of violence, whereby Kurdish women are affected by this in two ways: as Kurds and as women.