The Circle hosted KonuŞu talk titled “The Women in Politics from Ottoman Times to Turkish Republic.”

Agenda:

All over the world, woman rights have been gained through a struggle. That struggle has been waged in politics, street and houses as well. In Ottoman Empire, Hürrem Sultan’s period is considered as the beginning of woman’s strong presence in state affairs. Since then the resistance of many women from Nezihe Muhiddin to Hayganuş Mark, from Halide Edip to Nilüfer Pehlivan’a, from Duygu Asena to Türkan Saylan made possible the changes that seemed impossible.

In this talk these questions will be addressed: How did women’s movement developed in Ottoman Empire from 16th century onwards? What are the social movements that effected this development? What is the importance of women’s movement in Turkish society and Turkish foreign policy? How did the theory of self-determination appeared? How can we write a feminist history?

Speakers:

Doç. Dr. Zeynep Alemdar | The Founder of the Initiative for Women in Foreign Politics

Doç. Dr. Gülhan Balsoy | The Head of the History Department at Bilgi University

About KonuŞu:

KonuŞu is a new talking platform founded to understand present times with the help of the invited specialists on social issues.

KonuŞu was founded in 2018 by sociologist Hale Ceren Zeytinoğlu.