海角大神

Bar谋艧 Sulu has made history twice. Four years ago, he and his partner became the first gay couple to apply for a marriage license in Turkey; now he鈥檚 running as the first openly gay candidate for a seat in Parliament.

The 37-year-old LGBT activist describes himself as a lifelong fighter. As a young boy, he waged a solo-campaign against nuclear energy, writing to dozens of Turkish newspapers to oppose the construction of a reactor. After coming out at 17, Mr. Sulu became active in Turkey鈥檚 burgeoning LGBT-rights movement. Two decades later, he鈥檚 still at it.

Sulu鈥檚 partner is Aras G眉ng枚r, a gay transgender man who is still considered a woman by the government. Hoping to draw attention to the need for marriage equality, the couple attempted to formally tie the knot in 2011 but were refused by Turkish authorities.

鈥淲hat we want is to be recognized as equal citizens of this country,鈥� says Sulu, a candidate with the People鈥檚 Democratic Party, a new leftist party. 鈥淪ociety is ready for a change and I believe the time is now for someone who鈥檚 open about his identity to fight for LGBT issues in Parliament.鈥�

Although he faces an uphill battle, Sulu鈥檚 candidacy speaks to the LGBT community鈥檚 rising profile in a largely conservative Muslim society. Yet activists caution that progress on gay rights in Turkey is still stymied by a dearth of legal protections, persistent discrimination, and anti-LGBT violence.

A growing movement

For lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals, life in Turkey is full of contradictions. Homosexuality was decriminalized in the Ottoman era, but the Turkish Army considers it a 鈥減sychosexual disorder鈥� and bars gays from serving. Sex-change operations are legal, but only when preceded by sterilization.

While Turkey now stages the largest gay pride parade in the Muslim world, there are no laws against discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. Turkey鈥檚 solution for combating discrimination inside jails is to segregate sexual minorities in 鈥減ink prisons.鈥澛�

鈥淭he Turkish state has, for the most part, gotten around to accepting the idea that LGBT people exist, but there鈥檚 a major problem in recognizing that these individuals are human beings who have rights that need to be protected,鈥� says Andrew Gardner, Amnesty International's researcher on Turkey.

LGBT-rights organizations have grown more numerous and better organized 鈥� buoyed, in part, by the their prominent role in the antigovernment protests here in 2013. That鈥檚 helped pave the way for more visibility for LGBT figures. Two years ago, rights activist Michelle Demishevich made headlines when she became Turkey's first openly transgender TV reporter, although she was later dismissed from her job. Meanwhile, one of Turkey's most famous singers, Bulent Ersoy, is a transsexual woman who fronts a Pepsi advertising campaign.

But without legal protections, the thaw in cultural attitudes means Turkey remains a hostile place for LGBT people. 鈥淲e face discrimination every single day in the workplace, in schools, and at hospitals,鈥� says Sulu. 鈥淭he one little space where gays and transsexuals have been pushed into is the entertainment sector, as long as they avoid political statements 鈥� but it鈥檚 very limiting and isolating.鈥�

With no legal safeguards, discrimination is rampant in the workplace, classroom, and heath centers, as well as in access to public services. Many LGBT people are forced to conceal their identities out of fear of the consequences.

Activists say the prejudice also extends to the courtroom, where statutes relating to 鈥減ublic morality鈥� and obscenity are often interpreted in ways that discriminate against gays. The latest blow came last month, when Turkey鈥檚 highest court banned 鈥渙ral, anal, group, gay or lesbian鈥� pornography on the grounds that it contained 鈥渦nnatural sexual behavior.鈥�

No laws, no justice

For LGBT people, Turkey can be a deadly place. In 2008, Ahmet Yildiz 鈥� an openly gay young man 鈥� was聽killed by his father, the first gay honor killing to receive widespread media coverage. While accurate statistics are difficult to come by, rights groups counted of LGBT individuals between 2010 and June 2014, according to a report presented to the United Nations earlier this year.

鈥淯nfortunately, this is a common story in Turkey, where there LGBT people suffer both from violent attacks and the lack of recourse,鈥� says Firat S枚yle, a prominent human rights attorney who works on LGBT cases, including the murder of Mr. Yildiz. 鈥淭here are no laws, therefore there is very little justice.鈥�

Transgender men often suffer the brunt of the violence. Many struggle to find legitimate jobs and are forced to turn to sex work where they are vulnerable to harassment or worse, says Kemal Ordek of the sex worker advocacy group Red Umbrella.聽

Harassment and violent attacks outside the sex industry are also common. On Saturday night alone, four transgender women were attacked in the cities of Istanbul, Kocaeli, and Izmir.

Turkey鈥檚 law against hate crimes doesn鈥檛 include provisions for sexual orientation or gender identity. If elected, Sulu says he鈥檒l fight for legal protection from this kind of discrimination, and to broaden the definition of a hate crime.

Wedding on ice

For Sulu, the most formative and experience has been his struggle to get married.聽Even though Baris' partner is identified as female on his Turkish government ID 鈥� and underwent聽a series of humiliating medical examinations to prove it 鈥撀爋fficials still refused to grant the couple a license. (The Turkish government refuses to recognize gay marriage.)聽They sued the Ministry of Health for discrimination in a case that is still in the courts.聽

Since then, Sulu has founded the Trans Consulting Center, an organization that offers legal counseling and emotional support for people during their transition process, and lobbies to overturn laws that discriminate against transgender individuals.

Even if Sulu wins and other leftist candidates make inroads in the June 7 parliamentary elections, enacting meaningful reforms will be difficult. 鈥淚t鈥檚 been clear, especially in recent years, that this government has taken a very hostile position towards any protections for LGBT people,鈥� says Mr. Gardner.聽

Turkey鈥檚 top leaders see gay rights as a threat to traditional values. A former state minister described being gay as a 鈥渄isease鈥� that needed to be cured. President Recep Tayyip Erdo臒an has said it鈥檚 at odds with the 鈥渃ulture of Islam,鈥� declaring that the Turkish public is 鈥渘ot ready鈥� for laws protecting the LGBT community.

Sulu bristles at the notion: 鈥淚f not now, then when?鈥�