A DAY FOR FREE THINKING: TURKS TO CELEBRATE THE REPUBLIC’S INDEPENDENCE WITH A FORUM AND FOOD
News Observer, NC
Oct 26 2006
Photo: The youth folk dance group of the American Turkish Association
of North Carolina will perform at a festive reception that will follow
the panel discussions.
Thomasi McDonald, Staff Writer
The Turkish Republic was established Oct. 29, 1923, and the American
Turkish Association of North Carolina is sponsoring a day of
discussion, food and dance to celebrate the country’s independence.
"October 29th is Turkey’s Fourth of July," said Buket Aydemir,
secretary of the ATA-NC, which is holding the celebration Sunday at
UNC-Chapel Hill’s Kenan-Flagler Business School.
The ATA-NC is a nonprofit started in 1987 to promote awareness of
Turkish culture and heritage in the Triangle and across the state.
There are more than 400 Turkish families living in the Triangle.
About 100 Turkish families and others interested in Turkish culture
are expected to gather for this weekend’s anniversary event.
The association has sponsored independence day celebrations since
the group was started, Aydemir said.
"It has been at different locations," said Aydemir, who has been
with the group 14 years. "We target Turkish Americans and partner
with student organizations at N.C. State and UNC. Of course, it’s
open to everyone."
The celebration’s theme is "At The Gate: Perspectives on the Republic
of Turkey." The day’s events at the UNC campus kicks off with a
series of panel discussions on U.S. and Turkish relations, Judaism,
Christianity and Islam, Turkish women and Turkish identity in the
United States.
A reception will follow, featuring "Turkish finger food," music and
a folk dance performance.
Organizers say the event has several goals: to promote awareness of
Turkey, to address myths and stereotypes and to promote discussion.
The awarding of this year’s Nobel Prize in literature to Turkish
writer Orhan Pamuk has focused attention on Turkey and the ATA-NC,
Aydemir said.
Pamuk attracted international notice last year when lawyers of two
Turkish professional associations brought criminal charges against him
after he told a Swiss newspaper the Turkish government was responsible
for the genocide of 1 million Armenians and 30,000 Kurds between 1915
and 1917. The charges were dropped in January.
"We are getting a lot of interest from high schools and colleges who
want information about the Turkish situation," Aydemir said.