Sara Ahmed, a world-renowned academic and author who has shaped many fields such as gender studies, feminist and queer theory, and critical race theory with her academic work, and whose books and articles have been translated into many languages, gave a speech in Istanbul for the first time at the invitation of SU Gender. The event, which was simultaneously broadcast as a webinar, was attended by over 600 people.
The event, which took place on the evening of May 14 at Salt Galata with the title “No! The Art and Activism of Complaining,” began with opening speeches. Zeynep Gülru Göker, who delivered the welcoming speech on behalf of SU Gender, began her words by saying, “I don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that Sara Ahmed has deeply influenced academics, students, civil society workers, and anyone who tries to live a ‘feminist life’ both intellectually and personally,” and briefly conveyed the importance of Ahmed’s work for SU Gender’s work. Then, Cenk Özbay introduced Ahmed and her published works to the audience.
Ahmed stated that she would talk about the story of “being a feminist ear” in her speech, which she designed in relation to her book “No is Not a Lonely Utterance: The Art and Activism of Complaining”, which will be published in 2025, and said, “Being a feminist ear is providing a space for complaints.”
She explained, through various examples, that as a “feminist ear”, she has been listening to stories of gender-based violence, harassment, discrimination, racism, etc., from her students, colleagues, and various people she has met since 2013. Ahmed, who opened the discussion to what it means to complain in such situations, mentioned that saying no is not a lonely utterance, and that saying no within an institution or against an institution can have many different consequences. Ahmed touched on different stories of exclusion, empowerment, and solidarity in her speech. Concluding her speech with the words, “A complaint is like a seed buried in the ground or deep in a pile to be unearthed by those who come later,” Ahmed emphasized the importance of struggle and solidarity.
Following the speech, the discussion continued with questions and comments from the audience in the hall and online. After the event, Ahmed signed her books for her readers.
Sara Ahmed met with Sabancı University students
On May 14 at noon, Ahmed had a chat session at Minerva Han with approximately 40 people from among Sabancı University students, academics, and the SU Gender team. In the meeting, which was attended mostly by Gender Studies Program doctoral students and Cultural Studies Program master's students, participants introduced themselves and shared their work. During the meeting, which lasted approximately two hours, students had the opportunity to ask questions and chat about both Ahmed's work and their own academic interests.
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Sara Ahmed is a non-white, queer, feminist, independent scholar. Her work explores how power is experienced and contested within everyday life and institutional cultures. Her most recent published book is The Feminist Killjoy Handbook (Allen Unwin, 2023). Her previous books include Complaint! (2021), What's The Use? On the Uses of Use (2019), and Living a Feminist Life (2017), all published by Duke University Press. Ahmed has just completed No Is Not a Lonely Utterance: The Art and Activism of Complaining, to be published by Allen Unwin later this year. She has a blog at feministkilljoys.com and a newsletter at https://feministkilljoys.substack.com/. You can also reach her on Bluesky at @saranahmed.bsky.social and on Instagram at @feministkilljoyatwork.