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On the Edge of “Urban Regeneration”: Constitution of Political Subjectivity in 'Sulukule'
| Istanbul, along with other metropolises in Turkey, is witnessing an intensification of residential re-development particularly through various housing projects. Resulting in the destruction of squatter settlements (gecekondu) and the reallocation of communities, this process sets the stage for intensified contestation on and of urban space. In this paper, I focus on one gecekondu neighborhood in Istanbul, Neslisah Sultan, known as “Sulukule,” where this process is particularly fraught with anxiety for residents given the historical legacy of the area. In the popular imagination, “Sulukule” is a neighborhood associated with Turkish “gypsies” or Roma (çingene or Roman). Against the backdrop of a mixed process of expropriation and gentrification is constant negotiation over the control of material resources. In the context of “Sulukule,” however, there is another less invisible contestation woven into the above. Because of the changes the neighborhood has gone through not only on the ground but also in public discourse in the last fifty years, “Sulukule” has become a significant reference point for the constitution of identities. I argue that the contest as to where exactly “Sulukule” is, or used to be; and more importantly as to who belongs there, is an indispensable part of the conflict over resources and power. That is why I scrutinize selected oral history narratives to indicate ways in which reconstructions of the past feed into a current conflict, opening up new spaces for social and political maneuvers. In other words, I trace the critical role of naming and belonging in the constitution of political subjectivity.
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