
Military men with guns are one of my earliest memories of Turkey. I had come to the country from New York City as an 8-year old in 1979. The country was undergoing a period of tremendous violence. To “protect” the country, the military flexed its muscle. It marched through the streets and imposed martial law. A year later the military seized power, as it had twice before in 1960 and 1971, replacing the democratically elected leader of the country and scrapping the Turkish constitution.

