issue 05
Scorpion
Mag
MOVEMENT
contents 1. photography by @lucyait 2. letter from the editor @lucyait 4. issue 05 playlist 5. poem by silas denver melvin / @sweatermuppet 6. photography by maya barter / @mayabarter 7. art by @alicegray 8. art by shama / @imperfect_art_journal 10. poem by @oriorwriter_ / IR Belletti 11. art by ny / @_hiitsny_ 12. interview with selin ozunaldim by @lucyait 17. art by ny / @_hiitsny_ 19. poem by @sidneysgallerywall 20. poem by ayesha owais 21. photography by @lynn._.portraits 23. poem by anon 24. poem by @lucyait 25. photography by @lynn._.portraits 27. poem by liz degregorio 28. poem by nikolle dixon 30. poem by @hollyberry_x
1
by lucy aitchison / @lucyait
scorpions,
@lucyait
somehow, it's been 5 months since the first issue of scorpion mag was published. something i've wanted to do since the conception of scorpion is talk about issues that are important to me, so this issue was a chance for contributors to do the same - in the form of art. leading on from last month's theme, 'movement' pushes us to think about how we can get to the future we wish for. how can we achieve all these dreams we have for the future of our world? In this issue we're lucky enough to have interviewed selin ozunaldim, a turkish activist, on youth activism. read the interview for some of her insights into the importance of activism and advice on how you can start. the way contributors have intertwined movements of all kinds into their arts is truly inspiring and I hope you find it equally so.
sending love, scorpion mag <3 2
3
I05 PLAYLIST
4
5
by silas denver melvin / @sweatermuppet
by maya barter / @mayabarter
6
by alice gray
7
by shama / @imperfect_art_journal
8
ART WILL SURVIVE THE APOCALYPSE by @oriorwriter_ / IR Belletti
9
Our culture is keeping on singing during the end of the world. The economy was terrible, the environment was dying, but the Mona Lisa sat comfortably in the Louvre, the Pyramids still stood tall, and that's what we needed. to watch the sun explode into our eyes and, while getting swept away, still think that that would have made a perfect painting. we are crazy, yes, but we were never afraid because Art lives forever
10
11
by @_hiitsny_ / ny
by @_hiitsny_ / ny
12
RISING OF A YOUNG ACTIVIST S E L I N
O Z U N A L D I M
Selin is a 17-year-old activist in Istanbul, Turkey. She is the youngest equality youngest
representative movement Board
of
called
Member
UNWomen’s
HeForShe of
Young
in
global
Turkey.
BPW
gender
Selin
Maiden’s
is
the
Tower
Turkey, writing and operating projects to achieve real gender equality. Scorpion interviewed Selin about the importance of youth getting involved in political movements.
Q:
Why do you think it's important that young people
like yourself get involved in political movements?
A:
In Turkey, the older generation tends to say that we as
youth
and
because
kids
we
should
are
stay
‘’too
out
young’’.
of
political
Even
movements
though
I
receive
backlash, I believe that no one is ‘’too young’’ to have an opinion or an idea. I think it is just the easy way out for most
of
the
parents.
Instead
of
explaining
to
their
children what is going on around their country, around the world from a perspective, they are just cutting it out by saying they are not qualified enough to understand the topic. I do not agree with that, not at all. I am not only
talking
activists,
13
this
about is
older generation
what
political we
movements,
struggle
with
the
as
young
most.
The
discriminates against us due to our birth year but our age does not define our success, our knowledge, and what we are capable of. I cannot remember how many times my colleagues said ‘’Good for you sweetie!’’ to me during a meeting, while we were sitting at the same table. I believe even little examples like this show how much we need youth voices and your input.
Q:
Do
you
have
any
words
of
encouragement
for
those who know they want political change but are unsure of where to start?
A:
Do not be afraid of what other people might think of
you,
of
what
they
might
talk
about
you.
Make
people
uncomfortable so they have to step out of their comfort zones and open their eyes about what is going on. If you truly believe in the cause and passionate about this, the only thing that can stop you from achieving it is yourself. I know how hard and nerve-wracking it can be to send that email or make that phone call but if you don’t, how will you ever know what the outcome could be? You have three options. They can either never respond, which is fine,
they
can
decline
your
offer,
which
is
again
fine
because it means that at least they know who you are and the work you do, and they can give you a positive response, the response that maybe change your whole life but you’ll never know if you don’t take action. So just go for it!
14
Q:
With everything going on in the world, it can be
hard to know which issues to focus on. How do you decide where to focus your activism?
A: I
think every aspect and type of activism is major and
important
but
Development
I
have
Goals
chosen 4
to
(access
focus to
on
Sustainable
education)
and
5
(gender equality). I believe there are many reasons why I focused
on
them,
have
I
especially
gender
on
seen the
equality
but
a
massive
East
Side
just
to
gender of
the
share
two
equality country.
of
gap Child
marriages, underage pregnancies are very much real in Turkey, especially with the COVID-19 pandemic, we have seen
a
dangerous
increase
in
child
marriages
and
domestic violence. Right now, our government is trying to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention which is the only thing
that
keeps
women
safe
and
protected
from
all
types of violence. Turkish people are tired and disgusted of waking up to a black and white picture of a woman every single day who has been killed by her husband, father, ex, a victim of the brutal violence and femicides that are happening in Turkey. Maybe yes, these issues have never affected me as an individual but that is the biggest problem. People do not take action if it is not affecting them in person, and enjoy their privileges... but make them uncomfortable. Make them uncomfortable so they have to talk about it, that is what I am aiming to do.
15
Q:
What's one issue you feel is often overlooked, but
you wish more young activists would acknowledge?
A:
I think mental health is an issue that we never talk
about. It is very much brushed under the carpet. People are
not
being
importance
of
educated it.
about
There
are
mental so
health
many
and
myths
the and
misperceptions about mental health-related issues and I think
as
societies
we
should
take
immediate
action
towards it.
Q: Do
you have any final words of advice?
A:
not
If
you,
then
who?
If
not
now,
then
when?
(HeForShe's slogan).
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17
by @_hiitsny_ / ny
by @_hiitsny_ / ny
18
What to Say When You’re Uneducated on an Issue
I respect the way your lips don’t smack the glass when you drink Coke but I need a couple of days to stretch your argument thin as summer taffy to my bedroom walls. Just let me verify your hot-breathed bullet points until I feel ready enough to whisper an assemblage of poetry lines that feel like facts in my chest but wouldn’t hold up in court because all I know is that I never know enough and all you know is that you never need to know more if you make that face at me.
by @sidneysgallerywall
19
by ayesha owais
20
by @lynn._.portraits
21
by @lynn._.portraits
22
this is the movement you have taken my place. you sleep in my bed, and night after night we have stared at the same ceiling. we have felt the very same pleasure and pain, prayed to the same god, fallen to our knees before the same angels. tell me, did you ever think of who came before you? did you ever question why the walls felt like they had history? you have taken my place and someday soon, someone will take yours and you will sit and write poems about it, about how we are all temporary beings In a replaceable world. there will be another you; you will kick and scream and try to stop it and try to stop it and try to stop but soon you will realise that this is the movement. we live the same life, you and i only seperated by a heartbeat and time .
23
EVERY MAN IS THE SON OF A DAUGHTER
by @lucyait / inspired by 'slow up' by jacob banks
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by @lynn._.portraits
25
by @lynn._.portraits
26
27
by Liz DeGregorio
by nikolle dixon / @nikolledenise
28
KEEP GOING. 29
we surge forwards together like the thundering cacophony of the ocean- strong and resilient and unstoppable. we, the youth, are a force to be reckoned with; no barriers can hold back the unbridled passion and righteousness we are overflowing with. our boots hit concrete as we march through the city, like the crash of tides against the shore, impossible to ignore. we line the roads as living blockades and force our voices to be heard over the roar of ignorance we are met with in retaliation. it wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t change anything i hear adults mutter from the comforts of their homes, as injustice seeps into their lives like a twisted sepia filter. little do they know that we are already in the streets, we are already in the news, we are already making changes.
by @hollyberry_x
30
scorpion mag september 2020
issue 05