Ilker Kalin
@ilkerkalin.bsky.social
Researcher at democracy.umb.sk | Visiting Scholar at Stockholm University Institute for Turkish Studies (SUITS) | Interested in nonviolent resistance, state repression, gender, and military
Our article wt @laniganamanda.bsky.social is out in Political Research Quarterly!
Using a natural experiment & interviews, we find that police recertification reform in Massachusetts prompt a recalibration of officer behavior, though not a full transformation.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Using a natural experiment & interviews, we find that police recertification reform in Massachusetts prompt a recalibration of officer behavior, though not a full transformation.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Sage Journals: Discover world-class research
Subscription and open access journals from Sage, the world's leading independent academic publisher.
journals.sagepub.com
October 21, 2025 at 9:49 AM
Our article wt @laniganamanda.bsky.social is out in Political Research Quarterly!
Using a natural experiment & interviews, we find that police recertification reform in Massachusetts prompt a recalibration of officer behavior, though not a full transformation.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Using a natural experiment & interviews, we find that police recertification reform in Massachusetts prompt a recalibration of officer behavior, though not a full transformation.
journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/...
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
For those of you at #APSA2025, come check out our panel today at 4 PM. Lots of papers about troop deployments, foreign military training, and other foreign policy tools! @ilkerkalin.bsky.social
September 12, 2025 at 5:26 PM
For those of you at #APSA2025, come check out our panel today at 4 PM. Lots of papers about troop deployments, foreign military training, and other foreign policy tools! @ilkerkalin.bsky.social
See my latest blog post for @ecprtheloop.bsky.social
Based on fieldwork and interviews with activists, I argue that the isolation of LGBTQ+ activists not only undermines solidarity, but also weakens democracy and plays into the hands of repression.
Read the full post here:
Based on fieldwork and interviews with activists, I argue that the isolation of LGBTQ+ activists not only undermines solidarity, but also weakens democracy and plays into the hands of repression.
Read the full post here:
🏳️🌈 In Turkey, gender and sexual minorities are increasingly targeted by the state.
🪧 But minorities are also isolated by opposition groups that purport to champion democratic values.
⛓️ @ilkerkalin.bsky.social argues this weakens democracy, and reinforces repression
👇 bit.ly/44RNXeE
🪧 But minorities are also isolated by opposition groups that purport to champion democratic values.
⛓️ @ilkerkalin.bsky.social argues this weakens democracy, and reinforces repression
👇 bit.ly/44RNXeE
July 21, 2025 at 2:27 PM
See my latest blog post for @ecprtheloop.bsky.social
Based on fieldwork and interviews with activists, I argue that the isolation of LGBTQ+ activists not only undermines solidarity, but also weakens democracy and plays into the hands of repression.
Read the full post here:
Based on fieldwork and interviews with activists, I argue that the isolation of LGBTQ+ activists not only undermines solidarity, but also weakens democracy and plays into the hands of repression.
Read the full post here:
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
🏳️🌈 In Turkey, gender and sexual minorities are increasingly targeted by the state.
🪧 But minorities are also isolated by opposition groups that purport to champion democratic values.
⛓️ @ilkerkalin.bsky.social argues this weakens democracy, and reinforces repression
👇 bit.ly/44RNXeE
🪧 But minorities are also isolated by opposition groups that purport to champion democratic values.
⛓️ @ilkerkalin.bsky.social argues this weakens democracy, and reinforces repression
👇 bit.ly/44RNXeE
July 21, 2025 at 9:10 AM
🏳️🌈 In Turkey, gender and sexual minorities are increasingly targeted by the state.
🪧 But minorities are also isolated by opposition groups that purport to champion democratic values.
⛓️ @ilkerkalin.bsky.social argues this weakens democracy, and reinforces repression
👇 bit.ly/44RNXeE
🪧 But minorities are also isolated by opposition groups that purport to champion democratic values.
⛓️ @ilkerkalin.bsky.social argues this weakens democracy, and reinforces repression
👇 bit.ly/44RNXeE
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
In the United States and beyond, democratic backsliding threatens to reverse recent gains in LGBTQ rights, writes @arimshaw.bsky.social. To protect marginalized groups, policymakers and activists must “build up institutional safeguards that can withstand this wave of illiberal pressure.”
The Global Threat to LGBTQ Rights
The fate of legal protections is tied to the fate of democracy.
www.foreignaffairs.com
July 17, 2025 at 8:02 PM
In the United States and beyond, democratic backsliding threatens to reverse recent gains in LGBTQ rights, writes @arimshaw.bsky.social. To protect marginalized groups, policymakers and activists must “build up institutional safeguards that can withstand this wave of illiberal pressure.”
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
July 2, 2025 at 11:30 AM
My colleague, Bogdan Ianosev, is conducting a non-commercial psychology study exploring how musical preferences relate to personality, morality, and worldviews.
You can take the survey by using the QR code or this link:
gsbscognition.limequery.com/412177?lang=en
Please participate & share!
You can take the survey by using the QR code or this link:
gsbscognition.limequery.com/412177?lang=en
Please participate & share!
June 27, 2025 at 4:28 PM
My colleague, Bogdan Ianosev, is conducting a non-commercial psychology study exploring how musical preferences relate to personality, morality, and worldviews.
You can take the survey by using the QR code or this link:
gsbscognition.limequery.com/412177?lang=en
Please participate & share!
You can take the survey by using the QR code or this link:
gsbscognition.limequery.com/412177?lang=en
Please participate & share!
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
ETC skriver om Institutet för Turkietstudier vid Stockholms universitets gästforskare @ilkerkalin.bsky.social:s forskning. Ilker visar att inte nog med att ickevålds-metoder är två gånger så effektiva som våldsamt motstånd, de når också resultat mycket snabbare.
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
Ny studie: Icke-våldsamt motstånd mer effektivt än våldsamt
Över en treårsperiod lyckades 51 procent av de icke-våldsamma kampanjerna.
www.etc.se
June 19, 2025 at 9:57 AM
ETC skriver om Institutet för Turkietstudier vid Stockholms universitets gästforskare @ilkerkalin.bsky.social:s forskning. Ilker visar att inte nog med att ickevålds-metoder är två gånger så effektiva som våldsamt motstånd, de når också resultat mycket snabbare.
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
Icke-våldsamma motståndsrörelser är betydligt mer framgångsrika än våldsamma, enligt en ny internationell studie från Stockholms universitet.
Ny studie: Icke-våldsamt motstånd mer effektivt än våldsamt
Över en treårsperiod lyckades 51 procent av de icke-våldsamma kampanjerna.
www.etc.se
June 17, 2025 at 5:36 PM
Icke-våldsamma motståndsrörelser är betydligt mer framgångsrika än våldsamma, enligt en ny internationell studie från Stockholms universitet.
I had an interview wt @etc.se about our new study on the duration of nonviolent vs violent resistance, conducted together wt @firuzesezgin.bsky.social & others.
I talk about what factors help accelerate success & what this might mean for ongoing protest movements today.
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
I talk about what factors help accelerate success & what this might mean for ongoing protest movements today.
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
Ny studie: Icke-våldsamt motstånd mer effektivt än våldsamt
Över en treårsperiod lyckades 51 procent av de icke-våldsamma kampanjerna.
www.etc.se
June 18, 2025 at 8:24 AM
I had an interview wt @etc.se about our new study on the duration of nonviolent vs violent resistance, conducted together wt @firuzesezgin.bsky.social & others.
I talk about what factors help accelerate success & what this might mean for ongoing protest movements today.
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
I talk about what factors help accelerate success & what this might mean for ongoing protest movements today.
www.etc.se/utrikes/ny-s...
New policy brief from @golafs.bsky.social & me for SUITS:
Turkey may be at a turning point. With the PKK disbanded and constitutional reform back in play, the stakes—for both peace and democracy—are high.
We look at what’s changed since 2011, and what’s now at risk.
www.su.se/institute-fo...
Turkey may be at a turning point. With the PKK disbanded and constitutional reform back in play, the stakes—for both peace and democracy—are high.
We look at what’s changed since 2011, and what’s now at risk.
www.su.se/institute-fo...
The Peace Process and Constitutional Reforms in Turkey - Institute for Turkish Studies
SUITS Policy Brief 2025:2 (May) examines the likelihood of pro-Kurdish reforms in Turkey and discusses the role that domestic and external actors could play.
www.su.se
June 2, 2025 at 9:54 AM
New policy brief from @golafs.bsky.social & me for SUITS:
Turkey may be at a turning point. With the PKK disbanded and constitutional reform back in play, the stakes—for both peace and democracy—are high.
We look at what’s changed since 2011, and what’s now at risk.
www.su.se/institute-fo...
Turkey may be at a turning point. With the PKK disbanded and constitutional reform back in play, the stakes—for both peace and democracy—are high.
We look at what’s changed since 2011, and what’s now at risk.
www.su.se/institute-fo...
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
CfP is out for the upcoming conference I co-organise with @bilgeyabanci.bsky.social & Sonia Alonso Sáenz de Oger in Bilbao this coming October.
Those working on radical right movements, conspiracy theories, and societal violence, send an abstract here 👇
agenda.deusto.es/en/conferenc...
Those working on radical right movements, conspiracy theories, and societal violence, send an abstract here 👇
agenda.deusto.es/en/conferenc...
Conference: Radical Right Narratives, Conspiracy Theories, and Vigilantism in an Age of Democratic DeclineConference: Radical Right Narratives, Conspiracy Theories, and Vigilantism in an Age of Democr...
agenda.deusto.es
April 7, 2025 at 1:46 PM
CfP is out for the upcoming conference I co-organise with @bilgeyabanci.bsky.social & Sonia Alonso Sáenz de Oger in Bilbao this coming October.
Those working on radical right movements, conspiracy theories, and societal violence, send an abstract here 👇
agenda.deusto.es/en/conferenc...
Those working on radical right movements, conspiracy theories, and societal violence, send an abstract here 👇
agenda.deusto.es/en/conferenc...
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
In fact, @ilkerkalin.bsky.social, one of my colleagues, JUST published an article comparing the effectiveness of nonviolent & violent movements. It turns out that nonviolence "outperformed violent movements by a 2-to-1 success rate in obtaining objectives."+
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
April 10, 2025 at 1:05 PM
In fact, @ilkerkalin.bsky.social, one of my colleagues, JUST published an article comparing the effectiveness of nonviolent & violent movements. It turns out that nonviolence "outperformed violent movements by a 2-to-1 success rate in obtaining objectives."+
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1...
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
When I argued the other day that nonviolent protests are not the most effective way to protest against democratic backsliding, some people got very angry. Contrary to what many of them argued, I wasn't making stuff up to defend the status quo. I study politics in an autocratic regime: Turkey.+
April 10, 2025 at 1:05 PM
When I argued the other day that nonviolent protests are not the most effective way to protest against democratic backsliding, some people got very angry. Contrary to what many of them argued, I wasn't making stuff up to defend the status quo. I study politics in an autocratic regime: Turkey.+
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
Here’s my piece from last week comparing Le Pen’s political ban and İmamoğlu’s case:
Both sides are using each other to justify their actions—Le Pen calls her conviction politically motivated, drawing parallels to Erdoğan’s tactics, while Turkish officials cite her case to argue that prosecuting ++
Both sides are using each other to justify their actions—Le Pen calls her conviction politically motivated, drawing parallels to Erdoğan’s tactics, while Turkish officials cite her case to argue that prosecuting ++
April 8, 2025 at 4:17 PM
Here’s my piece from last week comparing Le Pen’s political ban and İmamoğlu’s case:
Both sides are using each other to justify their actions—Le Pen calls her conviction politically motivated, drawing parallels to Erdoğan’s tactics, while Turkish officials cite her case to argue that prosecuting ++
Both sides are using each other to justify their actions—Le Pen calls her conviction politically motivated, drawing parallels to Erdoğan’s tactics, while Turkish officials cite her case to argue that prosecuting ++
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
Our society needs other platforms for social networking, exchange and debate, such alternative networks and services have emerged (cf Fediverse). They can strengthen our democracy on the basis of open and recognised standards in decentralised structures.
savesocial.eu/en/
savesocial.eu/en/
🇬🇧
Saving social mediaas a democratic force Nina George, Schriftstellerin, Ehrenpräsidentin European Writers’ Council (EWC) Foto: Heike Blenck Rocko Schamoni, Schriftsteller, Regisseur, Musiker, Künstler...
savesocial.eu
April 8, 2025 at 2:12 PM
Our society needs other platforms for social networking, exchange and debate, such alternative networks and services have emerged (cf Fediverse). They can strengthen our democracy on the basis of open and recognised standards in decentralised structures.
savesocial.eu/en/
savesocial.eu/en/
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
1 / Going into what’s expected to be a big weekend of protests around the US, my team at the Crowd Counting Consortium (@djpressman.bsky.social, Soha Hammam & Chris Shay) has issued our monthly data release. TLDR: protest in the US is growing at an impressive pace. A few key highlights:
April 3, 2025 at 5:16 PM
1 / Going into what’s expected to be a big weekend of protests around the US, my team at the Crowd Counting Consortium (@djpressman.bsky.social, Soha Hammam & Chris Shay) has issued our monthly data release. TLDR: protest in the US is growing at an impressive pace. A few key highlights:
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
Lately I've seen many references to the 3.5% rule. A few years ago I pulled together this Q&A on potential uses and misuses of this statistic. www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/defaul...
April 1, 2025 at 2:32 AM
Lately I've seen many references to the 3.5% rule. A few years ago I pulled together this Q&A on potential uses and misuses of this statistic. www.hks.harvard.edu/sites/defaul...
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
When soft power is no longer enough to i) garner popular legitimacy, ii) manufacture consent, and iii) gain loyalty, iron fist is inevitable to remain in power.
March 22, 2025 at 10:37 PM
When soft power is no longer enough to i) garner popular legitimacy, ii) manufacture consent, and iii) gain loyalty, iron fist is inevitable to remain in power.
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
LGBTİ+ dernekleri: 'Sen, ben, o, biz, siz, Hepimiz Hedefteyiz!'
LGBTİ+ dernekleri, aralarında İBB Başkanı Ekrem İmamoğlu’nun da bulunduğu gazeteci, siyasetçi ve sanatçıların gözaltına alınmasına tepki gösterdi.
Açıklamanın tamamı şöyle:
LGBTİ+ dernekleri, aralarında İBB Başkanı Ekrem İmamoğlu’nun da bulunduğu gazeteci, siyasetçi ve sanatçıların gözaltına alınmasına tepki gösterdi.
Açıklamanın tamamı şöyle:
LGBTİ+ dernekleri: 'Sen, ben, o, biz, siz, Hepimiz Hedefteyiz!'
LGBTİ+ dernekleri, aralarında İBB Başkanı Ekrem İmamoğlu’nun da bulunduğu gazeteci, siyasetçi ve sanatçıların gözaltına alınmasına tepki gösterdi.
marksist.org
March 22, 2025 at 2:56 PM
LGBTİ+ dernekleri: 'Sen, ben, o, biz, siz, Hepimiz Hedefteyiz!'
LGBTİ+ dernekleri, aralarında İBB Başkanı Ekrem İmamoğlu’nun da bulunduğu gazeteci, siyasetçi ve sanatçıların gözaltına alınmasına tepki gösterdi.
Açıklamanın tamamı şöyle:
LGBTİ+ dernekleri, aralarında İBB Başkanı Ekrem İmamoğlu’nun da bulunduğu gazeteci, siyasetçi ve sanatçıların gözaltına alınmasına tepki gösterdi.
Açıklamanın tamamı şöyle:
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
An *incomplete* crowdsourced list of cities with protests in Turkey today:
Adana
Ankara (multiple)
Antalya
Artvin
Bursa
Çorum
Denizli
Elazığ
Eskişehir
Hatay
İstanbul (multiple)
İzmir (multiple)
İzmit
Kırıkkale
Konya
Manisa
Muğla
Rize
Samsun
Şanlıurfa
Trabzon
Yozgat
Feel free to add to it below!
Adana
Ankara (multiple)
Antalya
Artvin
Bursa
Çorum
Denizli
Elazığ
Eskişehir
Hatay
İstanbul (multiple)
İzmir (multiple)
İzmit
Kırıkkale
Konya
Manisa
Muğla
Rize
Samsun
Şanlıurfa
Trabzon
Yozgat
Feel free to add to it below!
A huge anti-Erdoğan protest tonight in Istanbul, defying a four day national ban on protests, to denounce the arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
"Break down those barricades without harming the police. Take to the streets and squares", Ozgur Ozel, an opposition leader, told protesters.
"Break down those barricades without harming the police. Take to the streets and squares", Ozgur Ozel, an opposition leader, told protesters.
March 21, 2025 at 7:58 PM
An *incomplete* crowdsourced list of cities with protests in Turkey today:
Adana
Ankara (multiple)
Antalya
Artvin
Bursa
Çorum
Denizli
Elazığ
Eskişehir
Hatay
İstanbul (multiple)
İzmir (multiple)
İzmit
Kırıkkale
Konya
Manisa
Muğla
Rize
Samsun
Şanlıurfa
Trabzon
Yozgat
Feel free to add to it below!
Adana
Ankara (multiple)
Antalya
Artvin
Bursa
Çorum
Denizli
Elazığ
Eskişehir
Hatay
İstanbul (multiple)
İzmir (multiple)
İzmit
Kırıkkale
Konya
Manisa
Muğla
Rize
Samsun
Şanlıurfa
Trabzon
Yozgat
Feel free to add to it below!
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
Depressing that we have to think like this now, but this is useful. One important takeaway: have a lawyer's number on you
www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2025/...
www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2025/...
Entering the U.S.? Here are your rights at airports and border crossings.
Amid reports of travelers being questioned, detained or refused entry, here’s what officials can legally do and how to protect yourself.
www.washingtonpost.com
March 21, 2025 at 4:56 PM
Depressing that we have to think like this now, but this is useful. One important takeaway: have a lawyer's number on you
www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2025/...
www.washingtonpost.com/travel/2025/...
Reposted by Ilker Kalin
In Nations in Transit 2020, my then-colleague @zecsaky.bsky.social wrote about how leaders were dropping the democratic facade. This is what’s happened in Turkey now—the final dispensing with even nominal efforts to comply with democratic norms.
freedomhouse.org/report/natio...
freedomhouse.org/report/natio...
Dropping the Democratic Facade
Dropping the democratic facade in Europe and Eurasia
freedomhouse.org
March 21, 2025 at 10:52 AM
In Nations in Transit 2020, my then-colleague @zecsaky.bsky.social wrote about how leaders were dropping the democratic facade. This is what’s happened in Turkey now—the final dispensing with even nominal efforts to comply with democratic norms.
freedomhouse.org/report/natio...
freedomhouse.org/report/natio...