‘My House Stood in Sulukule’ Screening at Austrian Cultural Forum
Sulukule, a run-down district in Istanbul, is the
oldest Roma settlement in the world. For a millennium, until the 1990s, the
Romani people made a living through music and dance. Sulukule was the home of almost forty entertainment houses which were popular with Turks and tourists until the clubs
were closed down in the 1990s. In 2005 an urban renewal project started: The
municipality wanted to buy all buildings and replace them with luxury villas,
transforming the neighborhood. Under the given socio-economical circumstances the
Roma population was put at risk of losing their social network as well as their
culture which has grown over centuries. The film depicts Sulukule as an example of numerous
urban renewal and gentrification projects world-wide and their social
consequences. The needs of both the individual and the local community are
disrespected. German subtitles. Attendance is free.