Youth Activism in Türkiye: The March 19 Protests – Follow-Up Report
The 19 March Protests have been one of the most remarkable social movements of recent years in terms of young people’s political participation in Türkiye. This report, which comprises the follow-up research to Arayüz Campaign’s 2025 report Youth Activism in Türkiye: The March 19 Protests, examines the long-term effects that the protests have left on the lives of young people. Prepared through renewed interviews with participants who were interviewed in the initial research, together with the contributions of new participants, the study aims to reveal how the protest experience has gained meaning over time.
The research shows that the effects of the protests were not limited to the period of the demonstrations. The interviews reveal that young people continue to refer to the protest experience in relation to many issues, ranging from their career plans to their assessments of the country in which they live. While some participants have directed their professional choices towards fields in which they can create social impact, others have reshaped their future plans by taking political and economic conditions into consideration. The protests have become not only a political experience, but also a turning point that has shaped the personal lives of many young people.
Another important finding of the report is the transformation that the protests have created in young people’s social relationships. The solidarity networks established during the demonstrations have largely continued; at the same time, friendships and social circles have also been reshaped. While participants stated that shared experiences created strong bonds, they also noted that differences in political views led to distance in some relationships. By contrast, some young people stated that the protest process improved their ability to engage in dialogue with opposing views and contributed to their ability to evaluate political issues from a broader perspective.
The research also shows that, following the protests, significant differences have emerged in young people’s approaches to struggle. Although there is a shared experience among the participants, the effects generated by this experience differ. Some began to prioritize their individual lives; some, despite losing faith that change would be possible in the short term, maintained their sense of social responsibility; while others stated that political struggle is an inseparable part of their lives. This finding shows that the attitudes that emerged after the protests are not uniform and that young people make sense of their experiences in different ways.
The interviews also point to a clear change in young people’s perception of risk. Physical safety concerns, which were prominent during the first days of the protests, gradually gave way to uncertainties arising from legal processes. For participants, not only the possibility of detention or prosecution, but also the potential effects of these processes on education, working life, and future plans have emerged as a major source of concern. This shift shows that the protest experience has also affected young people’s visions of the future.
The discussions on leadership and visibility addressed in the final section of the research reveal the transformation in young people’s views of collective struggle. While participants continue to emphasize the importance of solidarity and organization, they assess more carefully the costs associated with being visible. This situation indicates that, following the protests, young people have reconsidered their roles in the public sphere and the forms of participation they adopt.
This follow-up research demonstrates that the March 19 Protests were not merely a mass protest that took place during a specific period, but rather an experience that continues to exert its influence in different ways over time in the lives of young people. In the months following the protests, what changed was not only the intensity of the demonstrations, but also young people’s future plans, social relationships, risk assessments, and the meanings they attribute to political participation. In this respect, while the study provides a comprehensive assessment of the long-term effects of the March 19 Protests, it also makes a timely contribution to discussions on youth and political participation in Türkiye.