Tansu Özcan writes: The other side of the coin: The rumor economy

Muğla Planning Agency President Tansu Özcan

The voice raised by the disclosure movement in recent weeks reminds us not only of the reality of harassment but also of the hypocritical attitude adopted toward the existence of women in every sphere of life. This picture requires us to take the discussion further: We can no longer postpone saying clearly and unequivocally that “rumors implying sexuality are also harassment.”

Because what is being told are not just individual stories. These stories lay out the mentality of society exactly as it is. On one side, there is the same mentality that turns a blind eye to the abuse of power against women, normalizing it by remaining silent; on the other, it is the same mentality that links the labor, talent, and struggle of successful women to “power relations” in order to overshadow them.

This hypocrisy meets on a common ground that devalues women in every situation. When silent, it amplifies abuse; when they speak up, it belittles their success and declares them “indebted to something.” Both extremes serve the same purpose: the withdrawal of women from public and economic life.

The same hypocrisy also transforms the corporate world. The resulting picture is a mass of “adults” who do not know when to speak and when to remain silent. It is a cultural hypocrisy that remains silent in the face of harassment, violence, and threats, but turns whispers into an avalanche like a rolling snowflake.

Just as silence normalizes violence, rumors undermine success. Both devalue women's labor. That is precisely why every statement made by women is not just a personal confession, but an exposure of the system.

Every word gives birth to another. This is what makes women's statements a “chain of courage.” Because harassment and rumors are different faces of the same system. Every whisper about a woman's existence in the public sphere, even if it seems like individual gossip, is actually a sexist mechanism.

Therefore, this chain exposes not only violence but also the hypocrisy that belittles women's existence. Harassment is the final link in the disconnect between slogans and real action. Every success diminished by rumors, every woman silenced by violence, is within the same circle.

This circle is drawn in two ways. Both serve a psychology of indebtedness and a regime of silence. The first is tokenism: In fields where women are few in number, their visibility is high, but the system is built on this visibility turning into fragility. The woman is seen as a representative of all women, squeezed into stereotypical roles, and her success is attributed to her “special position.”

The second is the rumor economy. Sexual implications such as “she got promoted because she had strong backing” overshadow labor. This pattern hinders women not only in Turkey but all over the world. In the Parker case in the US, it was ruled that such rumors constitute gender-based discrimination. This precedent showed the whole world that the issue is not personal gossip, but the most ordinary, most destructive form of institutional sexism.

As women tell their stories one after another, the masses who add this to their stories as the ‘narrative’ of the day are painting an image of “solidarity” for themselves these days. Let us not forget that harassment is the final link in this order where women are considered indebted. If we are sincere in questioning the order that allows the perpetrator to find courage, we cannot postpone looking at ourselves any longer.

The existence of women is tied to a single axis of power: themselves! The disclosures that have been coming one after another today are actually a call inviting everyone to look at themselves. Who have you encouraged until today?