Bornova Mayor Ömer Eşki met with women attending handicrafts and home textiles courses at a textile workshop. Commenting on Türkiye’s increasingly deteriorating economic conditions and agricultural policies, Mayor Eşki said: “We refuse to accept the roles imposed on us—that of ‘consumers’ or ‘unskilled workers.’ We are challenging the capitalism that seeks to force Türkiye into this mold through women’s productive power, our traditions, and our culture. We believe that women’s strength will defeat capitalism.”

Bornova Mayor Ömer Eşki met with women attending handicrafts and home textiles courses offered as part of Bornova Municipality’s Hobby and Skills Development Courses at the textile workshop in the Çamdibi Şehit Er Adem Bilaloğlu Social Facilities. During a candid conversation, Mayor Eşki made striking remarks about Türkiye’s economic and social structure, emphasizing the importance of local production.

A Critique of the Global System

Emphasizing the importance of the welfare state in his remarks, Mayor Ömer Eşki said that the global capitalist system seeks to force Türkiye into predefined roles.

“Policies pursued in this direction over the past quarter-century have imposed lives with predetermined limits on us. Global centers seek to dictate how we dress, what we eat, and what music we listen to. In this process, Türkiye has also been assigned a role that distances it from production or turns it into a source of unskilled, low-cost labor. Misguided agricultural policies have reduced production and driven up food prices. When there is no one left to grow, harvest, and boil the fruit, the price of jam ends up exceeding the price of honey. As villages empty out, people are left with no choice but to endure exorbitant rents in cities,” he said.

“These Are Not Just Courses; They Are a Stand Against Impoverishment”

Explaining that Bornova Municipality’s initiatives are guided by this perspective, Mayor Eşki stated:

“We do not see our community gardens, jam festivals, textile courses, or other socially oriented municipal services merely as social activities. Our aim is not simply to bring women together for a pleasant conversation; it is to take a stand against the impoverishment and the mold into which they are trying to force Türkiye. We have our own values and traditions. Through these initiatives, we are working to declare that we will not give up our soil, our jam, or our production.”

170 Women at Three Centers Are Stitching Together Their Futures

A total of 170 participants are receiving training through courses offered by Bornova Municipality at three different locations: Bornova Center, Çamdibi, and Pınarbaşı. In the workshops, women learn to operate professional machines and equipment for sewing, overlocking, buttonholing, button sewing, coverstitching, and ironing. In doing so, they gain vocational skills and become part of the production chain.