The Guardian reports: A crowd-funding campaign has raised over $55,000 in under 24 hours to help pay for a full-page ad in the New York Times calling for democratic action and new dialogue on Turkey.

The Indiegogo campaign – “Full Page Ad for Turkish Democracy in Action: OccupyGezi for the World” – called on contributors to raise a stated goal of $53,800, and asks people to “wake up”.

The text of the full-page New York Times ad:

Millions of Turkish citizens have been outraged by the violent reaction of their government to a peaceful protest aimed at saving Istanbul’s Gezi Park.

Outraged, yet not surprised.

Over the course of Prime Minister Erdogan’s 10-year term, we have witnessed a steady erosion of our rights and freedoms. Arrests of numerous journalists, artists, and even elected officials; restrictions on freedom of speech, women’s rights, and even alcohol sales have all demonstrated that the ruling party is not serious about democracy. Time and again, the prime minister has mocked and trivialised his nation’s concerns while Turkey’s own media has remained shamefully silent.

The people protesting bravely throughout Turkey are the proud inheritors of Atatürk’s legacy. We are not looters or extremists. We are students, teachers, workers, mothers, fathers. We represent various ethnicities and creeds, religions and ideologies. We stand united now because of our concern for Turkey’s future.

We demand an end to police brutality.

We demand a free and unbiased media.

We demand an open dialogue, not the dictate of an autocrat.

We hope that you will join the conversation and stand with us in solidarity.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013_protests_in_Turkey

#GeziPark #OccupyGezi #DirenGeziParki (En. Resist Gezi Park)

This statement is crowdfunded by concerned individuals from around the world.