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A couple of years ago, on Valentine’s Day, I gifted Rumeysa this little book that lists 50 reasons why she’s my best friend. Now when I think about it, I find that I have more than 50 things that I like about Rümeysa. So, here is the story of our friendship during times of hardship and ease…
A Valentine's Day gift for Rümeysa Öztürk is pictured.
A Valentine's Day gift for Rümeysa Öztürk is pictured.
Our story as roommates
I first met Rümeysa in April 2022 for a community Iftar during Ramadan at Tufts Interfaith Center. The first thing I noticed about Rümeysa was her bright smile as she greeted everyone. She always took the initiative to start friendly conversations with new people and introduce them to others.
The following academic year, Rümeysa and I began sharing an apartment near campus. From my first experience with Rümeysa as a roommate, I was struck by her kindness and generosity. She had moved in a few days before me, and although she wasn’t fully settled in yet, she welcomed me home with a big meal she had prepared for the two of us. At the time, we had very little furniture and no dining table, so we sat on the only couch we had, making space for all the dishes on a small coffee table.
One of my favorite memories with Rümeysa was watching “Barbie” together in the summer of 2023. We went to the theater in the morning, then had a picnic in the afternoon. During the picnic, I greatly enjoyed having a deep conversation with Rümeysa about the movie. Our discussion touched upon various topics such as capitalism, feminism, marketing strategies and women’s representation in the media. Rümeysa is highly analytical and intellectual. She thinks things through carefully and strives to consider multiple perspectives.
The fall of 2023
During the fall of 2023, I was overwhelmed with schoolwork. I had a deadline in mid-October that kept me so busy I hardly followed the news. One day, I noticed that Rümeysa’s face looked different — she seemed deeply disturbed. I hadn’t seen her that distressed since the devastating earthquake that hit Turkey earlier in 2023. I thought something had happened in her country or to her family.
Rümeysa was the one who first broke the news of the events of Oct. 7 to me. She was very concerned about what had happened and what could follow. She was deeply concerned about the targeting of civilians, the terror inflicted on mothers and children and the loss of innocent lives. She was also concerned about the overgeneralizing and collective punishment that could follow. She feared that collective punishment could manifest in mass killings and endless war, as well as in negative stereotypes that would make visibly Muslim individuals easy targets for hate crimes. Unfortunately, Rümeysa’s fears came true.
Hearing of Rümeysa’s abduction
When I first heard about the news of Rümeysa’s abduction last week, I couldn’t believe it. I was in a state of denial, until I saw the video of her brutal arrest and played it again and again. I couldn’t believe my eyes! I saw the same shy, sensitive and sensible friend I know so well, ambushed in broad daylight by masked agents under suspicious circumstances.
This terrible news hit me hard, especially coming just a few months after I lost one of my best friends to cancer. It made me feel as if I would always keep losing my close friends to death or injustice. But while death is inevitable, injustice should be preventable.
