The 22nd Istanbul Pride march set out from Bagdat Street in the city’s Kadikoy district instead of the previously announced start point, as Pride week organisers sought to outwit police by bypassing their blockade in and around Istiklal Street and Taksim Square. “We are never tired of deceiving the police and forcing them to deal with us!” read a post on X by Tugce Yilmaz, a Turkish journalist who covered the Istanbul Pride March. The crowd gathered despite the state’s decision to ban this year’s March. Yilmaz’s post, which has been seen more than 200,000 times, triggered dozens of hate-filled comments, including posts negating the right of LGBTQ+ people to protest as well as calls for the police to intervene to stop the Pride march and demands for violence against the LGBTQ+ community.