Ottoman Janissaries dressed in their green and red garb are marching in line with their swords unsheathed and the sounds of war drums in the background. This is not an excerpt from a medieval story set in the era of the Ottoman Empire. It is part of a cultural event held in the Soho area of Thessaloniki on Sunday, February 23, 2020.

The performance was part of a custom, according to which an Ottoman Turk would take a Christian bride by force. The words of the song performed during the show illustrate the extreme supremacist ideology underlying the modern-day Turkey of Recep Erdogan using unapologetically nationalistic verses.

The disturbing thing is that someone from Greece reportedly had the “brilliant” idea to invite the Ottoman Military Team of Turkey’s Adiyaman Municipality as reported by tourkikanea.gr.

The song reportedly translates as follows:

“Your ancestor is your grandfather, your ancestry is your father

Always heroic, the Turkish nation

His army, for a long time

It has become famous all over the world

The Turkish nation, the Turkish nation

I love nationalism with passion

Destroy oh nation, your enemy

Let them suffer from their cursed shame.”

At a time when Greece is facing ongoing threats and provocations by Turkey, there are Greeks who apparently lack any self-respect and are willing to host and promote Turkish supremacist and nationalistic ideologies insulting the historic memory of those who died for freedom in the past.