Political streamer Hassan Pikar, known online as Hassanabi, is in the news following reports that he was denied entry to the United Kingdom by the UK Home Office. At the same time, a report published by the New York Post drew renewed attention to his college years and family background. The report claims that Hassan struggled academically while attending the University of Miami and later transferred to Rutgers University with the help of his mother. It also included several allegations received from unknown sources about his personal life. Hasan Pikar has not responded publicly to the report.As people discuss the claims, many have become curious about the woman mentioned in the story. Hassan’s mother, Alkar Sedef Pikar, has had her own academic career and comes from a family with strong connections to education, business and media. Over the years, Hassan has also spoken publicly about his influence on his life and the inspiration they gave him while growing up.
Who is Alkar Sedef Piker and what did the New York Post report about Hasan Piker’s college years?
Ulkar Sedef Pikar, whose first name is Uighur, is an art and architectural historian. He earned a bachelor’s degree in art history from Rutgers University and later completed a PhD at the New Jersey Institute of Technology, where his research focused on architectural history and Orientalism.Born in Istanbul, Türkiye, Alkar is the daughter of Nuket Yavaska and Dogan Uygur. His brother is Cenk Uygur, co-founder of The Young Turks. According to family stories shared in interviews, Dogan Uygur grew up in a poor farming family before earning a scholarship, becoming a mechanical engineer, and later moving to the United States. Eventually he worked in real estate development and invested in The Young Turks. Ulkar’s mother ran a home textile business.Ulkar is married to political scientist and economist Mehmet Behset Pikar. He has two sons, Hasan Pikar and Murat Pikar, who works as an aerospace engineer.According to the New York Post, Hassan enrolled at the University of Miami in 2009 after returning to the United States. The outlet reported that he earned a 2.9 GPA and struggled academically because he was “partying too hard.” The report claims that after those grades, Alker helped arrange his transfer to Rutgers University, where he later graduated in 2013.Hassan has spoken warmly about his mother in the past as well. In a 2016 Facebook birthday post, he called her:“The most badass, beautiful, ambitious, caring, loving, intellectual, feminist woman on the planet.”He also wrote:“A few years ago she went back to college to pursue higher education in art history, focusing on cultural preservation – while managing her own commercial real estate properties.”Hasan Pikar said that seeing his mother continue her education inspired her and “inspires me to strive for greatness every day.”