First of all, this is how events included me:
I was at my friend's flat and we got out with her. We walked like 5 minutes and the way which we had to use, was too crowded. However, as I said 'we had to use' that way and we walked into the crowded people. When we walked around 1 minute, our eyes started to burn. We were under the pepper sprays. Police started to throw tear gasses with their weapons. They were shooting at head line(btw this is not allowed). We ran with my friend to a street and we walked 500 meters. We turned to another street and we found an exit from that street. When we exit, we saw the polices. I said "Don't worry they are police doesn't do anything." But this was my last mistake. They ran after us with their nightsticks. We ran and we joined to people who protesting them. After that my resist had started.
I had no problem with police
They had no reason to attack me
But something happened. No-one can't say the goverment is right about this topic.
Reasons of the protest:
1. He banned alcohol from gas stations, okay this is true. But at normal shops we will be can't buying alcohol after 22.00 o'clock.
In Turkey, people who supporting president say that, Turkey's religion is Islam. 90 percent of the Turkey's citizens are muslim. This makes us ask this question. "If this is democracy, what about that 10 percent of citizens? Doesn't they have rights?" And the tragedy is that people who calls theirselves as muslim(60 percent of them), although they have to go mosque 5 times in a day, they are going just 1 time in a week.
2. President saw the protests and after that he said "Also we will build a Mosque there."
This man using religion to find support.
3. People were protesting the goverment and president announced that. "If they are 10.000 people there, I can collect 1.000.000 people for them!"
President? Are you adolescent? This attiude totally wrong for a president.
4. Presidend tried to ignore our rights and sent police for attack us while protesting.
In Turkey, every people have rights to protest.(If they don't damaging somewhere)
That night I saw that police was creating reason to attack us. Undercover polices were attacking to cars, houses randomly.
5. President said that "My citizens(that 50 percent who voted him) gave me rights. I don't need to ask noone to do something."
If that 50 percent of people, citizens of this country, the other 50 percent too. They have same rights. If they voted you, this doesn't mean you can do whatever you want as a president. There is democracy in this country.
6. President trying to remove Mustafa Kemal Atatürk from our past.
There are feasts also principles of M.Kemal Atatürk. President banned our feast called with 19 May Republic Feast. This feast was given by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Turkish people wanted to celebrate it with Turkish flags but again police used force to stop it. Months later, there was a carnaval called with "Nevruz" name in Turkey. At Diyarbakır(a city) PKK Terrorist group's sympathizers, celebrated it with PKK flags, flags of the terrorist leader but police didn't nothing.
About principles, secularism. Atatürk was set this principle in Turkey. But our president is trying to remove this for use religion easily.
There are many many many many reasons.