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Yes this is absolutely common in Turkey. Please do not believe in the press trying to portray Turkey as being totally overrun by a fundamentalist autocratic reg

Yes this is absolutely common in Turkey. Please do not believe in the press trying to portray Turkey as being totally overrun by a fundamentalist autocratic regime. In fact even these photographs are portraying the poorest and probably some of the most conservative neighborhoods of Istanbul. There are 10's millions of Turks who are secular and striving to keep modernity alive in this part of the world.

nicbou 6y ago
I have been to Istanbul multiple times, and rode my motorcycle across Turkey. It never struck me as a fundamentalist country. Women in Istanbul or Izmir dress just like anywhere in the Western world, and I don't recall seeing any veiled faces in Turkey. I shared many drinks with local friends, and shortly lived on a street that was famous for its crossdressers. You might struggle to find beer in smaller cities, and it's undeniably more conservative there, but you could make the same judgement about any western country. I'd say that things don't get complicated around religion, but around politics. It's hard to ignore that Turkey is sinking into authoritarianism, and though a tourist might not feel the effects, he might pick up its distinct smell.
notsureaboutpg 6y ago
Just wanted to point out that dressing doesn't tell anything about how modern / backwards someone is. Many Islamists are very modern in their thought and very educated and fully understanding of things like the modern nation state and will sound exactly like a university trained student on these topics and many secular liberals in the Muslim world are uneducated / naive. This isn't the average but it's very very common. Also wanted to point out the backlash against secularism in many Muslim nations is (as the poster above me described) often a question also of the poor against the rich as the rich/elite are far more likely to be secular than the poor. This is also true in places like Iran. Just like with Communism, Islamism is often heralded by a "vanguard" of the highly educated who may dress modestly but are as wealthy and educated as their secular dressing counterparts. It's main proponents though tend to be poorer.

nicbou 6y ago

I have been to Istanbul multiple times, and rode my motorcycle across Turkey. It never struck me as a fundamentalist country. Women in Istanbul or Izmir dress just like anywhere in the Western world, and I don't recall seeing any veiled faces in Turkey. I shared many drinks with local friends, and shortly lived on a street that was famous for its crossdressers. You might struggle to find beer in smaller cities, and it's undeniably more conservative there, but you could make the same judgement about any western country. I'd say that things don't get complicated around religion, but around politics. It's hard to ignore that Turkey is sinking into authoritarianism, and though a tourist might not feel the effects, he might pick up its distinct smell.

notsureaboutpg 6y ago

Just wanted to point out that dressing doesn't tell anything about how modern / backwards someone is. Many Islamists are very modern in their thought and very educated and fully understanding of things like the modern nation state and will sound exactly like a university trained student on these topics and many secular liberals in the Muslim world are uneducated / naive. This isn't the average but it's very very common. Also wanted to point out the backlash against secularism in many Muslim nations is (as the poster above me described) often a question also of the poor against the rich as the rich/elite are far more likely to be secular than the poor. This is also true in places like Iran. Just like with Communism, Islamism is often heralded by a "vanguard" of the highly educated who may dress modestly but are as wealthy and educated as their secular dressing counterparts. It's main proponents though tend to be poorer.