aga luczakowska
"FEMALE ISLAMBUL*"
By Aga Luczakowska
Istanbul - the only metropolis in the world which is situated on two continents (Europeans and Asian) - is influenced by all contradictions of globalization and traditions.
More than 80 years ago, Kemal Ataturk pushed through most radical program of secularization ever attempted in any Muslim society. Since Ataturk's reforms and establishment of the Turkish Republic in 1923 woman have had an equal status with men in Turkish society. He strongly believed that secular nationalism was an essential feature of modernity and progress.
But even veil was outlawed, society can not change so quickly and easily. For example, there has been a periodic controversy over how women should dress and whether they should wear headscarf. Muslim women argue that wearing a headscarf is a human right and a religious duty, but secularists consider the headscarf as a provocative political symbol.
When I visited Istanbul firsth time, which was about two years ago, as most Europeans I assumed that all Turks pray five times a day, want to introduce sharia, and deny women equal rights.
In fact, the number of women wearing head scarves has increased over the past two years but young Turkish women are much different than my imagination and the Islam has much more shades than I expected. In my project I want to discover the religious life of young women in Istanbul - one of the most modern city and same time city with strong cultural and religious history. In Istanbul, young female Muslim women are able to look at the religion with fresh eye, to study Quran by themselves instead of relying the information passed down from their parents.
This project is also an attempt to look at and behind Female Islam in Istanbul to improve understanding of the complexity of Islam in Turkey in the West.
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* ISLAMBUL – from the words – ISLAM and ISTANBUL
