Headscarf: The Day Turkey Stood Still

On May 2, 1999, after her election to the Turkish Parliament, 30-year-old Merve Kavakci walked into the Turkish Grand National Assembly to take her oath of office wearing her Islamic headscarf. A near riot ensued; deputies shouted for her to ‘get out’ and banged on their desks, and the Prime Minister of Turkey told the crowd to ‘put this woman in her place!’ Ultimately, she was prevented from taking her oath, persecuted by the government, harangued by the Turkish press, threatened with prison, raided by the police, had her citizenship revoked and lost her seat in Parliament. The headscarf issue is at the centre of Turkish politics, representative of the tension between Turkey’s military–secular bloc and its predominantly Islamic population. This book not only sets the record straight about this extraordinary and inspirational woman, it reveals in detail the dark side of modern Turkey that has experienced four military coups in the last 50 years and is prevented from entering the European Union. In an era in which misinformation about Islam is causing political conflict in the United States, Europe and the Middle East, Headscarf is a true story that will resonate with everyone who values human rights and free elections, and enlighten those who want to learn more about the Islamic world minus polemics and stereotypes. This first book ever published in the West about this incident incorporates the perspective of an Islamic woman trying to overcome barriers posed by Turkish secularism and exposes in detail the deep-seated conflict in Turkey between the secular bloc and practicing Muslims.