Turkeys Calvinist Muslims
In early 2003, after a visit to Istanbul, I wrote an article titled
Istanbul Impressions that contained the following observation:
<startquote>
Not far from my quarters in upper Bostanci (pronounced Bostanji), a
middle-class neighborhood on the Asian side reminiscent of Flushing,
Queens, there is a major shopping drag called Bagdat Avenue. (There is an
accent under the g in Bagdat that Microsoft cannot accommodate. It is
silent and is used to extend the vowel immediately before it. In this case,
you would pronounce it Baahdat.) Despite the fact that this avenue is
named after the capital of Iraq, there is nothing Mideastern about it
except for the occasional mosqueubiquitous to all of Istanbul, including
the most occidental sections.) It is a bustling thoroughfare with expensive
European clothing outlets, banks and doctors offices. On Saturday night
the sidewalks are crowed with elegantly dressed Turks who often have a full
shopping bag in one hand and a cell phone in the other.
(The recent Islamic electoral victory might be interpreted as a reaction to
Bagdat Avenue ostentation. However, things are never quite that clear. One
of my Turkish hosts pointed out to me a couple of women in scarves who were
carrying Hermes handbags. The next day she also brought my attention to a
newspaper article that highlighted the success of Islamic stylishness, an
approach that its promoters hoped to win secular Turks to its cause.)
<endquote>
Last night PBS Wide Angle aired a documentary titled Turkeys Tigers:
Faith and Prosperity in Turkey that fleshed out the scarves/Hermes
phenomenon. It was produced by Jon Alpert, an outstanding documentary-maker
whose recent HBO film Baghdad ER I reviewed a while back. Alpert, who is
obviously a very sophisticated artist with a deep understanding of how
class society operates, really nails down the Turkish reality here.
Turkeys Tigers focuses on Mustafa Karaduman, CEO of Turkeys largest
Islamic-style clothing chain, Tekbir Giyim. (Tekbir Giyim means Allah is
Great Clothing). Karaduman decided to fill a market niche in the 1992 by
creating stylish clothing for conservative Muslim women. He now has over
600 stores throughout Turkey and across Europe.
full: http://louisproyect.wordpress.com/2006/08/23/turkeys-calvinist-muslims/
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