2006/10/11 by Hakan Seckinelgin
Arts and Humanities · Social Sciences · #Gender Politics and Representation #South Asian Cinema and Culture #Turkey's Politics and Society
paper · doi:10.1177/0261018306068472
openalex publication_date 2006/10/11 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/02
Issues raised by women in relation to the wearing of Muslim headscarves challenge the assumed democratic rights of citizens and the conditions of distribution of social goods, such as education, in many countries in Europe. These demands to wear headscarves also point to a cleavage in the assumed relationship between state and civil society in democratic systems. By looking at the situation in Turkey, this study questions the priority given to civil society in the analysis of democratic systems as the space for social negotiation through which marginalized voices can participate in the democratic discussions. It is instead argued that in cases where state and the civil society are closely associated and share a similar socio-cultural value system in relation to the broader national identity, then the civil society ‘space’ is in practice very limited. This has serious consequences for both the claims of women in headscarves and for democratic rights in general.