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Surviving State-Sanctioned Sectarianism: Coping Strategies of Displaced Alevis
Abstract
Although the principle of laïcité has been enshrined in the Turkish Constitution since 1937, sectarian discrimination against and persecution of Alevi communities did not abate. Turkey’s state-sanctioned sectarianism and pervasive culture of impunity for perpetrators of pogroms and hate crimes have displaced millions of Alevis within and outside the country, who then sought refuge in metropolises in Turkey and Europe. One of the key challenges of forced displacement from relatively homogeneous and small-scale settlements to heterogeneous urban centers has been the need to reconstitute institutions and practices vital for reproducing Alevi faith and identity. The Turkish state’s draconian restrictions on Alevi rights and freedoms, which have also hindered other ethnic and religious minorities, exacerbated the challenges further. Displaced Alevi individuals and groups have nevertheless demonstrated remarkable resilience and resourcefulness in navigating unfamiliar geographic, politico-legal, and socio-cultural terrains to survive the experience of uprootedness. Based on ethnographic fieldwork in Istanbul and London, this paper examines the coping strategies displaced Alevi individuals and groups have developed over the years to survive sectarian violence and persecution. Of particular interest are the three strategies Alevis employed to reproduce their faith, identity, and community: 1) Establishment of legal and quasi-legal socio-religious institutions; 2) Adaptation of religious teachings and practice to demands of their new abodes; 3) Processes of alliance building and segmentation in response to challenges from within and outside. These coping strategies have allowed Alevis to resist annihilation and assimilation while also prompting a significant rethinking of their socio-religious conventions. Alevi strategies in turn forced Turkey’s successive Sunni ruling elite factions to develop counter-strategies as they struggled to develop effective policies to sustain sectarian hegemony, reimpose their authority, and maintain their religio-political privilege. Overall, Turkey’s continuous waves of Alevi displacement have led to new struggles within and among Sunni and Alevi factions as they developed novel ways of coping with the consequences of demographic reshuffling.
Discipline
Anthropology
Geographic Area
Turkey
Sub Area
Minorities