The Istanbul Policy Center (IPC)-Sabancı University-Stiftung Mercator Initiative held a meeting for the promotion of their new book, Gündelik Yaşamda Avrupalı Müslümanlar (European Muslims in Daily Life) by Mercator-IPC Senior Scholar and Professor of Sociology at Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales, Nilüfer Göle.
from left to right: Nilüfer Göle - Ayşe Kadıoğlu
The discussion for the launch of the book was moderated by Sabancı University Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences Dean and IPC Senior Specialist Ayşe Kadıoğlu.
Nilüfer Göle interprets the results of a field study conducted between 2009 and 2013 in 21 European cities, where immigrant "ordinary Muslims" and their non-Muslim neighbors, "local" Europeans, had face-to-face introduction meetings. The survey intends to investigate the reactions to various disputes in the European public sphere on subjects including worshipping in the street, minarets, moqsues, cartoons, headcovers and hijabs, sharia, halal food, art, Judaism and Jewish people.
The unique approach adopted by Göle shakes the foundation of stereotypes, revealing that all these debates contribute to the emergence of an alternative public culture. From Islamic hiphop to "halal ham", the European Muslims of today are shaping contemporary life according to the teachings of Islam, and this becomes commingled with the cultural values of Europe. "This cultural cross-breeding between Europe and Islam has both Jihadist and Islamophobic enemies. But there is reason for hope. The treatment of this gangrenous wound is to interweave differences when building the fabric of society rather than making a collage with them. What makes Europe exceptional must be sought in its creative freedom and ability to reinvent itself with the Other every time."
Please click here to view the video for the “not in my name” campaign initiated by ordinary European Muslims as discussed by Nilüfer Göle.
Please click here for a short film that is a stark description of prejudice against Muslims.