The Jihad for Freedom
by Amina Khan, Journalism student at the City University of New York, Brooklyn College

Turkish women are unrelenting in their struggle for the freedom to dress as they please.

As the call for prayer echoed through the square in the shadow of Istanbul's grand Blue Mosque, Elmira rushed past the fountains and through the courtyard to the prayer hall, covering her long black hair with a scarf. After the prayer she promptly removed it. "I want to be inside," she said, "but I have to be outside to go to school." Elmira, a student at Istanbul University, explained that she wanted to cover her hair but that Islamic dress is outlawed in all schools and government buildings in Turkey. Merve Kavakci, Turkish MP, was not allowed to take her oath because she wore a headscarf.

After the fall of the Ottoman Empire in 1922 and the subsequent revolution, Mustafa Kemal Ataturk ("father of the Turks") led Turkey with a strict policy of secularism. Ataturk believed that in order to advance, the country had to let go of its Islamic heritage and separate religion from the state. He sought to make Turkey a modern, westernized country. Part of this policy was to outlaw Islamic dress. Both the fez (for men) and the veil (for women) were banned.

Hijab-clad students who were prevented from taking their final tests at Marmara University were said to have failed due to their absenteeism. Make students who refused to enter classes in a show of support also lost a year. "Turkish Flag Regulations" announced on April 6, 2001 that no hijab-clad students could participate in ceremonies where the national anthem is sung. This bars hijab-clad parents from school ceremonies, because it is deemed improper to listen to the anthem when there is "spiritual presence" of Ataturk.

Despite years of secular obscurantism, some Turks are ready for a change. In some areas, a return to traditional values seems to be underway. In Istanbul's streets, many women, especially schoolgirls and college students, are seen in Islamic dress. In recent elections, the Islamic-based Justice and Development Party (AKP) won 34 percent of the vote, obtained a majority in Parliament, and assumed power, However, its leaders assert their support for a secular state as well as Turkey's possible entry into the European Union. Ironically, despite being in government, their hijab-clad wives cannot attend state functions - even state dinners for visiting heads of state.

Betul Akin, 19, who attends Istanbul University and dresses Islamically, said that in the past 5 years there has been a resurgence in Islamic dress among women her age. But due to the law, she cannot wear her hijab to class. When she attends class, she moves it; but once she leaves, she puts it back on. "What can I do? It is not fair. I want to go to school."

But even after she graduates, she will still face challenges, as it will be difficult to get a job, especially in the country's public sector, if she continues to wear Islamic dress. Like Akin, Bu_ra Muftuolglu, 15, has made a compromise. She attends school without her hijab. "It is terrible that I cannot follow my belief," she said. "I think they are scared, they think we will start a Taliban or be a terrorist. I just want to follow my belief."

Some girls are not willing to compromise. Ismail Derelli, 15, said that although his sister graduated from high school, she cannot go to college because she refuses to take off her hijab. "She gets bored at home. Maybe she can go to college in a different country," he said. "Americans, they are lucky," he added. "You are not a Muslim country, but you can wear your hijab. In Turkey we are a Muslim country, but the girls they cannot wear it."

"It is because of Ataturk that we cannot be free," a girl said, at which point her friends told her to keep her voice down so passersby would not hear and be angered. Ataturk is revered as a great national hero and the founder of modern Turkey. His face is on every denomination of currency, and his portraits can be seen in shops, restaurants, banks, buses, and all public buildings.

"Ataturk did not ban the hijab," explained shop owner Yuksel Karakaya as he drank Turkish tea or chay from a small tulip-shaped cup. "He banned the burqa [the full body covering] only." He cites political reasons for the hijab ban, claiming that the other parties feel threatened by the Islamist party's growing popularity, and that many Turkish men are happy about the hijab's recent popularity. "When you see a girl in hijab, you know she is trying to please Allah, not people. You know she is good," he said.

Though there have been many protests in the past few years, school officials, many of them women, refuse to allow hijab-clad girls into the classrooms. Muftuolglu hopes that by the time she graduates from high school things will have changed and that she will be able to attend college. "We will keep trying until they change, insha'Allah," she said.