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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 07 September 2022
Abstract
Within the theoretical framework of cultural memory, the chapter scrutinizes how events that are substantial collective memories were deeply reflected in the narratives of women acting in civil society in Turkey and developed counter-memories on the Kurdish issue, peace, and gender roles. Through examining the patriarchal character of Turkish modernization and construction of women's identities, the authors seek historical roots of social schisms among women deriving from 32 in-depth interviews conducted with women from civil society organizations, civic initiatives, and women's organizations in Turkey. The authors contend that identity, as a composition of ideological, religious, and ethnic differences, is the major determinant of women's segmented cultural memories in Turkey on the Kurdish issue, peace, and gender roles.
Keywords: women acting in civil society, cultural memory, Kurdish issue, Identity
Introduction
The year of 2013 marks one of the most significant steps to reach reconciliation and achieve peace in the history of the Republic of Turkey's ethnically based “Kurdish issue”. However, as this process ceased in mid-2015, hopes of achieving a peaceful settlement were once again dashed, and the perspective on the Kurdish issue returned to the traditionally memorized perspective of the past, and security and nationalism perspectives came to the fore. At this point, how different groups in society imagine the past and mutual perceptions in inter-groups dynamics gain importance. Additionally, polarization among women acting in different civil society organizations became more visible. Among these groups, women's perspectives display a combination of gender roles alongside their memorization of the Turkish Republic's modernization history, and their polarized arguments regarding reconciliation represent how ethnically- and religiously-based identities have shaped counter-memories of women for years. Turkey's recent history is a history of modernization, and progress in gender equality is one of its significant aspects. In this regard, it is not easy to ignore gender when considering reconciliation initiatives in Turkey's recent history (Bora 2010, 9).
In this chapter, we scrutinize narratives on the Kurdish issue and gender roles of women enrolled in the civil society sector in Turkey as two significant sub-topics in our research project.
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