Secular Turkey?

Submitted by J. D. Kimo Smith (United States), Jan 9, 2009 at 22:36

I lived in Ankara, Turkey for 4 years from 1959 to 1963. During that time I never saw a muslim pray or heard an Imam's call to prayer. I considered Turkey a secular country following the example of Attaturk. My secular perspective of Turkey was rudely shattered a couple of years when I helped creat a 501 (c) entity for a group of ex pat Turks living in Denver, Colorado.

Rather than being secular in outlook they were are conservative muslims. The women wore head scarves, sat seperate from the men, and insisted that I provide halal food on a campout. My wife being a Berkeley grad was offended that she was requested to sit with the women. I stopped representing the organization (i'm an attorney) when I discerned that it was their desire to keep their conservative muslim beliefs and customs. They seemed to interact with American society only when required to do so. They had no desire to assimilate into the greater American society. They wanted me to help them finance and start a muslim school. I declined.

Quoting Barack Obama, this is the United States of America, not a balkanized groups of religious nut jobs whose beliefs are antithetical to secular nature of our society.

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