Democracy in Turkey incentivized political surrender to religious populism

Evidence

In Turkey, as elsewhere, democracy reinforced indigenization and the return to religion. “In their eagerness to curry favor with the public and gain votes, politicians —and even the military, the very bastion and guardian of secularism—had to take into account the religious aspirations of the population: not a few of the concessions they granted smacked of demagoguery.” Popular movements were religiously inclined. While elite and bureaucratic groups, particularly the military, were secularly oriented, Islamist sentiments manifested themselves within the armed forces, and several hundred cadets were purged from military academies in 1987 because of suspected Islamist sentiments. — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 402 (#corroborates, via linked claim)

Perhaps the most salient impediment to our understanding of the movement is the notion that Christian nationalism is a “conservative” ideology. The correct word is “radical.” A genuinely conservative movement would seek to preserve institutions of value that have been crafted over centuries of American history. It would prize the integrity of electoral politics, the legitimacy of the judiciary, the importance of public education, and the values of tolerance and mutual respect that have sustained our pluralistic society even as others have been torn apart by sectarian conflict. Christian nationalism pretends to work toward the revival of “traditional values” yet its values contradict the long-established principles and norms of our democracy. — Katherine Stewart, The Power Worshippers, 33 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Democratic politics in Turkey drove a resurgence of Islamic religiosity — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 402; Islamism functionally substituted for liberal democracy as opposition to Muslim authoritarianism; Islam is politically constitutive yet positioned outside the political (+5 more)

Broader Connections

• Democratic politics in Turkey drove a resurgence of Islamic religiosity #corroborates (0.95) — Samuel P. Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the…, 402
• Christian nationalism is radical, not conservative, and undermines democratic institutions #complicates (0.70) — Katherine Stewart, The Power Worshippers, 33