Last week, at a panel organized by Enstitü Sosyal (one of Türkiye's new think tanks), we discussed the elections in Europe and the rise of the far right, and I was also a participant. Frankly, our young academic colleagues summarized the trends, current situation, and political atmosphere in Europe with data-driven and analytical assessments. During the meeting, I raised the following key issues: Why are Western countries concerned about the rise of the far right and racism? I attempted to explain
Last week, at a panel organized by Enstitü Sosyal (one of Türkiye's new think tanks), we discussed the elections in Europe and the rise of the far right, and I was also a participant. Frankly, our young academic colleagues summarized the trends, current situation, and political atmosphere in Europe with data-driven and analytical assessments.
During the meeting, I raised the following key issues: Why are Western countries concerned about the rise of the far right and racism? I attempted to explain this fundamental issue step by step within a framework.
Noticeably, concepts like fascism, racism, far right, marginalization, xenophobia, anti-Semitism, or Islamophobia are fundamentally Western concepts, and they have significant origins that nourish these concepts.
We can trace these ideological roots back to ancient Greece. In ancient Greece, we know that those who lived within the city had many rights such as democracy, philosophy, art, and the right to vote and be elected. However, there was a legal order between those living in the city and those outside, and those living outside were often seen as half-human, half-animal; this theme has influenced Western thought in the history of science, humanity, and justice.
When we moved from ancient Greece to the Roman Empire, two separate groups were defined: those living within Rome and those living outside as Barbarians.
Thirdly, these concepts became more complicated with Christianity. Doctrinal issues formed the basis of political approaches and the Papacy in the Middle Ages. During this period, Jews were seen as external enemies and faced great persecution, especially around issues like blood libel.
In the Middle Ages, anti-Semitism led to the imprisonment, exile, and massacre of many Jews. From Athens to Rome, and from London to Paris, Jews suffered great persecutions and genocide.
In our time, Hitler Nazism emerged in Germany and it is fed by these historical roots in a way. However, the Western world has presented an interesting design; they have presented these persecutions, oppressions, and marginalizations of Jews over thousands of years as if Hitler committed these crimes alone, presenting Hitler as a "Hitler phenomenon" to cover up their own flaws, and the West has used Hitler as a curtain to cover up their own flaws.
Looking at today, the rise of the far right in Europe or gaining power in politics worries Westerners from their traditions and psychologies. In my opinion, Jews should take the largest share of this concern. However, because Jews have laid a great siege, they are almost locked up in a fortress where they are not afraid of their current situation, but this extreme racism and xenophobia can directly target Jews one day.
People who can only think in terms of Western motives, when evaluating it, first take Western concepts and then define the right and far-right, and then talk about similar risks in a country like Türkiye.
Recently, on a television program we attended, we saw that both conservatives and people from different views could not go beyond the Western paradigm. In other words, they assume that what happens in the West will continue in Türkiye and what happens in the West will continue to happen with us. This approach has quite problematic sides.
First, they evaluate Türkiye and the Turkish society not directly with Muslims, with their own reality, but with the Western paradigm.
Secondly, while blaming conservatives in Türkiye, they overlook the fact that they only have basic information about the roots of the West because they do not know the West.
Thirdly, we have witnessed that those who are not aware of the history, culture, sociology, and subject of this nation think like colonial intellectuals influenced by the West.
When we look a little deeper into the history, culture, and sociology of this nation, of course, political parties and small fascist groups that threaten society can emerge at the level of political phenomena like social media phenomenons of different sizes in Türkiye.
