Justification of headscarf bans in Europe and Turkey: A comparative analysis

ABSTRACT This study aims to descriptively analyze public debates in Europe and Turkey on Muslim women's head coverings in the context of similarities and differences. The main question the study attempts to answer is: How are the headscarf bans in Europe and Turkey discursively constructed and justified after 9/11 in Europe and the 28 February 1997 era in Turkey and what differences and parallels can be observed? With this question in mind, I first summarize the practices regarding the headscarf in Europe and Turkey and the policies adopted by the states. I also examine how headscarf bans are justified in public discourses in European countries and in Turkey. What the study ultimately reveals is that despite their differences in cultural, religious, and socio-political backgrounds, the European countries and Turkey have developed comparable perspectives and procedures regarding the representation of Muslim women in the public sphere during the historical eras compared.