Title: THE KURDS IN ERDOG˘ AN’S TURKEY
Author: William Gourlay
Place of publication: UK
Publisher: Edinburgh University Press
Release date: 2020

Investigates Kurdish political identity under the tightening rule of the Justice and Development Party in Turkey
Examines Kurdish identity in the Republic of Turkey and inquires whether there is room for pluralism in Turkey’s political sphere
Incorporates data gathered in the streets, bazaars and teahouses of Istanbul and Diyarbakır, the most important Kurdish-populated cities in Turkey
Documents Kurds’ participation in electoral politics and traditions of civilian resistance within the context of Turkey’s pursuit of liberal democracy
Considers central elements of Kurdish identity – language, culture, and geography – and how these are contested between government and Kurdish narratives
Provides a detailed examination of the Kurds’ struggle in Turkey at a time of rising Islamism and authoritarianism and emerging trans-national Kurdish mobilisation
This book examines the circumstances of the Kurds in 21st century Turkey, under the hegemony of the AKP government. After decades of denial, oppression and conflict, Kurds now assert a more confident presence in Turkey’s politics – but does increasing visibility mean a rejection of Turkey?
Recording Kurdish voices from Istanbul and Diyarbakır, Turkey’s most important Kurdish-populated cities, this book generates new understandings of Kurdish identity and political aspirations. Highlighting elements of Kurdish identity including Newroz, the Kurdish language, connections to religion, landscape and cross-border ties, it offers a portrait of Kurdish political life in a Turkey increasingly dominated by its president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Within the context of Turkey’s troubled trajectory towards democratisation, it documents Kurdish narratives of oppression and resistance, and enquires how Kurds reconcile their distinct ethnic identity and citizenship in modern Turkey.[1]