Dare To Ask Talk And News About Our Differences - This topic has 2 replies, 3 voices, and was last updated 24 years, 7 months ago by
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- What do people know about Turkey? I am a Turk and have been working as a tour guide with Westerners for 10 years. I am surprised that so many people know so little about my country, let alone where it is. It also seems to me that Turkey has a bad image in Western society, imagined as the place of 'Terrible Turks' or as a Middle-Eastern country where women are suppressed and forced to veil themselves head to foot. Please tell me about your conception of Turkey.
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Name : Kemal, Gender : M, Age : 33, City : Antalya, State : NA Country : Turkey, Occupation : Tour guide, Education level : 4 Years of College,You could call me one of the lucky ones; I study history, know my geography and have had Turkish co-workers in the past. Therefore I know that Turkey is a modern European country, not under religious rule, part of the Middle East or full of warlike "Barbarians." Chalk up the stereotypes to geographic ignorance, people who assume that any Muslim country is part of the Middle East, lurid romance novels of "harem life" and Turkish pirates, the movie Midnight Express and European history books that portray Christians as "good" and Muslims and Turks as "the enemy" because Turkey and various European countries were at war for many years.User Detail :
Name : Crystal, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Pagan, Age : 30's, City : Oakland, State : CA Country : United States, Occupation : Office manager, Education level : 2 Years of College, Social class : Middle class,A couple reasons: 1) Geography! American public education teaches so little of distant cultures. CNN and USA Today bring us up to speed when it's time to bomb Iraq or Serbia. 2) Religion! Turkey is 98 percent Muslim, no? The 1970-80s fundamentalism (bombs, embassy hostages, etc.) spooked many Westerners about anything Arab or Persian, even though Turkey's been a solid ally for 50 years. Keep teaching the tourists, Kemal; you have a beautiful, ancient culture to share with the world and nothing to apologize for. I'll get over there eventually for a visit and tour.User Detail :
Name : jt4649, City : Houston, State : TX Country : United States,
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