SECULARISM AND ATHEISM IN THE TURKISH PUBLIC SPHERE

Abstract

As a relatively new actor in Turkish civil society, the Atheism Association has been active since 2014 as the first legally recognized organization of atheism in Turkey and in all majority-Muslim countries. This piece is an investigation of how this public assertion of atheism is put into practice in the context of rising religious conservatism. The recent atheist activism and advocacy for human rights of those who do not adhere to any theistic religion aim at pushing the limits of the freedom of expression/belief/conscience as well as expanding the secular in public space. This makes atheist activists both radical critics of a deeply institutionalized secularism in Turkey and forerunners of a future secularism embedded in a pluralist democracy.