Women Are Like Silk and Men Are Like Gold: a Cross-Country Comparison of Institutional Responses to Honor Violence

City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 9-2015 Women Are Like Silk and Men Are Like Gold: A Cross-Country Comparison of Institutional Responses to Honor Violence Alana Michele Henninger Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/969 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] Women Are Like Silk and Men Are Like Gold: A Cross-country Comparison of Institutional Responses to Honor Violence By Alana M. Henninger, M.A. A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Criminal Justice in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy The City University of New York 2015 © 2015 ALANA MICHELE HENNINGER All Rights Reserved ii The manuscript has been read and accepted for the Graduate Faculty in Criminal Justice in satisfaction of the Dissertation requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. Michael Maxfield, Ph.D. __________________ ________________________________________ Date Chair of Examining Committee Deborah Koetzle, Ph.D. __________________ _________________________________________ Date Executive Officer Ric Curtis, Ph.D. Hung-En Sung, Ph.D. Supervisory Committee THE CITY UNIVERSITY OF NEW YORK iii ABSTRACT Women Are Like Silk and Men Are Like Gold: A Cross-country Comparison of Institutional Responses to Honor Violence By Alana M. Henninger Advisor: Dr. Michael Maxfield Over the past decade, a specific form of interpersonal violence known as honor violence has drawn international attention because it has been increasingly reported in immigrant communities in western countries. There are currently no specific institutional responses to honor violence in the United States, but the growing media coverage of honor-related crimes has led interest groups to call for new legislation and institutional responses specific to honor violence. The global debate on the codification of honor violence hinges on the discussion of whether honor violence is a cultural crime that deserves special consideration, or whether such codification encourages discriminatory responses to specific ethnic groups. This dissertation research is a cross-country comparison of institutional responses to honor violence in Turkey and England. This research first explores how institutional responders socially construct honor and honor violence, because these constructions provide the framework for individual, organizational, and institutional responses. Next, this research examines the differences in, and challenges to, two different models of providing criminal justice and social service responses to honor violence. ‘Othering’ provides the theoretical framework for then examining whether discriminatory responses based on culture, religion, and ethnicity are occurring in each model. A comparative case study method with 60-90 minute interviews and vignettes was used to examine criminal justice and social service institutional responses to honor violence in each iv country. 74 key stakeholders were interviewed based on their knowledge of, and experience with, honor violence. Vignettes describing a case of honor violence that is common to each country were administered during each interview to assess whether othering is occurring among institutional responders. Using qualitative content analysis, the results show that othering appears to be occurring at the governmental level in both Turkey and the UK, which responders argued is part of nationalist agendas. I argue that this othering then has an effect on institutional responses, which is apparent in conservative othering among Turkish police officers and liberal othering among British police officers. Social service/NGO responders in each country tended to not only avoid engaging in othering, but actually discussed forms of othering in various institutional responses. This research responds to and informs the arguments for and against codifying honor violence, and discusses the broader implications of responses that address violence against women yet respect religious norms and customs. Recommendations are made for best practices and frameworks for policymakers and law enforcement to address honor violence in the U.S. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS True to form, I chose to design a very difficult dissertation. It was a risky choice, which required funding, adherence to a strict timeline, access to foreign organizations, and a sense of adventure. I needed the perfect committee to bring this plan to fruition- and I found them. Special thanks must first go to Dr. Mike Maxfield. I cannot count how many people told me that my proposal was too ambitious and could not be done. Dr. Maxfield, however, never once doubted me and always had my back. It is impossible to put into words how much his confidence and support meant to me at the times I needed it most. Working with him was one of the best experiences that I have ever had in academia. His dedication to his students is unparalleled and does not receive nearly the recognition that it deserves. A heartfelt thanks also goes to Dr. Ric Curtis and Dr. Hung-En Sung, who formed the rest of my committee. Their patience, flexibility, exchanges of ideas, and unwavering support made this process infinitely less stressful than it could have been. They did everything in their power to make this research work, for which I am eternally grateful. I am extremely lucky to have found such supportive mentors. I would like to thank my funders, the Georgetown University Institute of Turkish Studies, Association for the Sociology of Religion, Religious Research Association, and the Society for the Scientific Study of Religion. They enabled me to live my dream, and contribute something positive to academia. I quite literally could not have completed this research without their support. While in Turkey and England, there were several people who provided me with extraordinary help. I would first like to thank Dr. Galma Akdeniz and Dr. Shane Johnson for providing in-country affiliations, IRB approval, and helping me gain access to contacts who vi would make my research possible. The names of these contacts must remain confidential, but these individuals went out of their way to set up interviews with participants for this study and without them, my research could not have moved forward. I am forever grateful to three amazing research assistants, Beril Eski, Begüm Acar, and Yasin Koç, who were an integral part of my research. I would also like to thank the women and men who participated in this study, taking time out of their very busy lives to share their experiences with me. Most importantly, so many loved ones supported me throughout this process. I thank all of you from the bottom of my heart. My parents, Maggie and Glen Henninger, never once doubted me throughout this process. Their constant and loyal faith in me gave me the strength to keep moving forward. I also have them to thank for my work ethic and drive. They taught me very early in life that I can accomplish anything I set my mind to, and will forever be my greatest role models. I would like to thank my sister Amanda, who provided a constant shoulder to lean on, confidant, travel companion, and even transcriptionist. She made this experience infinitely more fun. Finally, I made life-long friends at John Jay, whom I will always cherish. You made this the experience of a lifetime, and for that I thank you. From the very beginning, Tom Petty provided my battle cry and mantra. His lyrics kept me going, and never failed to raise my spirits when the dissertation process threatened to finally overwhelm me (which was often). It is only fitting to conclude with his words: Well I won't back down No I won't back down You could stand me up at the gates of Hell But I won't back down No I'll stand my ground Won't be turned around And I'll keep this world from dragging me down Gonna stand my ground And I won't back down. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Pages TABLE OF CONTENTS v-vii LIST OF TABLES viii LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ix CHAPTER 1: Introduction 1-5 CHAPTER 2: Theoretical Framework- Othering 6-9 2.1: Forms of Othering 6-8 2.2: Honor Violence & Othering 8-9 CHAPTER 3: Literature Review 10-20 3.1: Operationalizing Honor 10-12 3.2: Operationalizing Honor Violence 12-16 3.3: Honor Violence vs. Domestic Violence 16-18 3.4: Institutional Responses to Honor Violence 18-20 CHAPTER 4: Case Countries 21-66 4.1: Case Selection & Research Sites 21-22 4.2: Case Country 1- Turkey 22-46 Turkish Modernization 23-28 Turkish Membership in the European Union 28-30 Current Turkish Context 30-33 Honor & Honor Violence in Turkey 33-46 4.3: Case Country 2- England 46-66 Multiculturalism 46-53 Forced Marriage 53-56 Honor Violence in the UK 56-65 Summary 65-66 CHAPTER 5: Methods 67-82 5.1: Research Questions 67 5.2: Expectations/Hypotheses 67-68 5.3: Research Design 68-69 5.4: Preparation 69 5.5: Data Collection 69-78 Fieldwork 69-70 Interviews 70-77 Vignettes 77-78 5.6: Quality & Credibility 78-80 5.7: Data Analysis 81-82 5.8: Ethical Considerations 82 CHAPTER 6: Results 83-223 6.1: Description of Participants 83-86 6.2: Definitions of Honor 86-94 viii Difficulty Defining Honor 86-87 Definitions Vary 87-89 Descriptions of Honor 89-94 6.3: Definitions of Honor Violence 94-111 Causes

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