Incorporating Youth Into the Political Arena: Elite Structures, Elite-Youth Linkages, and Youth (De-) Mobilization in Post-1960 Turkey (1960-2016)
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Incorporating Youth into the Political Arena: Elite Structures, Elite-Youth Linkages, and Youth (De-) Mobilization in post-1960 Turkey (1960-2016) by Begum Uzun Taskin A thesis submitted in conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Political Science University of Toronto © Copyright by Begum Uzun Taskin 2019 Incorporating Youth into the Political Arena: Elte Structures, Elite- Youth Linkages, and Youth (De-)Mobilization in post-1960 Turkey (1960-2016) Begum Uzun Taskin Doctor of Philosophy Department of Political Science University of Toronto 2019 Abstract This dissertation investigates why the Turkish state encountered sustained youth contention and failed to contain it in the 1960s and the 1970s, while it proved more capable in preventing the emergence/escalation of youth dissent in the post-1980 period. Studies on social movements have not treated youth as a central category (Bayat 2010) and have under-theorized the processes of youth mobilization and demobilization. Besides, scholars of state-society relations in the Global South have paid scant attention to the political role of youth and elite attempts at incorporating young people into the political and economic structures. This study undertakes a comparative-historical analysis of political elite-youth linkages to explain the trajectory of youth political participation in post-1960 Turkey. By elite-youth linkages, I refer to the attempts of the power-holder elites at regulating youth political participation in accordance with their particular interests and to the ways young people benefit from, negotiate, or at times challenge elite claims to exert control over youth political agency. This study contends that the more fragmented the Turkish elites in the period from 1960 to 1980, the more they turned to participate themselves in youth mobilization via the process of partisan incorporation. Elite fragmentation in part facilitated militant youth behavior, left the Turkish state vulnerable to youth contention, and ii created youth mobilization that was sustained over a long period. The more cohesive the Turkish elites in the post-1980 coup period, the more they turned away from establishing partisan linkages with youth and the more they subscribed to incorporation as moderation and control. Elite cohesion curbed the mobilizational capacity of youth and ultimately triggered youth political disengagement. Finally, the more the ruling party elites perceived threats to emerging elite hegemony in the post-2010 period, the more they adopted hybrid incorporation to secure incumbency and sustain political hegemony. Elite hegemony weakened oppositional youth politics and politically empowered pro-government youth. iii Dedicated to my mom and dad to whom I owe my passion for knowledge and teaching. iv Acknowledgments I wrote this dissertation in two countries and over several years. I called different places and different people as home. My sense of belonging has become weaker; it has become stronger. They say, "it takes a village to raise a child." Even if not comparable to the development of a human being, I would not be able to complete this challenging journey without the support, guidance, and inspiration from my people of the village. First, I would like to thank my supervisor, Paul Kingston. From the beginning, Paul kept reminding me that I should come out as a scholar of Turkish Politics from this intense period of research and writing. His critical comments and mentorship have forced me to think about Turkish politics and state-society relations in Turkey from a different perspective. Our conversations in person and over Skype have sharpened my mind, re-stimulated my interest in my research, and encouraged me to start over when I felt most hopeless and exhausted. In addition to his intellectual guidance, I was fortunate to have Paul's support during politically challenging times in Turkey. I want to thank my committee members, Courtney Jung, and Nancy Bertoldi. Courtney has always become supportive of this research project, and her feedbacks on several drafts have played a significant role in my progress. I have always admired Courtney not only as a scholar but also as a person. She has been an inspiring, strong, and intelligent mentor. Without Nancy, the theoretical framework of this dissertation would be elusive and weaker; her feedback in critical moments was of extreme importance. With Nancy, I also shared the attachment to Turkey; being able to talk with one of my committee members in my native language always felt comforting. I also need to thank Kanta Murali, my internal reader. Kanta’s feedback on my work and her solidarity in the last stages towards completion have kept me afloat. I wish I could get to know her earlier. My external examiner, David Waldner from the University of Virginia, provided me with very detailed and constructive comments. Prof Waldner’s comments have forced me to approach my work from a different angle, and I consider them very helpful towards a book manuscript. v The decision to pursue an academic career came out of my admiration for my undergraduate professors at Marmara University. I want to thank Günay Göksu Özdoğan, Ayhan Aktar, Belkıs Kümbetoğlu, and Ahmet Demirel for the intellectual stimulation and their sincere approach to teaching. I have also learned a lot from my MA supervisor at Boğaziçi University, Yeşim Arat, about how to conduct good and reliable research. I would like to thank Demet Lüküslü as well. Not only I have admired and extensively cited her comprehensive works on youth politics in Turkey, but I have also had the chance to conduct collaborative research with Demet on religious and secular youth. I have vastly benefited from Demet’s insights during our fieldwork in Istanbul and Adana, and when turning the research results into a book. My fieldwork in Turkey was a challenging yet positively transforming process. During my field research, I had to confront my insecurities while constantly re-discovering the reasons behind my decision to pursue a PhD in the first place. Without my interviewees, resourceful, and inspiring young people from different walks of life, this project would not be possible. I want to thank all of them for candidly sharing their stories with me and for restoring my hope and faith in Turkey. Since 2014, I have taught a course, Youth and Politics, that I have designed based on my PhD research. My students in this course at the University of Toronto, Marmara University, and lately MEF University, have inspired me with their curiosity and enthusiasm and I have learned a lot from them. I also need to thank Zeyno and Yunus. I have met these amazing young people at Marmara University. They both turned from students to friends and have cheered me up during depressing times of dissertation writing on our WhatsApp group talks. I also would like to acknowledge the financial assistance provided by the International Development Research Centre Doctoral Research Award, the Ontario Graduate Scholarship, the School of Graduate Studies Travel Grants, Mitacs Globalink Research Award, and the Youth Research Grant co-funded by Bilgi University Youth Studies Center and the Foundation of Community Volunteers. The generous support of these institutions enabled me to conduct extensive field research in Turkey. During many years of the PhD, I have made wonderful friends. I have grown with them, learned from them, and have shared many moments with them- sad moments, fun moments, but always memorable ones. First and foremost, I would like to thank my partners in crime Özlem Aslan and Ümit Aydoğmuş. From the day we had traveled to the capital city to apply for a vi Canadian visa until the last winter and summer we spent in Toronto, we have stayed together. I shared the same living spaces with Özlem, all those cozy houses in different parts of the city, which turned a friendship into a sincere and caring sisterhood. I have always admired Özlem’s intellect, empathy for others, patience, resilience, and creativity. We have cried together, have taken vacations, cooked together; we have shared life. I thank her for her mere presence; I thank Özlem for all the laughter, and even for the anger, disappointments, and tensions; the latter have made our friendship deeper and our persona stronger. When I first met Ümit in 2006, I could not imagine that our relationship would blossom over the years. I have become almost addicted to Ümit’s intelligence, his unique sense of humor, and integrity. I thank Ümit for all the long conversations, critiques, walks, and food. I thank Ümit for a friendship that I am sure would be life-long. Without Özlem and Ümit, I do not know how I could survive the Toronto days. I want to thank Sude Bahar Beltan. She started her PhD at the University of Toronto two years before me. Since the day I had arrived in Toronto until the very last day, she has fed me, nurtured me, calmed me down, amused me, and intellectually stimulated me with her brilliant mind. Despite many challenges, Sude has managed to become a good scholar and a good mother. I feel very lucky to have connected with Sude’s daughter Saranur; Saranur has become a source of joy and hope in the bleakest days before the completion. I would not be able to cope with the hurdles of the PhD without Dragana Bodružić. We had survived the comparative politics class and the comprehensive exams together and Dragana was always there for me when I needed someone to talk and or to edit my work. I thank Dragana for all the long conversations, good company, and her solid solidarity. I need to thank Jaby Matthew. Jaby was sitting next to me in the comparative politics class, but it took us another year to finally start talking to each other.