Re: [Marxism] Head scarf contradictions in Turkey

[Aaron Aarons <aaron@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

I think Jscotive is misreading what Louis meant when he said that "the Nation 
of Islam was made up of ex-cons". He was contrasting it to the "viciously 
anti-working class" bourgeois Islamic party that presently governs Turkey. Such 
a contrast is hardly a put-down of the ex-cons who made up the NOI. In fact, it 
is either neutral or favorable to toward the latter.

 - Aaron
 
>Date: Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:34:41 -0400
>From: Louis Proyect <lnp3@xxxxxxxxx>
>
>Walter Lippmann wrote:
>> Fascinating article, and thanks for posting it. If anything, this
>> demonstrates that the choice by some to adapt to Islamic customs
>> such as wearing the head scarf is a step in a process of political
>> consciousness-raising, as we see it described in this article.
>
>Don't go overboard. The government of Turkey is a kind of soft-core
>Islamic republic but it is viciously anti-working class, competing with
>its hard-core brethren in Iran for who can get workers to accept lower
>pay in the name of Allah. The Nation of Islam was made up of ex-cons
>while the government party in Turkey is made up of Anatolian textile
>manufacturers. Don't ever forget about the class dimensions, because
>after all this is a Marxism list.

>From: Jscotlive@xxxxxxx
>Date: Wed, 15 Oct 2008 02:41:22 EDT
>
>Louis:
> 
>The Nation of Islam was made up of ex-cons
>
>Reply:
> 
>Quite a sweeping statement, but regardless - what of it? Does being an 
>ex-con render you beyond the pale politically? Did being an ex-con negate the 
>power and potency of Malcolm X?
> 
>Some of the most class and politically conscious people I've ever met are 
>precisely that because of their experiences with the law.
> 
>Aren't we Marxists? Don't we understand the vast majority of crimes 
>committed under capitalism as being the result of poverty, alienation, and an 
>unconscious rebellion against such maladies?
> 
>What's the point of this assertion?

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