Berkley Center

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan paid Germany a recent visit on February 4 in the capital city of Berlin, causing a wave of coverage in the German press. Many feared an outcome similar to that of his last visit to Germany in 2008, when he urged the Deutschtürken (or German Turks, as they are called here) to resist the pressure to assimilate into the German culture. Instead, he wished they hold on to their Turkish customs and traditions—which may or may not have positive and/or negative effects on those individuals and society. In Germany, this remark of his from six years ago set off a hot-burning discussion about assimilation and integration of immigrants within Germany. Some think that those who come to Germany meaning to stay should take on German habits and customs; others say that, as long as it does not adversely affect the well-being of society and other individuals, then there should be no problem. Above all, however, there seems to be a worry that Turkish, and especially Muslim, customs and values will clash with a society based upon German, Christian norms.

In the days leading up to Erdoğan’s arrival this time, there was much hype about whether he would push for the same outcome as he did in 2008. However, his focus, if not his opinion on assimilation entirely, seems to have changed; he met with Angela Merkel to speak about Turkey’s ascent into the European Union. This seems to almost contradict his past policy of non-assimilation, even though he has pushed for Turkey’s EU membership throughout his time in office. His main goal, however, according to the German press writing about his arrival, was to reach out to the many Deutschtürken who are still citizens of Turkey, and whose opinions therefore count in terms of votes for the upcoming election in Turkey. On first glance, it may seem a bit strange to go to a foreign country in order to campaign for votes in a domestic election. However, the truth is, there are so many Turks living in Germany that his campaign actually makes sense—there are three million Turks living here in Germany, of which up to 1.5 million could take part in the Turkish elections.

In reading about the importance of these votes, I wonder—what about the position that Erdoğan’s campaign and push to resist assimilation put all these Deutschtürken into? What motivation might they have to remain politically and culturally tied to a country in which they might never live again? And what do these Deutschtürken think about Erdoğan really, and do their opinions differ strongly from those of their relatives in Turkey? Before going any further, I must clarify exactly which groups of Turks living in Germany I am talking about. The ones who are able to vote—the ones Erdoğan was speaking to in both his most recent and his 2008 visit—are the ones who are still citizens of Turkey, and probably grew up and/or spent a significant amount of time living there. They are not the newer generation of Turks, who were born and who grew up here in Germany—these are the children of those about whom I write. The Turks affected by Erdoğan’s politics are older, probably have a family and kids, and probably have tried or wished to become German citizens. Unfortunately for them, Germany has strict laws about citizenship status—adults are not allowed to have dual citizenship, and the process of attaining German citizenship is long and difficult.

This all-or-nothing mentality about citizenship mirrors Erdoğan’s politics on culture, and in the end is likely to do nothing but polarize both sides. In such a case, one must ask what the term Deutschtürken even means. If Turkey wants its expatriates to resist becoming Deutsch, and if Germany makes it hard for any Türken to become citizens, is there even a place for the Deutschtürken in German society? What do these two countries want to become of this significant group of people? Should they, as many have done, continue to strive to become Deutsch? Or should they give up, as it seems both countries would have them do? Even though Germany has done much to integrate Turks into its society culturally, much is still lacking in the political sector. Let us hope that future visits between the heads of these two countries will bring more profitable results that help Germany’s Deutschtürken become recognized and full members of its political society.