AGI

Ufuk Topkara

Humboldt University Berlin

Dr. Ufuk Topkara is Visiting Professor of Comparative Theology in an Islamic Perspective at the Berlin Institute for Islamic Theology, Humboldt University Berlin.

Dr. Topkara was a DAAD/AGI Research Fellow from October to December 2018. He has been active in promoting inter-religious dialogue since 2005 as an expert on Islam for the Evangelical Academy Berlin, as a member of the Jewish-Turkish Roundtables for Dialogue, and with the Catholic Academy Berlin. Dr. Topkara was a Tour Guide at the Jewish Museum of Berlin from 2005 to 2015. He was a Humanity in Action Fellow in New York and worked in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Humanity in Action-Lantos Fellow in Washington, DC. He studied History and Philosophy at Humboldt University of Berlin and Harvard University. He completed his doctoral dissertation with the Graduate School of Islamic Theology at the University of Paderborn, Germany, analyzing the convergence of reason and faith in Islam.

While at AGI, Dr. Topkara will conduct research on a project that emerges out of the interconnected strands of intellectual inquiry: comparing the experiences of discrimination faced by Jews in early twentieth century Germany and the experiences of discrimination faced by Muslims in contemporary Germany. By drawing parallels between the marginalization faced by these two religious minority groups, Dr. Topkara will provide a tool for combating rising anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim sentiment in both Germany and the United States today.

Dr. Topkara intends to showcase patterns of marginalization and othering of religious minorities in contemporary German society. A comparison between the Jewish community of the early twentieth century in Germany and contemporary Muslim community in Germany is particularly promising because of the inherent questions of belonging. Similar to the experience of German Jews in early modern times, German Muslims nowadays struggle with locating their place within German society. In both cases, the religious minority brought up questions of belonging that goes beyond citizenship, that is, the inclusion if not appreciation of cultural and religious differences.

Recent Content

Reset

What is Angela Merkel’s Legacy for German Memory Culture?

AGI Asks: How has Angela Merkel contributed to Germany’s culture of remembrance and influenced memory politics? Lily Gardner Feldman AGI Senior Fellow All German post-war chancellors have been committed to …

Us versus Them: The Steady Narrative of “Othering” in Historical and Contemporary Debates in Germany and the U.S.

Germany and the United States today face rising anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim sentiment as nativist politics on both sides of the Atlantic gain not only traction, but also legitimacy. From the …

Comparing the Experiences of Discrimination Faced by Jews in Early 20th Century Germany and by Muslims in Contemporary Germany

As a DAAD/AGI Research Fellow from October to December 2018, Dr. Ufuk Topkara conducted research on a project that emerges out of the interconnected strands of intellectual inquiry: comparing the …

Never Again!

A Historical Survey of Anti-Semitism in Germany between 1933 and 1935 and Implications for Contemporary Debates When an anti-Semitic loner killed 11 members of a Jewish congregation in Pittsburgh in …

Ufuk Topkara, DAAD/AGI Research Fellow

AGI is pleased to welcome Ufuk Topkara as a DAAD/AGI Research Fellow from October to December 2018. He has been active in promoting inter-religious dialogue since 2005 as an expert on …

Islam in Germany Revisited: The Circumcision Debate

The notorious silence of the relatively uneventful summer this year in Germany was suddenly disrupted by a heated debate regarding the abolishment of circumcision—ignited by a May 2012 court ruling. …

Challenging Times: Muslims and their Role in Shaping the Future of Germany

The Muslim community is at the forefront of public debate, not only as a result of the post 9/11 era, but more so because of questions related to Islam and its convergences with a democratic, pluralistic society. Whereas some Muslims ignored these inquiries into their faith for too long, others sincerely tried to engage in discussion.