TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 1

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 2

TACAM Newsletter is published and distributed by Turkish

American Cultural Association of Michigan (TACAM) as a part of

the cultural activities of the organization.

Editor: Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin,

Content Director: Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin

Contributors:

Ferid Ahmed

Tayfun Bilgin

Mine Taşçı-Özalp

Tayfun Özdemir

Cihangir Taşdemir

Murat Ulaşır

Attila Yaprak

Financial Support for This Issue

Dr. Birol Halaçoğlu

Tayfun Bilgin

TACAM - Turkish American Cultural Association of Michigan

Phone: (248) 438 8580 E-mail: contact@tacam.org

Address: 28837 Beck Road, Wixom, MI, 48393

Webpage: http://tacam.org

About TACAM

Turkish American Cultural Association of Michigan,

founded in 1972, follows the philosophy of Mustafa Kemal

Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, who stated: “Culture is

the foundation of the Turkish Republic.” His view of culture

encompassed the nation’s creative legacy as well as the best

values of world civilization. It stressed personal and universal

humanism. “Culture,” he said “is a basic element in being a

person worthy of humanity,” and described Turkey’s ideological

thrust as “a creation of patriotism blended with a lofty humanist

ideal.” Thus, TACAM wants to instill this philosophy into all

Turkish-Americans living in Michigan.

The purpose of this association is to foster, promote, plan, and

execute programs aimed at improving the economic, social,

educational, general welfare, and other humanitarian activities of

the Turkish community in the State of Michigan and elsewhere.

President's Message

Dear Friends,

As of April 30th

, my term as the

president of TACAM ended, however, I

am honored, and proud of being re-

elected for another two-year-term to

serve as the president of TACAM.

Besides, new board members were also

elected. Among them we have several

young friends who are new not only to

TACAM but also in Michigan. I am very excited to work with them,

and believe that with their help we will be more dynamic than ever.

It is another privilege that this year we are celebrating the 45th

anniversary of the establishment of Turkish American Cultural

Association in Michigan. At the general assembly of 2017, we

tried to gather past members and presidents of TACAM, and

celebrated by cutting a special cake. Their names and work have

been acknowledged and commemorated. During my visit to Florida,

I had the chance of meeting some of the founders of TACAM. Also,

as part of the celebration, we would like to publish a special issue of

TACAM newsletter and release articles related to the history of first

Turks, Turkish associations, and other small organizations or groups

that impacted the community by introducing the Turkish culture in

Michigan.

I personally think that it is historically important for an

organization to have been established and continuously existed for

the last 45 years by the completely voluntary efforts of its members.

If you think of the history of the USA which established 241 years

ago, and MI became a state 180 years ago, TACAM was present in

the one fourth of MI history. Of course there were other Turkish

organizations before TACAM as you will read in the article below,

but so far TACAM is the longest running Turkish organization in

Michigan without a hiatus. During all those years, in 29 elections

26 presidents (some did two terms) and more than 200 board

members were elected. Over the years, unfortunately some of the

founders of TACAM sadly have passed away and some moved to

Turkey or other states in USA. Most recently we were deeply

saddened with the loss of one of TACAM’s past presidents,

newsletter editor, board member, valuable person Dr. Erol Üçer

who was still a resident of Grand Blanc, MI.

TACAM can only survive and continue to be part of history with

your engagement and participation in our activities and board

duties. As current TACAM Board members, we appreciate your

generosity, time, and energy for our continuing development.

We hope you will enjoy reading the newsletter. We welcome

any contributions in future in the form of an article, anecdote, poem,

or a cartoon, etc.!

Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin, M.D.

If you were born and raised in Turkey and miss many cultural connections…

If you were born into Turkish parents…

If you have visited Turkey and enjoyed the culture…

If you have served or worked in Turkey and have fond memories…

If you are interested in learning about Turkish culture and history…

If you fell in love with a Turkish person and married into Turkish culture…

Then, Turkish American Cultural Association of Michigan Welcomes You!

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 3

When and Why did The First Turks Immigrate to USA? Up to date the research and the publications done by

Barbara Bilge are among the most reliable ones that we learn when and why the first Turks immigrated to USA. Barbara Bilgé was a Lecturer in Anthropology and Sociology at Eastern Michigan University and author of several articles on Turks and other Muslims in the Americas. Information given on this article is mostly taken from her publication.1

We learn from her research that most of metropolitan Detroit's Turkish- and Kurdish-speaking Ottoman Sunni Muslim immigrants came to the United States before World War I and clustered in the Detroit area afterwards. The empire's European-assisted modernization projects produced development in some regions and underdevelopment in others. From 1870s on, groups of Armenian, Kurdish, and Turkish men from impoverished eastern Anatolian villages migrated seasonally to do hard manual labor in the developing zones of western Anatolia. Thus, many Ottoman ethnic groups had established occupations away from home and forged their own internal migration routes and destinations before they finally emigrated from the empire.

The overwhelming majority of Ottoman subjects who came to the Americas from 1860 to 1923 were Christian Armenians from eastern Anatolia and Arabs from Lebanon or Syria. Ottoman Sunni Muslims who crossed the Atlantic Ocean came primarily from the empire's politically turbulent Balkan and eastern Anatolian provinces. Peak immigration years were 1904- 1908 ' (9,889 admitted), 1910 (1,283), and 1912-1914 (6,044). Many Turkish and Kurdish migrants left Ottoman domain illegally, without a passport, with a forged passport, with an internal travel permit, or with no papers at all. They hopped on mail boats and small commercial crafts that eventually deposited them in Marseilles, where they worked and saved money for their trans-Atlantic passage. Some lingered in Marseilles over a year before embarking for the United States. Of the 22,089 self-identified Turks admitted to the United States between 1900 and 1925, 20,652 (93.1%) were male, and 1,433 (6.9%) were female. Detroit's first Ottoman Sunni, a Turk from a village near the Anatolian town of Elazığ, arrived in 1903. A future leader in the community, he secured a job in a barber shop owned by a Greek immigrant in the city's Greektown district.

In 1914, Henry Ford began offering $5 for a day’s work at his Highland Park assembly line. The burgeoning auto industry attracted tens of thousands of immigrants to Michigan. Another investigator2 claimed that the Highland Park (a municipality surrounded by Detroit) Muslim community of 7,000-8,000 was the largest colony of Muslims in the country, and that nearly all of them were employees of the Ford Motor Company. By 1914, Detroit boasted 4,000-5,000 Ottoman Sunni Muslims.

We also learn from Bilge that Turks and Kurds mainly gathered around Highland Park neighborhood. One group of men rented a large house in Highland Park, sublet rooms to their countrymen, and employed a full-time cook. Each boarder chipped in a few dollars every month. This money paid the rent, the cost of laundering the bedding, meals, and the cook's salary. Two men shared each bed in day and night shifts. This household endured until Ford closed its

operation in Highland Park and opened the Rouge plant in 1924. The men then were dispersed, some boarding with American families, but most taking flats in apartment houses and dining at restaurants owned by their entrepreneurial compatriots. The egalitarian arrangement of the cooperative was superseded by a patron-client structure as an income gap between the few property owners and the unskilled factory workers emerged. These Ottoman Muslim cooperatives in Highland Park was not only for Turks or Kurds but also met the needs of many ethnically distinctive Eastern Mediterranean and Middle Eastern unwed men of village origin. They came to the United States to work hard and save money in order to return home as wealthy men. These objectives mandated a frugal life in this country.

During the depression of the 1930s some lost their jobs, but instead of accepting welfare, they peddled peanuts, watermelon slices, and cigarettes provided to them by the handful of Turkish grocers and restaurant owners in Greektown. During the late 1930s, many regained their jobs in the industry. None of the laborers became rich, but some achieved comfortable, albeit modest, middle-class income levels. During the 1950s and 1960s the workers retired, living simply but with dignity on small pensions and social security checks. Most of them never went home even for a visit. Balkan Turkish immigrants had no homeland after World War I, and they lost contact with their overseas relatives. Anatolian Muslims, on the other hand, had been forbidden to return to their countries. As we learn from Yusuf’s story (published in TACAM Newsletter Winter 2017 issue), when the First World War erupted Ottoman Empire had declared mobilization, by which the citizens who were living abroad were called to return home, and those who did not come within a specified period of time would be declared traitors and banned from re-entry to the country in the future. When they heard this, it was already too late. Therefore, they feared of permanent detainment in Turkey, even if they went there to fetch a bride. Ninety-five percent of the male immigrants never married, partly because of their dream of returning to their homeland to establish families of procreation, partly because of their misgivings about the purity of American women, who moved so freely among strange men in public places, or because they had left a wife, daughter(s) or son(s) behind. However, they maintained contact with relatives in the old country, forwarding money to them regularly, primarily to retain their rights to a fair share of the family-land should they return. The remittances of the Anatolian men continued until they died.

In the next page, we will hear the story of one of the first Turkish immigrants and his family.

Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin 1 Bilgé, Barbara.—. “Voluntary Associations in the Old Turkish Community of Metropolitan Detroit,” in Muslim Communities in North America, edited by Yvonne Y. Haddad and Jane I. Smith, 381–405. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994. 2 Holmes, Mary Caroline, “Islam in America,” The Moslem World 26, 1926: 262-266.

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 4

Mustafa Scounakis at work in an early shoemaker shop in Pennsylvania or possibly New York.

Nourey Ahmed at barber shop in Rhode Island. 1912.

Immigration to America

Both my parents arrived in the United States, independently of knowing each other, in or about 1930. They each arrived accompanying their mothers, their fathers having arrived some years earlier. My father’s father came in 1912 and my mother’s father came in 1920. In those days when international travel was more difficult and money not so abundant a single member of a family, the menfolk, emigrated for better pastures. The plan for married men, presumedly, was to get established and when financially able to send for their wives and children. This was done, but in the case of my grandparents it took more than just a few years.

What follows is a description of two families from Turkish lands who immigrated to the United States in the early 20th century. It is a brief description gathered from family sources and also from Barbara Bilge’s article “Voluntary Associations in the Old Turkish Community of Metropolitan Detroit” in “Muslim Communities in North America” edited by Yvonne Haddad and Jane Smith copyrighted 1994. The accuracy of the information is presented as faithfully as possible but there may be dates or places open to modification.

First to arrive was Nourey Ahmed, my grandfather on my father’s side. Though the spelling of his name (and those of other ancestors) varies on different documents, that spelling is the way he signed his name. Also his surname, Ahmed, was acquired somewhere between

leaving his hometown of Harput and being admitted to the United States at

Providence, Rhode Island. The family name adopted by his relatives remaining in Turkey is

Yardımcı. According to the ships’ manifest, he arrived on August 27, 1912 on the S.S. Roma sailing from Marseille, France. How long he was in France is unknown, but it appears from documents that he spent several years in Rhode Island working as a barber before settling in Detroit sometime after 1920. He had not yet sent for his wife and a son. In Detroit, he worked a couple of jobs before getting into real estate, his main work for the remainder of his life. It was only in 1930 that he was able to bring his wife and his son

Ömer, who was going to be my father in future, back to

Detroit. During the 1920’s my grandfather became more

involved with the Turkish and Kurdish and the general Ottoman Sunni Muslim community. He opened a rather large coffeehouse and founded a charitable association that helped both Turks here in America and in Turkey. The coffeehouse opened in Detroit’s Greektown and served as a community center, including the many single men, mostly of rural origin with little formal schooling, that immigrated

here. The coffeehouse was an important meeting place for both social and practical needs: everyday socializing, participation

in holidays of Turkey and the U.S., getting news from the Old Country, learning of job openings, and in the formation of charitable organizations.

One such organization, the Turkish Orphans’ Association or Türkiye Himaye-i Etfal Cemiyeti, was established in 1924 (1936 according to Bilge’s article, but I have a membership book showing dates from the mid 1920’s to the mid 1930’s). My grandfather was its first president. Bilge: “Over the years the association sent close to $100,000 in aid to Turkey.” It appears that all of the money went specifically to projects in

Elazığ, the city next to Harput. Also from the coffeehouse a funeral association was created to help those single men without an immediate family.

This coffeehouse on St. Antoine Street in Greektown flourished from 1936 to 1957, then, in 1957 it moved “…to more modest quarters” on Lafayette Boulevard and finally in 1965 its new home relocated to yet a smaller space on Beaubien Street. It was in 1965 that my grandfather died and my father and mother took up his work. Bilge:

“In 1972, the Orphans’ Association transferred its remaining funds, except for the funeral association account, to the treasury of the Turkish-American Cultural Association of Michigan, which was formed that year by post-World War II immigrant couples from Turkey. The younger Yardimci and his able wife operated their tiny coffeehouse for seven-ten surviving bachelors every Sunday until 1979, when they sold it. The last funeral arranged under their auspices transpired in 1979.”

In 1920 my mother’s father came to the United States from Rhodes via Naples, Italy. 1920 was a woeful time with wars ending and wars beginning. I cannot hope to explain that time because I am so ignorant of those times. Suffice it to say that my grandfather’s family fled Rhodes. My grandfather going to America; his wife and daughter going to mainland Turkey. I remember talking to my mother’s cousin and close friend about how my mother and

From left; Nourey (my grandfather), Ayse (my grandmother) and Ömer Ziya Ahmed ( my father) dated Mar 12, 1939.

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The wedding picture of my parents Ömer and Kemale, 1937.

their relatives left Rhodes. It was tumultuous times with whole populations shifting locations. My mother was a young girl, maybe 4 years old. Her family (but not her father?) had to steal away in the middle of the night. They took only what they could carry from their homes, even taking off their shoes in order to be quiet and went to the shore and boarded small boats for the mainland, for a new life. Certainly a precarious situation, but they made it. For about the next ten years they lived in Ayvalık.

Moustaffa Allie, later known as Moustaffa Scounakis, arrived at the port of Boston, Massachusetts on the 30th day of October, 1920. Documents indicate he may have lived in Detroit (my brother thinks it could have been New York) for a little over two years and then moved to the Pittsburg area in April, 1923. For the next 40 plus years Duquesne, Pennsylvania was his home. He worked as a shoemaker and had his own shop. Although he could make shoes, his primary work was shoe repair.

In November of 1929 his wife and daughter arrived in New York City. For some reason or circumstance, that I am not aware of, they did not continue on to Pennsylvania but instead stayed in New York for about six months. My grandfather had some friends there that helped them with a place to stay. As an aside, it was in an area with an orthodox Jewish community and my mother, then 13 years old, would help them on their sabbath to do chores prohibited to them; chores as mundane as lighting candles or setting the dinner table. In 1930 they did make it to Duquesne.

The 1930’s is well known for the Great Depression in the United States. Ironically, it may have helped the shoe repair business. Years later, during summer vacations, I remember “helping” my grandfather in his shop: pulling nails out that held the heels in place or polishing the repaired shoes. He always seemed to be busy and he was always the dignified shopkeeper. The street he worked on was also the street he lived on, the distance from home to work a few hundred feet apart. It was a classic small town and his busy street was filled with businesses. On the walk between his apartment home and his shop was a donut shop that when you passed by filled the air with its delicious aroma, a movie theater across the street, an ice cream parlor with at least 31 flavors at the one end of the street, and around the corner up a block or two a schoolyard set up for summer activities. What else could a kid ask for!

Well, within walking distance was Kennywood Park, sort of the Cedar Point of the time that the family would go to on Sundays. Sundays.

The difficulties of the 1930’s, both here and people from getting on with their lives. Both my parents came here during that time. With my father, he began his working years little by little, first by selling grocery items on the streets of downtown Detroit. Then came a small restaurant with a simple menu. Eventually he opened a grocery store in Greektown at the northeast corner of Lafayette and St. Antoine. He was there for more than 26 years, working six days a week. He would go to Eastern Market nearly every day before opening to get the vegetables, fruits, meats, etc. that he would carefully display inside and outside his store. The name on the front window read, as I remember it, “Omar Tobacco and Candy Co.”.

In Pennsylvania, my school age mother finished her schooling and graduated from McKeesport High School. She studied hair dressing and briefly worked in that field. In 1937 my mother and father were married and lived in Detroit. That’s the short story. How they met, or rather, how their respective families met involved a Greek grocer living in Detroit who, himself, emigrated from Rhodes. Thus, the Greek grocer knew both families and in effect acted as matchmaker and go-between since the families lived in different cities. There were introductions and even negotiations since we had a more liberal “bride’s” side considering a marriage with a more conservative “groom’s” side and vice versa. Western Turkey meets Eastern Turkey. The marriage took place and of course they lived happily ever after, that is, when one overlooks the problems of rearing three boys, one of whom may, just may have been a bit more to handle.

I have sketched a little story of my parents and grandfathers. Yet, the grandmothers, the friends, the family members not mentioned played vital roles. I apologize to them, for history is boundless, and we all fit in. The story of who emigrated, and why they emigrated is filled with happenstance and those who came and were fortunate enough to have gotten established should be commended by their descendants and by their community.

Ferid Ahmed

Ömer Ziya Ahmed in his store in Greektown with his mother and a regular customer in 1939.

Three boys of Omar & Kemale Ahmed, L to R; Nourey, Mustafa, and Ferid on their first trip to Turkey, 1955.

My mother Kemale with her parents Moustaffa and Sıdıka Scounakis.

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Bringing the Coffeehouse Culture, and Its Importance in the Social Life1,2

When immigrants began arriving in the United States

from eastern Europe, Turkey, and Syria in the late 19th and

early 20th centuries, they brought with them the distinctive

Ottoman-style coffeehouse, a male-oriented space for

relaxing, conducting business, and discussing the political

issues of the day. The coffeehouses first appeared in the

cities of the Ottoman Empire in the 15th century and

rapidly became an important institution of civil society. By

the late 17th century, it had worked its way to western

Europe, where it also played an important role in

inaugurating early modern consumer culture. In the United

States, owners of ethnic coffeehouses rarely are interested

in expanding their clientele beyond their countrymen to

increase their profits. The general public is not really

welcome. The establishment functions primarily as a

clubhouse where a group of male friends, usually from the

same village, can engage in frequent, primarily social

interaction and recreational activities apart from women.

For Muslim immigrants, as for others, these coffeehouses

became an important institution through which they

developed solidarity with members of their respective

ethnic and religious groups and began the work of

institutionalizing Islam as an American faith tradition.

Detroit's first Turkish coffeehouse was opened in 1924

on the second floor of a building in Greektown. During the

1920s and 1930s, a half dozen Turkish and Kurdish

coffeehouses flourished in metropolitan Detroit, which was

dotted with the coffeehouses of many other ethnic groups

as well. Most Detroit Turks and Kurds patronized all of the

Turkish coffeehouses at one time or another and were not

loyal to any particular one. This pattern underscored the

scattered regional origins of the immigrants and their initial

bonding as Ottoman Sunni Muslims. Husbands of

American wives went to the coffeehouses far less often than

the men married to immigrant Muslim women, and the

bachelors spent nearly every evening there.

“Turkish coffee” was served in small cups, thick and

dark. Backgammon and other games were provided to keep

patrons entertained, and the narjilah (“waterpipe”) was

introduced as well, with aromatic tobacco. Many

coffeehouses also provided hot meals, not in the style of

full-service restaurants but to sustain workers who were

living in the city without families or functioning kitchens.

Detroit Ottoman Muslims used their coffeehouses not only

as clubhouses, but also as mailing addresses, informal

employment agencies where men working in different

factories could inform their unemployed friends about job

openings at their plants, meeting sites where the business

of the funeral and charitable organizations was discharged,

and places where religious and national holidays were

celebrated by the community as a whole. There were public

places where vital community activities took place.

It was from the coffeehouse that ethnic clubs,

young men’s associations, and immigrant

benevolent societies were first launched, and it was

from coffeehouses that the city’s early mosques

were launched as well. In the late 1920s and early

1930s, Detroit newspaper reporters visited several

coffeehouses at the intersection of Lafayette Avenue and

Hastings Street on Muslim holidays. Turks and Albanians

met together in one location, Indians and Afghans met

across the street, and Arabic speakers met a half block

away. Each would celebrate the holiday prayers with

familiar food and socialize afterward in a familiar language.

As the Muslim populations spread out across the city and

its suburbs, their coffeehouses spread as well. By the mid-

1930s, there were a half dozen “Syrian” and Turkish

coffeehouses in the Dearborn neighborhood known as the

Southend. It was from these coffeehouses that plans were

first laid to open mosques in the city, funds were first

raised, and leaders selected. Two mosques opened nearby,

the Progressive Arabian Hashemite Society in 1937, and the

American Moslem Society in 1938. As male-centered

spaces, coffeehouses lost much of their appeal by the 1950s

and were not popular among American born Muslims.

However, when new immigration picked up in the 1960s,

coffeehouses gained momentum as well, this time among

immigrants from Yemen, Palestine, and Bosnia. Several of

Detroit’s more prominent mosque congregations got their

start in coffeehouses in the 1960s and 1970s. By the 21st

century, male-centered coffeehouses remained popular

among recently arrived immigrants, most recognizably

among Yemenis, Bengalis, Bosnians, and Iraqis. Many of

the new immigrant mosques blur the lines between mosque

and coffeehouse, setting aside social spaces where coffee is

served, candidates for public office stop by to greet

potential voters, news of work opportunities is shared,

assistance is available for those seeking green cards,

marriages are arranged, and satellite television provides

continuous coverage of news from Iraq, Yemen, Palestine,

Bosnia, Pakistan, or Bangladesh. Coffeehouses have

continued to act as steppingstones to new mosque

development for new immigrants.

Summarized from the articles written by Barbara Bilgé

and Sally Howell by Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin 1 Barbara Bilgé -. “Voluntary Associations in the Old Turkish Community of Metropolitan Detroit,” in Muslim Communities in North America, ed. by Yvonne Y. Haddad and Jane I. Smith, 381–405. Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994. 2 Sally Howell - “Coffee House,” in Encyclopedia of Muslim

American History, ed. by Edward E. Curtis IV, 119-120, Facts on File Inc., 2010.

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First Turkish Charitable Societies in MI &the Effects of Political Situation in Turkey

The activities and functions of the three charitable

associations the community formed reflected its members'

aspirations and their factional conflicts, which flourished

from 1928 to 1938 and then subsided. The Detroit chapter of

Kızılay, or Red Crescent, belonged to the official Ottoman

branch of the international League of Red Cross Societies. It

became an overseas chapter of the Turkish Kızılay after the

establishment of the Republic in 1923.25 The Ottoman

Kızılay, which convened in Geneva, Switzerland, in 1921,

named Detroit its headquarters for the U.S. branch of the

Turkish Red Crescent. Detroit was to direct branches located

in the tristate area embracing southern Michigan, northern

Indiana, and adjoining Illinois. In 1920, twelve Highland

Park Sunni Muslims had contributed $25.00 or more to

become Turk Kızılay American chapter founders through the

fund-raising efforts of the aforementioned Sait Mahcit, its

first president. The local membership soon swelled to almost

1,000 persons. They resided in greater Detroit and Pontiac,

Michigan, as well as in Windsor, Canada. They conducted

their business in a coffeehouse at the edge of Detroit's

Greektown. A subsidiary of the Detroit chapter was opened in

the mid-1920s in Whiting, Indiana, to accommodate Turkish

and Kurdish immigrants in Chicago, Illinois, and Hammond

and Gary, Indiana. Men affiliated with this branch worked in

the steel mills of that region. In 1922, active members were

required to make monthly donations of $2.00 and attend an

annual general meeting. Contributors of $25.00 per month

would be added to the list of founders. Members could be

expelled for being three months in arrears without cause,

missing five consecutive general meetings without reasonable

excuse, disrupting the society or not showing it due respect,

using the society to further political ends, or divulging the

secrets of the society. By 1940, at the end of the Great

Depression, the required monthly contribution for founders

had dropped to $5.00, while that for active members was

fixed at $ 1.00, and the number of consecutive general

meetings a member could miss was reduced to three. The

1922 regulations provide for a board of directors consisting

of a president, vice president, treasurer, and secretary, plus a

committee of sixteen. A comptroller was added in 1946. No

restrictions on the number of terms an incumbent could

serve are stipulated. The general meeting was to be presided

over by officers especially elected for the occasion. Other

regulations treat the necessary quorum at general meetings,

matters of income and expenditure, and the relationship of

the Detroit chapter to branches under its direction, to the

home office in Istanbul, and later, in Ankara, and to the

Detroit Red Cross Society. From its inception this

organization occupied a clearly defined position in a complex

international hierarchy, was formal in structure, and

operated under explicit guidelines. Moreover, official

Ottoman, then Turkish, recognition of its overseas colony is

implied. Booklets containing regulations of the society were

issued to Detroit chapter members from "Stambol" in 1922.

The book was produced in a combination of Arabic and

English script. New books dispatched in 1946 from Ankara

were printed in the Latin alphabet, in which the Turkish

language has been written since 1928, and pagination

followed the Western model. The new printing was prompted

by the desire of Kızılay members to change the name of

their organization from Turkish Red Crescent Society to

Turkish Crescent Association, or Türk Ay Cemiyeti. Red

was deleted because members of the association did not want

to be suspected of Communist leanings in the early years of

the Cold War. The society's seventh president, Mehmet

Malik, testified before the U.S. Congress to assure the

American government of the loyalty of Turk Ay members to

the United States and of the apolitical, humanitarian

objectives of the association. The main purpose of Kızılay

was "to unite the Mohemmedans to back the Turkish Red

Crescent Society and through this society enable them to help

one another" (1922 handbook, regulation i #2). Rules 20 and

22 endorse maintenance of a funeral association:

20. In case of a sickness of a member who had

faithfully fulfilled his duty toward the society and is in need

of help, the society shall come to his assistance in every way

possible, and shall go as far as the expense of his funeral.

22. The society shall, upon request, look after the

interest of the member's will after his death, to see that it

shall go to the rightful party or parties. In addition to

offering aid to needy local members, who included Turks,

Kurds, and a few Arabs, all bonded by Sunni Islam, the

society sent money to disaster victims in Turkey.

In 1924, for example, $25,000 was mailed to Ankara to

assist Turkish children orphaned during the War of

Independence against the Greeks, who invaded and occupied

southern Anatolia in 1919 but were routed by Ataturk's

victorious army in 1922. During the 1920s, national

allegiances came to supercede Islamic brotherhood among

Detroit's Ottoman Sunni Muslims. The men followed events

in their homeland closely, gleaning information from articles

in U.S. newspapers and from letters sent by relatives in the

old country. Both Turkish- and Kurdish-speaking Detroiters

felt a great surge of pride in 1923 with international

recognition of the new republic in their shrunken homeland.

Together they acquired a new national identity: Turkish.

Even the Turkish-speaking members of the community had

not felt a specifically "Turkish" identity heretofore. Prior to

1923, Turkish national consciousness was nurtured mainly

among the tiny avante garde of Ottoman intellectuals,

bureaucrats, and military officers who eventually launched

the Republic. However, when an uprising led by Kurdish

tribesmen against the secularization of government in

Turkey erupted along its Syrian border in 1928 and rapidly

crystallized into a Kurdish nationalist movement, the Detroit

area Sunni community split into hostile political factions.

"Detroit Kurds incorporated Hoyboon on February 6, 1929,

to aid women and children of Kurds who participate in the

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 8

struggle for the independence of Kurdistan, financed by the

membership dues and donations, etc., thirty years existence

(i.e., for the next 30 years). " Most, but not all Turks from

whom they solicited contributions were appalled and "would

have nothing to do with it," in the words of one elderly

Turkish informant. The Kurds and their Turkish

sympathizers "took the Kızılay with them" and moved their

headquarters to a new coffeehouse a few blocks away. Turks

opposed to the Kurdish cause allowed their membership in

Kızılay to lapse and boycotted its coffeehouse, although

Hoyboon was a separate society, with its own officers,

independent of the Turkish Red Crescent.

The Turkish nationalist faction founded Türkiye Çocuk

Esirgeme Kurumu, or Turkish Orphans' Association, in

1936. It was led by Nuri Ahmed Yardımcı, Detroit's one of the

first Ottoman Sunni immigrants who, by the 1920s, had

become a wealthy property owner. This association was

granted a license as a nonprofit, charitable, tax-exempt body

by the Security and Exchange Commission of the state of

Michigan. From 1936 to 1957, some 700 members gathered

in Mr. Yardımcı's wood-paneled coffeehouse, just around the

corner from Kızılay headquarters, to socialize and organize

philanthropic projects. They also created their own funeral

association. Over the years the association sent close to

$100,000 in aid to Turkey. Conflict between the two factions

diminished gradually after 1938, when Ataturk suppressed

the Kurdish rebels. Turks and Kurds in metropolitan Detroit

once against intermingled, frequented both coffeehouses,

and contributed generously to the charitable projects of both

organizations. Hoyboon simply faded away. Nevertheless, the

two funeral associations remained separate, although

members of each attended the death rituals of members of

the other. The structure of Kızılay was highly formalized,

and that of Türkiye Çocuk Esirgeme Kurumu and Hoyboon

were less so. Yet the meetings of all three societies were lively

and expressive agenda was prepared, and strict procedure

was not followed. During any fund-raising endeavor, each

man jumped up to proclaim that amount of his donation and

slapped his money or check on the table before him. The few

women contributors behaved in a similar manner. Men often

delivered spontaneous speeches, each outshouting his

predecessor on some occasions. Women rarely made

speeches. Entertainment was provided by local Turkish

musicians, spiced up by a hired belly dancer. Such meetings

served as a stage upon which members could display their

worthiness, loyalty to country of origin and Islam, and

conviviality. The charitable societies promoted community

cohesion by sponsoring celebrations of Islam's two major

holidays, Şeker Bayram (which concludes Ramadan, the

month of fasting) and Kurban Bayram (which

commemorates the sacrifice of Abraham), as well as Turkish

Independence Day (Cumhuriyet Bayramı), the Fourth of

July, and Labor Day.

After World War II, Türk Ay Cemiyeti ventured

cautiously into "public relations". Its members hosted many

Detroit area dignitaries-mayors, aspiring politicians, and

presidents of a few major corporations (General Electric, for

instance)-at its annual Cumhuriyet dinner. In 1953, Türk Ay

Cemiyeti purchased a modest, three-story building in the

south end of Dearborn, at 3048 Salina, in the midst of a

growing Arab neighborhood. The second and third floors had

rooms for eight tenants, whose rent payments defrayed the

expenses of building upkeep. Downstairs was a coffeehouse-

restaurant with a dozen or so tables and a tiny kitchen at the

rear. By 1969 the active membership had fallen below

twenty; utility costs became prohibitive. The building was

sold in 1969, and the Detroit chapter of Turk Ay

Cemiyeti was dissolved. Proceeds from the sale and funds

remaining in the treasury were forwarded to the Kızılay office

in Ankara. Uprooted boarders had to find rooms elsewhere in

the metropolitan area. Money left in the funeral association

account was divided among the surviving never-married

men.

The Orphans' Association channeled all its energy into its

projects in Elazığ. The Yardımcı (or Ahmed) family visited

Elazığ and other parts of Turkey in 1963 and were the subject

of a front-page story in Hürriyet, a prominent Turkey

newspaper. In 1957, Mr. Yardımcı moved his Turkish

Orphans' Association coffeehouse to more modest quarters.

Upon his death in 1965, his son shifted the association's

coffeehouse to an even smaller building. Both establishments

were located in Greektown. In 1972, the Orphans'

Association transferred its remaining funds, except

for the funeral association account, to the treasury

of the Turkish-American Cultural Association of

Michigan, which was formed that year by post-World War

II immigrant couples from Turkey. The younger Yardımcı

and his able wife operated their tiny coffeehouse for seven-

ten surviving bachelors every Sunday until 1979, when they

sold it. The last funeral arranged under their auspices

transpired in 1979.

Barbara Bilgé

Synopsis:

1- Turkish Red Crescent 1921-1969, name changed to Turkish

Crescent in 1946.

2- Hoyboon (mainly Kurdish) 1929- 1939

3- Turkish Orphan’s Association 1936- 1972

4- TACAM 1972-

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 9

TACAM: A New Home for Turkish Michiganders As we learn from the article above, both Turkish Crescent Association (TCA), and Turkish Orphanage’s Associations (TOA)

were fading down towards the end of 1960s mainly due to a difficulty in getting enough members. Board President of TCA Malik

bey and Vice President Mehmet Ali bey, at that time, approached a younger generation of Turkish individuals, asking for their

assistance in recruiting people to the association. "We are dying off and need the new generation to build us back up," said

Malik bey. Muzafer Bara, Bara Serik, Nami Hazneci, and brothers Enver and Nazım Hally were five young men on a mission to

grow the TCA. Despite their efforts to modernize the office functions and grow membership, it was out of their control and the

task proved difficult. Many members were simply not in favor of maintaining the Turkish Crescent Association's religious

aspect, making it difficult to grow the organization's membership. When they were down to 15 in their members, they decided to

terminate the organization in 1969. Similarly, TOA was also fading, but still existed until 1972. Meanwhile, chemical engineer

Nami Hazneci who had also been involved with TCA, and was VP in 1959, along with a couple more visionaries, who had

immigrated in late 1950s started a new organization that would be oriented around the Atatürk’s principles. We will read the

complete story below from Cihangir Taşdemir who published it originally in TACAM publication Anatolian Voice in 2002.

For the purpose of not duplicating the information summarized above, initial part of the article is not included.

…

Then what? There is no Turkish association, but there

are many new young Turks in Michigan. Many families had

social events and kept their Turkish culture intact. However,

a few saw a vision to keep the Turkish culture in the future of

Michigan. These Visionaries (or Founders) led the way to

form a new Turkish association: Dr. Celal Colak, Serap

Gurol, chemical engineer Nami Hazneci, Dr. Naci

Karca, Dr. Baha Onder, Dr. Nedret Tavlan, Adnan

Varol. With their collective efforts, they helped form the

Turkish American Cultural Center of Michigan (TACCM) in

1972.

In 1971, an event was held to celebrate Turkey's

Cumhurriyet bayrami at a restaurant an Ann Arbor. More

than 100 Turks attended this event, and the proceeds were

collected towards the new association Turkish American

Cultural Center of Michigan (TACCM). Milton

Silverstein, close friend of Celal Colak, was TACCM's lawyer

to help incorporate the association, and the first meeting was

help in Naci Karca's house (first among many meetings).

May 12, 1972, the Article of Incorporation was filed, and the

Turkish American Cultural Center of Michigan was created.

The seeds of the Turkish culture have been planted. Names of

the Directors on the Article of Incorporation are: Celal

Colak, Serap Gurol, Nami Hazneci, Naci Karca,

Nedret Tavlan, and Adnan Varol. TACAM's first

leadership consisted of a highly impressive group of women:

Nedret Tavlan - President, Yildiz Hazneci - Vice

President, Serap Gurol - Treasurer, Ayse Colak -

Secretary. These remarkable women formed the foundation

of the Board of Directors that is still used 30 years later (keep

in mind that this article written in 2002). In TACCM's first

year, there were nearly 100 members. The cultural center

formed a newsletter to help voice the Turkish American

community in Michigan and membership was slowly growing

through the years. Then in 1976 the official name of

TACCM was changed to the Turkish American

Cultural Association of Michigan. Our beloved TACAM

name was created. TACAM held Turkish classes to teach first

generation Americans the importance of its culture. TACAM

was active with the Michigan community such as inviting

Fotem (a Turkish folklore dance ensemble) to perform at the

Detroit Music Hall. The International Institute of Detroit was

a venue to display Turkish culture to the local community;

even former Mayor Coleman A. Young attended a meeting.

Turkish Ambassador Sukru Elekdag paid a visit to a well-

organized association in 1980. However, something more

was needed of TACAM to grow its roots.

In 1980, Kemal Goknar was the president of TACAM and

saw a need to establish a firm base to grow TACAM. With this

movement, the first Building Committee meeting was held on

May 13, 1981. The structure of this committee was formed to

begin the task of acquiring a building that will accommodate

the Turkish American community: Co-Chairman (Nami

Hazneci, Eti Gursel & Selcuk Ozil), Planning (Baha Onder),

Fund Raising (Ayse Colak), Technical (Nasut Uzman), Search

(Evelyn Sonbay). By June 1981 (one month after the first

meeting), $1 7,000 was collected towards the purchase of a

new building. By December of 1982, $39,000 was collected.

These figures are remarkable since the overall economy of

the US had high inflation rates in the early 1980's, but the

Turkish community was excited about their very own

building. As the donations were being collected, Kemal

Goknar and Baha Onder came across two buildings, one was

located in South Lyon and one was located at 28847 Beck

Road, Wixom, Ml. It was decided that the Wixom building

with 6 acres of land would be the future home of TACAM.

The building (formerly a church) was listed for $112,000, and

this was the building that the committee had agreed upon.

The committee went to the Wixom City Council several times

to seek approval for the purchase of the building.

Unfortunately, there was some skepticism about Muslims

moving into the Wixom community; one councilwoman

stated "not another Khomeini". But the committee stood

strong and defended the Turks, thus the city council gave

final approval of the building purchase. On December 12,

1981, the new building was purchased for $90,000,

and within 5 years the entire loan was paid off. The seeds of

TACAM have begun to grow its roots.

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 10

March 28, 1982 was the Open House of the new

TACAM building with about 100 people attending this

momentous event. More than 80 families helped donate an

average of $500 to make this possible. Nami Hazneci recalls

one specific quote from Kemal Goknar as the ownership of

TACAM was discussed, "Everyone who donates towards

the building has equal ownership regardless of the

amount they donated." As a result, the TACAM building is

for the entire Turkish American community. The new

building provided a place where everyone can identify his or

her Turkish culture. Parties, picnics, meetings, sporting

events, and numerous other activities were held to celebrate

the rich culture of Turks in Michigan.

On August 17, 1999, a great earthquake rocked and

disrupted the many innocent lives in Turkey. TACAM

organized an emergency effort to collect money and valuables

to be sent to the victims. The entire TACAM building was

stacked high to the ceiling with boxes of goods donated from

generous Americans helping their fellow humans in a time of

pain. As a result of the hard efforts of TACAM, more than

$100,000 was collected and sent to Turkey where an

elementary school was built on behalf of TACAM in

Adapazari. This is one of TACAM's proudest moments, and

TACAM would like to thank everyone who contributed in this

great cause. The construction of the school symbolizes the

role of TACAM, as an association that contributes to the

community, be it in Michigan or Turkey. TACAM has been a

crucial part in Michigan for over 30 years; however, the

Turkish culture has been a component in the Michigan

community for well of 90 years. TACAM follows the

philosophy of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, founder of the Turkish

Republic, who stated: "Culture is the foundation of the

Turkish Republic." His view of culture encompassed the

nation's creative legacy as well as the best values of world

civilization. It stressed personal and universal humanism.

"Culture," he said, "is a basic element in being a person

worthy of humanity," and described Turkey's ideological

thrust as "a creation of patriotism blended with a lofty

humanist ideal." Thus, TACAM wants to instill this

philosophy into all Turkish Americans living in Michigan for

the next 30 plus wonderful years.

Cihangir Taşdemir- 2002

As Cihangir stated and shared with many others “TACAM is more than an organization about cultural identity and preservation;

it's about a warm, inviting place for new friends to meet, a place for old friends to share stories, and most Importantly a place

where all members have an equal voice. Like an extended member of the family, over the past thirty years, TACAM has become

an integral part of many lives”

Milestones in TACAM History

May 12,1972: The Article of Incorporation was filed, and the Turkish American

Cultural Center of Michigan (TACCM) was created.

The first Executive Board: Dr. Nedret Tavlan - President, Yıldız Hazneci -

Vice President, Serap Gürol - Treasurer, Ayşe Çolak - Secretary.

1976: Name change to the Turkish American Cultural Association of

Michigan.

Dec 12, 1981: Property on 28847 Beck Road was purchased

March 28, 1982: Open House of the new TACAM building.

1999: Debate started whether to sell

the property and move to a new place,

or build a new facility at the existing

location. A building committee worked

over 3 years and presented the options

at the Generally Assembly on March, 11, 2001, when the majority of its

members voted to sell the property with the condition that first a new place would

found. Due to the facts that they were not able to find a new place on most people

agreed to, and fluctuations in the market, TACAM is still at the same location.

2003: A memorial fountain is erected on the grounds.

2011- 2013: Building renovation. More than $32K was raised for the

renovation project. Inside structure of the building has been completely changed. Open style kitchen, and two restrooms were

added.

Installation of a playground in 2015, and finally an asphalt parking lot in 2017.

A view from the inside of building after renovation

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 11

Do you know the story of the Fountain (Sebil/ Çeşme) at TACAM?

Çözülen bir demetten indiler birer birer,

Bırak, yorgun başları bu taşlarda uyusun.

Tutuşmuş ruhlarına bir damla gözyaşı sun,

Bir sebile döküldü bembeyaz güvercinler...

Ziya Osman Saba

If you ever visited TACAM after 2003, you must have

noticed the marble fountain on the east side of building. If

you wonder why, when, and by whom it was made, here you

can find all the information.

As we learned from B. Bilge and other scholars, most of the first immigrant could not go back to Turkey. Then, the importance of religion to the migrants and their inability or unwillingness to retire in their homeland prompted the funeral association, through which a proper Muslim burial could be guaranteed. Two funeral associations formed by members of the community were affiliated with its two rival charitable societies. In 1920, Sait Mahcit, a Sudanese member of Detroit's Sunni community, initiated a Detroit chapter of Kızılay and simultaneously purchased some 300 grave plots in Roselawn Cemetery for the burial of local Muslim immigrants who might die before returning to their homeland. In 1929, a duplicate of a deed for 538 graves was sent by the manager of this cemetery to Mehmet Malik, secretary of the Kızılay, upon his request. Subsequently, Kızılay bought over 200 more lots in three other cemeteries. In 1938, the newly organized Türkiye Çocuk Esirgeme Kurumu (Turkish Orphans Association) purchased a block of 100 graves in a fifth cemetery. The purpose of both associations was to provide the members with a proper Muslim burial in the United States. The men paid annual dues of $2.00 for membership in 1920s. Inflation drove the fee up to $12.00 in the 1970s. The associations contracted with the cemeteries to obtain tents, chairs, and the like, and with funeral directors who agreed to bury the corpse without embalming it within twenty-four hours of the death. Imam Karoub (and later his successor) was called in to officiate at the funeral services and was invited to the memorial dinners held forty days and then one year after the burial. All costs were met by each association's treasury, which depended upon the members' dues and contributions. Thus, thousands of miles away from their birth place, they left behind only their grave stones.

Years have passed until someone remembered “the first Turks in America”, and tried to track their disappearing traces.

“The joint Turkish-American "First Turks in America" project got underway on May 2002, when John J. Grabowski of Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, and Sedat İşçi of Ege University in İzmir, Turkey, laid the groundwork for researching the history of the first Turkish immigrants to the United States. Both İşçi and Grabowski had been pursuing the topic individually until a meeting at a cultural studies seminar in İzmir, Turkey, brought them together. Their work soon gained the

attention of the Turkish media and by the summer of 2002 a series of newspaper articles and television interviews widely publicized and popularized the project in Turkey. İşçi brought the project to the attention of Rıza Küçükoğlu, an retired major-General and the General Secretary of Yeditepe University in Istanbul. A few months later in November 2002, the Turkish Council on Higher Education (YÖK) also gave its approval to the project.

A special symposium on the topic of early Turkish immigration that was held in Istanbul in January 2003 brought further attention to the project.

Attended by academics, Turkish governmental and military officials, and by many of the grandchildren and families of early Turkish immigrants, the symposium served to further strengthen the project's popularity in Turkey.

In May 2003 Sedat İşçi and Rıza Küçükoğlu visited the United States where they toured several of the communities that had been the centers of early Turkish immigration. They also met with governmental and university officials, including the Turkish ambassador to the United States and top administrators at Case Western Reserve University, which served as the center for the American leg of the project.”1

A fountain made of a special type marble called “Aegean Pearl” had been funded and built by Turkish businessmen Davut Subaşıoğlu of Denizli and was delivered to the US by Northern Cyprus Turkish Airlines. With the help of Nurten Ural, Vice-President of the Assembly of Turkish American Associations, and the members of the TACAM Board, the current location in the TACAM grounds was set up to erect the fountain.2

“The Turkish American Cultural Association of Michigan held an event to honor the first Turkish Immigrants in America. On the property of TACAM, a special Memorial Fountain, Çeşme, was constructed at the end of November. A dedication and the unveiling of the Memorial Fountain was held on Saturday, December 6, 2003. Project co-coordinator Retired Major General Rıza Küçükoğlu from Yeditepe Üniversitesi in Istanbul, Turkey, and project director Sedat İşçi from Ege Üniversitesi in İzmir, Turkey and Professor John Grabowski from Case Western University in Cleveland, Ohio were present. In addition, Fatma Subaşı from Subaşıoğlu Marble flew in from San Diego for the ceremony. The company headquartered in Denizli, Turkey provided the marble for the Çeşme. Many people were present at the ceremony from Turkey, Michigan, New York, Chicago, Indiana, Cleveland,

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 12

and California. NTV and TGRT-TV television stations from Turkey were present to film this event as a documentary.” 1

“At the ceremony, first, American and Turkish national anthems were played. Then plates were presented to those who contributed to the project. And then, the ribbon of the

large Turkish flag was cut and the Memorial Fountain was revealed.

There were emotional moments in the opening of the Çeşme. Nurten Ural, Vice-President of the Assembly of Turkish American Associations, who worked hard for the building of the fountain, summarized her sentiments as follows: “With this fountain we are remembering our fathers and grandfathers in America. We too live here and will die here. We hope to be remembered with such a fountain too.”

Present among the participants in the ceremony was Ferid Ahmed, grandson of Harputlu Nuri Çavuş, one of the “first Turks in America.” Ferid Ahmet said his family took a heroic step by coming to America to set up a new life and he was proud of his family and his heritage.

On the fountain, which is designed and made by the artist Hüseyin Uzel from Denizli-Turkey, beside the decorations of traditional Turkish motifs, the following statements are inscribed: “In memory of Detroit’s Early Turkish Community ... They worked side by side with their fellow immigrant from many lands giving their labor to help transform America’s economy.”

Also inscribed on the fountain are the names of the Turks identified in the 1920 American census. Project director Sedat İşçi stated that the names on the fountain contained only a part of the identified names. Seda İşçi also stressed that there are many names and lists that are being worked on.” 2

Although it could not be placed in a muslim cemetery as originally planned, it commemorates the history of Turks better in the current location where it is also well taken care of. Over the years, some parts have fallen down. In 2015, our member Tayfun Bilgin has repaired those pieces, cleaned the surface, and polished it.

We consider it as a historic monument, and it deserves

to have a historic marker. In the Winter 2017 issue of TACAM Newsletter, we read

the story of Yusuf whose great-grandson Ersin had followed his traces and found his grave which was not even recorded in the registry book of the cemetery. This memorial fountain represents those Turks who died alone with full of yearning for their beloved family and country in their last breath, and will make them unforgotten.

Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin

1 Cihangir Taşdemir, Anatolian Voice, Winter 2004 issue.

2 Yusuf Şen, NTV Dec 19, 2003, [in Turkish] http://arsiv.ntv.com.tr/news/249016.asp, translated by Tayfun Bilgin.

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 13

TACAM as a Charity Organization

Over the past 45 years, whatever it received from its

members, TACAM tried to give it back to the community

either in Michigan or Turkey.

In Early 1980s, some scholarly projects from Turkey

were supported by creating a funding for the equipment

required in the projects.

During 90s, and early 2000s, TACAM supported

University of Michigan, Turkish Studies Colloquiums, which

were well attended public series enlightening the university

community as well as the American public in Turkish culture,

history, language as well as Turkey and Turkish politics, past

and present.

In 1995, an opportunity of naming a

meeting room at the U of M’s Shapiro

Library was realized. With the initiative

of Librarian Feyza Sayman, and Dr.

Sümer Pek, TACAM raised about $20K.

As John Crofoot writes; “A mural

by Mustafa Pilevneli, installed in the

Turkish-American Friendship Room at

the Shapiro Library, was dedicated on

October 29, 1995 at a reception

attended by distinguished guests including Turkish Consul

General Temucin Arbak. The series of events included an

exhibition of the artist’s lithographs at the Rackham East

Gallery. The events were supported by the International

Institute and the Turkish Studies Colloquium of CEMENAS,

which acknowledges the generous efforts of Elizabeth

Barlow, Ann Larimore, Sumer Pek, Tumer and Fayza

Sayman and members of the Turkish-American Cultural

Association of Michigan.

…

One might be inclined to view the installations as trees

symbolizing growth, but the design recalls more specifically

the upward and outward

branching of trees. The tree is

unitary, but branches diverge,

point in different directions

and continue. While the

symbolism of the tree is the

impetus for Pilevneli’s

concept, the real interest here

is the growth of thought and

the social change which follows. Pilevneli’s exercise in

creative reflexivity provides only the architectural frame for

the interaction of light and the imagination. It is a work-in-

process.

Pilevneli points out the panels that mirror one another

without being identical. Likewise with friendship. Each

party accepts differences within the other. Equality is the

basis of the affinity between these panels but the difference

in each produces reflections of light, of branching, of

thought and of change, so the viewers imaginative space

expands constantly.

To inaugurate a room in the name of Turkish-American

friendship is to emphasize the bonds between Turks and

Americans as people with complementary ideas, ideals,

techniques, and sciences. Turkish contributions to American

medicine, engineering, cinema, music, social science and

humanities are evident. Many prominent contributors have

studied in the reading rooms and laboratories of the

University.

The mural and the room reinforce these bonds of

friendship, a friendship based on equality, not on power or

domination. Each respects the other without losing the

distinctions of the self. Friendship between countries is of a

different order from that between individuals. States bear

arms, enter into treaties and alliances and so on. The

panels suggest an ideal of friendship in which

equality and peace really do exist.”

Full article can be read at;

http://quod.lib.umich.edu/j/jii/4750978.0003.206?view=te

xt;rgn=main

….

On August 17, 1999, a terrible earthquake rocked and

destroyed the many innocent lives in Turkey. After this

disaster, TACAM organized an emergency effort to collect

money and valuables to

be sent to the victims.

The entire TACAM

building was stacked

high to the ceiling with

boxes of goods donated

from generous

Americans helping their

fellow humans in a time of pain. As a result of the hard

efforts of TACAM, more than $100,000 was collected, and

with a collaboration of the Lions Club in Turkey, this aid was

decided to be used for

“Governor Mustafa Uygur

Elementary School” in

Adapazarı. When the

August 17, 1999

earthquake severely

damaged and destroyed

one of the two buildings of

the Governor Mustafa Uygur Elementary School, it became

imperative to construct a new building in addition to the

remaining one which was not enough to meet the need. For

this purpose, with the help of TACAM's tenancy campaign

and the Lions Club, inside the school yard, a single-story

prefabricated building made of concrete blocks has been

constructed with eight classrooms as well as rooms for

teachers, administration, janitors, a breakroom, and student-

teacher toilets. The building was furnished with necessary

Feyza Sayman at

TAFR, Shapiro Library

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 14

tools and equipment and started serving

students and teachers on September

7, 2000.

As a token of appreciation, a plague

was presented to Mine Taşçı, the

president of TACAM at the time, by the

Governor of Sakarya. The inscription

reads: To the members of the

Turkish American Cultural

Association of Michigan; Thank

you for supporting education by building a school,”

M.Cahit Kıraç, Governor of Sakarya. This is one of

TACAM's proudest moments and TACAM would like to

thank everyone who contributed in this great cause. This

plaque is currently at TACAM Building.

Starting 2015, TACAM made a commitment with Çağdaş

Yaşamı Destekleme Derneği (ÇYDD) to create an education

fund in order to support two medical students and one law

school student in Turkey, who were found eligible by ÇYDD.

At the same time TACAM also started to support one

Turkish graduate student in Michigan who would be in a

financial need. This is the 3rd year in a row that these projects

will be accomplished by TACAM with the help of its

members.

Amateur groups who made an impact in the community

Folk Dance Groups We all are proud of our rich Turkish heritage, and

whenever the conditions are given we try and enjoy introducing it to the others. Folk dances, Turkish songs are among them. Over the years there were several people/groups either among students or TACAM members, who came together and practiced dancing and/or singing. Unfortunately, the information about those groups is very limited. Fortunately, TACAM past-president Attila Yaprak and his wife Ece Yaprak, both students at that time, were among the folk dancers at the U-M during late 70s, so that we get informed about those days (Please see the article below written by Attila Yaprak narrating those days). Also, in the previous

TACAM newsletters I see news here and there related to the activities of folk dance groups. For example, there was a student group at U-M under TSA

organization established in 1999, and the group name was MOTIF, and they performed dances from the Gaziantep, Edirne

and Bursa region. I also found out that Faik Gürocak was leading a group who had performed at several cultural events and festivals. During early 2000s, Mine Taşçı-Özalp, who was involved in TACAM boards at every level including the presidency, and Figen Özsoylu both thought and danced at several occasions.

Towards the end of 2009, another talented dance lover Özgün Ulupınar started folk dance classes at TACAM. With the pledges from dancers and the other TACAM members, two sets of regional costumes (Aegean and South Eastern) for four women and four men were purchased from Turkey. They first performed the dance called “Diyarbakır Halayı” at The Turkish Cultural Night

on January 2010. The dancers were Serkan Özdemir, Gaye Özdemir, Hurol Ulupınar, Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin, Jason Windes, Şenay Öztürk-Taşçıoğlu, Onur Karabulut, Nesrin Cengiz-Philips. While some of those dancers have left the group, Mehmet Erdem Yaya, Claudia Escobar-Yaya, Burç Çöteli, Serkan Ensoner, Evrim Dalkıran, Tayfun Bilgin, and Gülen Gündoğan have joined the group when they were practicing Zeybek and Artvin dances. They have performed “Harmandalı” and “Çökertme” at The Turkish Festival in Chicago twice beside the other local festivals and schools’ diversity activities. Since the dancers were not only Turkish but also American, Columbian, they named themselves as Mozaik Folk Dance Group. Last year, with the instructor Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin, they added the horon dance from the Black Sea region of Turkey into their repertory, and were excited with the recruitment of Mine Taşçı-Özalp, Kerim Ali Yılmaz, and Burçin Ismailoğlu-Yavuz. Despite the change of many group members since the beginning, they continue to practice seasonally, perform at TACAM events and at other ethnic festivals in Michigan, and always welcome new recruits.

Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin

First Performance at The Turkish Cultural Night on Jan 2010From L to R: Serkan Özdemir, Gaye Özdemir, Hürol Ulupınar, Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin, Jason Windes, Şenay Öztürk-Taşçıoğlu, Onur Karabulut, Nesrin Cengiz-Philips

Artvin Dances on Turkish Cultural Day on May 2016. L to R: Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin, Tayfun Bilgin, Özgün Ulupınar, Mehmet Erdem Yaya, Nesrin Cengiz-Philips.

Turkish Festival at Daley Plaza- Chicago. L to R: Serkan Ensoner, Claudia Escobar-Yaya, Chicago Consul General of Turkey Fatih Yıldız, Hürol Ulupınar, Nesrin Cengiz-Philips, Tayfun Bilgin, Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin.

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 15

Folk Dancing in Michigan in the late 1970s When I arrived in Michigan as a freshly-minted

assistant professor in September 1978, I discovered that Nizam Aydın, my then roommate, close friend, and a doctoral student at the Michigan Business School, was in the process of forming a folk-dancing group to help promote Turkey and its culture while simultaneously releasing dissertation-writing stress. When he asked me to help him form the group, and teach the dances I knew, I accepted enthusiastically. We began practicing in late September 1978 as an initial group of 4 members, led by Nizam who knew many dances, Ezher İlter, Nizam’s dancing partner who also knew many dances from her undergraduate folkdancing days at Bogazici University, Lebriz (whose last name I cannot remember) who knew some of the dances, and myself. Since Nizam and I had been members of a folk dancing group at Indiana University during our MBA education and I had danced during my doctoral student days as well, I, too, knew some of the dances, from Southeastern Turkey, primarily “Çayda Çıra”, “Oğuzlu”, and “Çepikli”. When Lebriz and her husband left Ann Arbor for academic jobs in Virginia, Ezher suggested Ece, who was then an undergraduate student and had expressed an interest in dancing. Since I had met Ece a few weeks before then and was waiting for an opportunity to get to know her more closely, I jumped on this opening and suggested to her that I would teach her the dances we had started practicing so that she could catch up to us (fortunately, she accepted my offer!). Mevlüt, a doctoral student in engineering at the University of Michigan and Zuhal, who was visiting her doctoral student sister Eser, also joined us completing a 6-member dance group. The three couples were Nizam and Ezher, Mevlüt and Zuhal, and Ece and myself. Those of us who knew each dance would teach the others, and we would also add our own nuances into our interpretation of the dances. We practiced once a week typically in the Michigan Union. Once we mastered the dances, we started performing; I remember our performances in Chicago (University of Chicago?) and Kalamazoo (Western Michigan University?), in addition to those at the University of Michigan and Eastern Michigan University (the TACAM building had not yet been bought at that time; it was bought in 1981 and its mortgage debt was paid off by 1986!).

Folk dancing had been around the UM and the EMU campuses for some time before our group was formed and performed. Nizam had participated in a group and

had also danced on Friday evenings (in the patio area of the UM Dental School). Others had also danced either formally as members of a group or freely as interested folk dancing enthusiasts. It is unfortunate that this energy dissipated in the years that followed, naturally due to departures of some of our members (Nizam, Ezher, Mevlut, and Zuhal all departed) and early family and career development efforts of others (Ece and I got married and started forming a family and pursuing career goals), but seeing its resurgence with increased enthusiasm by younger members of our community is very refreshing. This is especially so because technology today, particularly the internet, is helping younger groups overcome the many challenges we faced. For example, getting the music to the dances was difficult, procuring the dance costumes was very hard, and watching videos of the dances was nearly impossible (no videos at that time); we had to improvise the choreography of each dance based on our limited visual knowledge of them from performances we had watched on television, the movies, or live shows. We would bring tapes of dance music and folklore clothing from Turkey and sometimes the Chicago Consulate General’s office would help us with this, but chasing these both here and in Turkey during summer visits was challenging.

For us, folk dancing served as a wonderful mechanism with which we were able to promote our motherland and its culture. It is refreshing to see that younger generations are following in our footsteps with heightened enthusiasm and more sophisticated technique. Folk dancing provides a good example of how culture can be promoted with the vision, hard work, and the unbridled enthusiasm of only a few dedicated individuals who aim to link communities, then and now. I am happy to see this tradition continuing into the future.

By Attila Yaprak

Professor at Wayne State University, Mike Ilich School

of Business and two term TACAM president.

THANK YOU VERY MUCH DR. BIROL HALACOGLU

FOR YOUR SUPPORT TO THIS ISSUE

Attila and Ece Yaprak at a TACAM event.

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Music Groups: Let’s hear the story of a Turkish music group that was once active in Michigan from their both vocalist and guitarist Mine Tasçı-Özalp.

A Musical Journey To Past

Music is the universal language as my dad often told me, while he inspired my love for music at a very young age. Music does not have borders… Music unites… Music breaks down barriers. And so on…

Turkish music has always been a big part of the lives of Michigan Turks. Although with talented members, still mostly amateur bands have come along and entertained the Turkish society. In this article, I would like to talk about two Turkish music bands in Michigan that were active during mid-90s to early 2000s: Diğerleri and Anatolian Sound Experiment. A couple of Michigan Engineering

Ph.D. students and young professional engineers decided to bring their love for music together. They were Tayfun, Emre, Murat and Mine. There were others such as Abdullah, Didar, Hakan who were inspirational. Why chose the name Diğerleri?

The seeds of the group were planted by Abdullah (last name is not recalled) who would invite Tayfun Özdemir to gather in Hakan Yalçın’s student apartment in Ann Arbor to rearrange and execute Turkish Art Music pieces using classical guitar and bağlama. Hakan, the host, would do whatever he had to do to entertain them. Later, Emre Eldener joined them with his acoustic guitar. Hakan, not a musician by any means except for his deep love for music and entertainment, was always the focus of these jam sessions and the group was named as “Hakan ve Diğerleri.” Hakan had to have an act and he decided to spice up the sessions with juggling acts using oranges. In their first performance at TACAM, “Hakan ve Diğerleri” opened the performance with Hakan’s juggling act (using oranges)

followed by the music. After Hakan moved to California and Abdullah dropped out of the group, the group’s name was changed to “Diğerleri” in the absence of Hakan. About the same time, Murat Ulaşır joined the group,

promising to learn percussion (and he really did!) and Mine Taşçı was invited as the lead vocal.

Diğerleri music group took its established identity in January 1996. The founding members were Tayfun

Özdemir, Emre Eldener, Murat Ulaşır and Mine Taşçı. For the next three years, the group composed its own music and entertained the local public. Ogün Arslan and Ceren Onsan joined the group in May 1997 and January 1998, respectively. The only album containing group’s own work (Hasret Vuruyor) was released in December 1996 in audiocassette form. The group had many public performances in the few years it was active, including shows at campuses of University of Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State, Purdue as well as TACAM, Café Zola (Ann Arbor), Café Leonardo (Ann Arbor)

and many Republic Ball events at various venues. Diğerleri’s last public performance was at Café Zola in Ann Arbor, Michigan in July 1998.

Some members of Diğerleri moved back to Turkey and another group

by the name Anatolian Sound Experiment (ASE) was formed in late 1998. The band’s active years were 1998 to 2003. The founding members included Murat Ulaşır, Ogün Arslan, Can Ceylanoğlu, Tayfun Özdemir and Mine Taşçı. During the active years, Onur Başer and Emre Bülbül also took part in the band. The band had performances including main entertainment for TACAM Republic Ball for a few years, University of Pittsburg (Pittsburg), Virginia Tech. University (Blacksburg), University of Nebraska (Lincoln) and some Café appearances in the area.

Some group members still periodically come together and perform, but most of them are busy with their careers and kids they brought to life But the love for music and the desire to reunite is always there... Who knows, some day... May be soon

By Mine Taşçı-Özalp With contributions from Tayfun Özdemir

Cafe Zola, Summer 1998. L to R: Tayfun Özdemir, Ogün Arslan, Mine Taşçı, Murat Ulaşır, Ara Topouzian (guest).

MSU- Multicultural Festival, Fall 1999, Lansing. L to R: Onur Başer, T. Özdemir, Ogün Arslan, M. Ulaşır, M. Taşçı,

M. Taşçı, T. Özdemir, and Can Ceylanoğlu, 1999.

U-M TSA, Republic Day Dinner, 1997. L to R: Murat Ulaşır, Mine Taşçı, Tayfun Özdemir, Emre Eldener.

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More recently…

Between 2010 and 2012, another music group called Group Heritage was active in mainly Ann Arbor area. Group Heritage was originally founded by Yavuzhan Erdem, Ebru Erdem, Dr. Süleyman Demirel and Dr. M. Emin Kutay in 2010 in Ann Arbor, MI. The name of the group symbolizes the main objective, representing different sub-genres of the Turkish music that developed over the past seven centuries, including popular classical songs, folk music, instrumental pieces, and religious music.

In 2012, four new members, Alex Terzian, Hakan Erten, Seçkin Çelik and M. Kemal Emil joined Group Heritage. With departure of Yavuzhan, Ebru and Süleyman from Michigan in mid-2012, Group Heritage played Turkish music with Emin, Hakan, Alex, Seçkin, and Kemal for a while. Currently, Emin, Alex, and Igor occasionally perform the same style of music in Lansing area. http://turkishmusicinmichig.wixsite.com/groupheritage

Recently, a few talented, music-lover young Turks

found each other, and started to practice Turkish pop and

rock music in TACAM building. Among those Oya Tekeşin at vocals, Ulaş Özkurede (guitar), and Yener Yeni at rhythms amaze us with their Turkish pop songs, while the other group formed by Volkan Salmanlı (guitar), Emre Kalaycı (vocals), Çağdaş Akıncı (guitar), Cansu Tucker (bass guitar), and Necmi Aydıntürk (rhythm) entertain us with both Turkish and English rock songs.

We really feel

privileged by having them in the community.

Turkish Delight – The Sonic Candy Version

Do you know what happened in the world in 1984? Well, according to Wikipedia, Brunei became independent from the United Kingdom and Apple unveiled the McIntosh personal computer, among

other world events...there was, however, one other event that took place in the world in 1984, which you are about to find out as you continue to read this article: it was the year in which the radio program show called Turkish Delight was born in the studios of the University of Michigan affiliated WCBN FM Ann Arbor, as Arwulf Arwulf, one of the longest serving hosts of the radio would put it, “88.3 FM, on the extreme left of your dial”. Turkish Delight, the sonic candy, owes its genesis to the long time Ann Arbor resident Yalçın Yanıkoğlu, who, to this day, continues to be a DJ at the station, as a volunteer (he currently DJs a show called “Dromedary Express” - check it out on Sundays, between 11am and noon). Rumor has it that he was active in the radio world in his native country, Turkey, and when he came to Ann Arbor, he only thought it to be a natural fit for him to make a home for himself at WCBN. He actively continued hosting Turkish Delight until about 1986, at which time, hold it, hold it, he transferred the hosting responsibilities to TACAM. Indeed, TACAM members were rather active in maintaining the only Turkish music broadcasting channel in all of our lovely state of Michigan. Since then, many

community members of the extended Turkish diaspora, including students at times, stepped in to keep the sonic candy alive, to keep alive the Anatolian spiced radio conduit to the ears, perhaps even minds and hearts of a growing WCBN listenership over the years.

Turkish Delight has, as all the other programs on WCBN, been hosted by volunteers, folks from all walks of life, wanting to make a difference, a positive difference, in their and others’ lives, thru the sounds they produce or share over the air waves. The program, although influenced by its DJs, primarily aims at sharing the musical cultural richness of the Anatolian people in general with a larger audience. The program has certainly had creative DJs over the years, folks, who also used Anatolian music to weave a rich cultural mosaic of the Turkish heritage and present it to the listening pleasures of their audiences. The current DJ is somewhat of an elusive character, referring to himself as DJ Zoltan. He as well as the WCBN community always invites and welcomes volunteers, who have a sound they would like to share or who have a passion for music they would like to find resonance for. Listening to Turkish Delight is easy, on Sundays, between 10 am and 11 am ETZ, tune to it, either via your radio dials: 88.3 FM or, if you are outside the immediate broadcast area range (which mostly covers the Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti areas) listen live at www.wcbn.org and find the “listen live” link. The program also has a Facebook presence – search for it under Freeform Turkish Delight. Please do not hesitate to

V. Salmanlı, C. Tucker, E. Kalaycı (vocals), N. Aydıntürk, and Ç. Akıncı

Oya Tekeşin (vocals), Ulaş Özkurede (guitar), and Yener Yeni (L, rhythms)

DJ Zoltan

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reach out to DJ Zoltan with any questions you might have or to even place a request on one of these Sundays, surprise a friend or a loved one – call him at 734 763 3500 (Station phone line) or email him at TurkishDelight88.3@gmail.com. Finally, DJ Zoltan always looks for volunteers to become a DJ, and help him

out with the program – becoming a host can be rather fun and meaningful, so don’t hesitate, reach out and, above all, indulge yourself in the rich, deep, and mystical sounds of...Anatolia…. By Murat Ulaşır

Meeting the Michigan Emigrants in Florida

I envy Florida a lot, not only it is a warm state, but also it is the retirement home for the most Turkish Michiganders! Every year I hear one or more friends who used to live in Michigan are moving to Florida. This is sad because this is the time when their experience and wisdom are needed by the young generations who are trying to help TACAM survive. I don’t know, maybe I’ll do the same thing when time comes, but these days I almost hate Florida!

As a TACAM president since 2015, I read and heard lots of stories related to the early days of TACAM, but I could not meet those who are still surviving, because they had moved to Florida. Last February (2017), when I

attended a meeting in my field (Annual Multiple Sclerosis Consortium) in Orlando, I decided to extend my stay and visit the pass TACAM board members who still reside in Florida. After the meeting, I drove with my husband from Orlando to St. Petersburg to meet

Gülseren Ovacık and her husband Dr. Ekrem Ovacık. I had found her contact info after a long

search in internet and personal connections. She welcomed us with a big smile and glittering lovely blue eyes. After an accident she had some years ago, she is not leaving the house very often but she still follows the activities that Turkish Association in St. Petersburg organizes.

While at their house, we also had the chance to meet one of their sons Turgay Ovacık who had also served at TACAM Board several years. After chatting almost two hours, and presenting a small commemorative gift to her, we had to

say goodbye and head to Fort Lauderdale where Drs. Nilüfer and Timur Sümer have hosted us. We were very happy to see and spent time with them. As you know, Sümer family has been all time supporter of TACAM, and I had the privilege of working with Nilüfer abla when she has served as the vice president of TACAM during the 2014-15 term.

Next morning, we had chance to meet past-presidents and board members of TACAM while having a delicious breakfast prepared by Nilüfer abla, and a joyful, nostalgic conversations, during which valuable TACAM members like Dr. Kemal Göknar, Nami Hazneci, were also acknowledged frequently.

We left hoping that we were able to express our appreciation on how valuable things they did for TACAM and the community in Michigan.

TACAM past-presidents Canan Özaktay

and Dr. Celal Çolak, with me at Fort Lauderdale.

At the house of great hosts, old Michigander, new Floridian Drs. Nilüfer and Timur Sümer. L to R standing; Tayfun Bilgin, Timur Sümer, Nilüfer Sümer, Cüneyt Özaktay, Canan Özaktay. Sitting; Celal Çolak, Ayşegül Çolak, Yıldız Hazneci, Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin.

L to R: Tayfun, Gülseren Ovacık, me, Dr. Ekrem Ovacık, St. Petersburg, FL. Feb 2017. Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin

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Rear row: Volkan Salmanlı, Elif İzberk Bilgin, Müge Okuyucu, Reyhan Erin Capobianco, Gonca Eren, Deniz Şen, Necmi Aydıntürk

Front row: Mehmet E. Yaya Gökhan Özalp Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin Burcin İsmailoğlu Yavuz Treasurer Vice President President Secretary

The 30th Term TACAM BOARD of DIRECTORS 2017-2019

Celebrating 45th Anniversary at the General Assembly

Happy 45th Anniversary to TACAM and its members

All time TACAM supporter Prof. Dr. Sümer Pek led the GA meeting on April 30th, 2017.

Past Presidents Tim Tucker, Leyla Ural- Ahmed, Mine Taşçı-Özalp, and Nilüfer Esen-Bilgin at the celebration.

As the members of current TACAM board, we appreciate each and everyone’s effort which made the TACAM survive since 1972.

TACAM SPECIAL ISSUE SUMMER 17 20

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