Samenvatting

In the public spheres of the global cities, religion is getting more visible. However, this is not an independent process, but is linked to broader urban processes like segregation, security and (fear of) crime. With two different examples from Istanbul, this article explains how religious motivations become ways of expression for existing or emerging lines of urban segregation. While religious motivations appear as a tool used against urban gentrification in the area of Tophane; in the gated community of Basaksehir, religion, together with ‘fear of crime’ and ‘fear of immorality’, serves to differentiate a middle class living space from the ‘scary’ and ‘immoral’ environment of the big city.