Maajid Nawaz
Maajid Nawaz
Maajid Usman Nawazis a British activist, author, columnist and politician. He was the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for London's Hampstead and Kilburn constituency in the 2015 general election. He is also the founding chairman of Quilliam, a counter-extremism think tank that seeks to challenge the narratives of Islamist extremists...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionActivist
china muslims russia single war
'Muslim' is not a political party. 'Muslim' is not a single culture. Muslims go to war with each other. There are more Muslims in India, Russia and China than in most Muslim-majority nations. 'Muslim' is not a homogenous entity.
citizens communal express identities instead muslims public religious themselves wish
Not all Muslims wish to express themselves in public through a communal religious identity. Identities are multiple, and some may wish to speak instead just as citizens in their professional capacity, through their political party, or their neighborhood body.
abhorrent angry engage muslims stem tide turn
The only way we can challenge Islamism is to engage with one another. We need to make it as abhorrent as racism has become today. Only then will we stem the tide of angry young Muslims who turn to hate.
confidence inherent islam level majority muslims peace religion subscribe tells text war
I can say with a level of confidence that Islam is not a religion of war, only because the majority of Muslims don't subscribe to that perspective, not because there's something inherent in the text that tells me it's a religion of peace.
absence acceptance british harder increased lack muslims society sympathy tough understand
Increased sympathy for an Islamist cause, lack of integration, and the absence of acceptance of Muslims into British society makes it harder for Muslims to challenge Islamism and tough for non-Muslims to understand it.
total
Islam will be what Muslims make of it. And it is the sum total of the interpretation that Muslims give to it.
ideology impose seeks society
Islamism is an ideology that seeks to impose any version of Islam over society.
I used to MC a bit when I was young - 14 or 15 years old.
east iraq threat west wider
The rise of ISIS in Iraq is a wider threat to the stability of the Middle East and the West than many realise.
discreet originally sanctuary tool western
Satire has been a sanctuary historically monopolized by progressives, originally used as a discreet tool against Western religious fundamentalism.
priority remain
Quilliam will remain a priority for me because its values shape my beliefs and outlook.
allowing cannot simply
Rather than allowing jihadists to shut down debate, it must proliferate so much that they simply cannot kill us all.
broader concerns treated
Broader social concerns within Muslim communities, such as discrimination, integration or socio-economic disadvantages, should be treated distinctively and not as part of counterterrorism agenda, which has been counter-productive.
acquainted against liberals pitfalls
Being veterans of the struggle to push back against fundamentalist Christians, American liberals are well acquainted with the pitfalls of the neoconservative flirtation with the religious-right.