Tags: Islamism
Islamist extremism won’t be addressed by ignoring it
Posted: Thu, 21 Oct 2021 by Stephen Evans
The national conversation following the brutal killing of David Amess suggests an unwillingness to tackle the Islamic extremism behind it, argues Stephen Evans. Read More »
Religious censorship is about ownership
Posted: Tue, 02 Feb 2021 by Megan Manson
Theocratic demands for censorship in India and Pakistan reflect attempts to grab power which undermine everyone's religious freedom, says Megan Manson. Read More »
The onus should be on theocrats, not liberal democracies, to change
Posted: Wed, 04 Nov 2020 by Chris Sloggett
Liberal equivocation on whether to stand up to jihadist murder and Islamist intimidation is morally wrong, misguided and counter-productive, says Chris Sloggett. Read More »
Sudan deserves a secular democracy
Posted: Wed, 06 Mar 2019 by Nahla Mahmoud
As protesters demand the end of Sudan's Islamist regime, Nahla Mahmoud says a secular democracy is the only way to protect the rights of the Sudanese people. Read More »
Why are journalists dancing to the Islamists’ tune over Sara Khan?
Posted: Thu, 25 Jan 2018 by Chris Sloggett
Islamists and their apologists have dominated coverage of the Government's appointment of Sara Khan, says Chris Sloggett. Journalists should stop indulging them just because they shout loudly.
'Controversial' is a word that means almost nothing while revealing... Read More »
Religious bullies are on a roll. It’s time we all stood up to them
Posted: Thu, 25 Jan 2018 by Stephen Evans
Amid a series of concessions to religious hardliners, Stephen Evans says those brave enough to resist their demands need much more support.
No sooner had Sara Khan been appointed the new Commissioner for Countering Extremism than the reactionaries were howling... Read More »
Book review: 'Persepolis'
Posted: Tue, 16 Jan 2018 by Megan Manson
In light of the recent protests in Iran, and the rise of Islamist extremism throughout the world, Megan Manson looks back at the graphic novel Persepolis, published nearly 20 years ago.
If there were ever a perfect time to read Persepolis, it would be now.... Read More »
Pakistan’s capitulation to extremists sets a dangerous precedent
Posted: Thu, 07 Dec 2017 by Basit Mahmood
Pakistan's government, military and opposition parties have given in to the demands of a fundamentalist mob. Basit Mahmood says this is a blow to those who wish to remain true to the secular vision of Pakistan's founder.
"You are free; you are free to go to... Read More »
Murdered for the ‘crime’ of blasphemy
Posted: Fri, 12 May 2017 by Anonymous
There has been an onslaught against secularists, atheists, ex-Muslims and countless religious minorities for 'blasphemy'. It's important to remember the individuals, and honour their lives and heroism.
In light of the recent press coverage around the trial... Read More »
The gay community should recognise and oppose its chief oppressor
Posted: Tue, 17 May 2016 by Terry Sanderson
While people of all faiths and none have campaigned for and against LGBTQ rights, the merger of religious and state power has always been the greatest threat to LGBTQ rights around the world and turns bigotry into discrimination, argues NSS president Terry... Read More »
2015: A year of terror for Bangladesh’s secularist writers
Posted: Tue, 05 Jan 2016 by Arif Rahman
Arif Rahman, a Bangladeshi blogger, reflects on the targeted attacks on secularist bloggers that took place in Bangladesh throughout 2015, claiming many lives, and considers the road ahead for secularism in the face of terror and state-sanctioned persecution.... Read More »
A timid defence of free speech is no match for Islamism. We must do better.
Posted: Wed, 18 Nov 2015 by Benjamin Jones
Society needs a much more vigorous defence of free speech than the one we are getting, with the 'elite' of society in academia, religion and politics offering a feeble and timorous defence, writes Benjamin Jones.
Speaking at a debate on "freedom of speech... Read More »
Ted Cruz says the President of the United States should be “on his knees” before God “every day”
Posted: Mon, 09 Nov 2015 by Benjamin Jones
Young Americans might be turning away from Christianity, but the American religious right is more audacious than ever – and their rhetoric about 'religious freedom' barely conceals their theocratic aspirations, writes Benjamin Jones.
Ted Cruz, advocate... Read More »
The media now say ‘Islamophobia’ without question; but insist on the “so-called Islamic State”
Posted: Thu, 10 Sep 2015 by Benjamin Jones
Reporting of the deeply troubling rise in anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim attacks demonstrates that the term 'Islamophobia' has, worryingly, been widely accepted by the media.
The recent media coverage which accompanied the release of worrying hate crime statistics... Read More »
The encroachment of reactionary Islamism in academic life
Posted: Tue, 08 Sep 2015 by Stefano Bonino
Universities and academics seeking to challenge anti-Muslim prejudice should promote genuine Muslim human rights groups rather than unrepresentative Islamists seeking to advance their own reactionary agenda, argues Dr Stefano Bonino.
Professor Max Farrar, a... Read More »
Why would a teenager want to join the Islamic State?
Posted: Sat, 21 Mar 2015 by Gijsbert Stoet
Gijsbert Stoet, a Reader in Psychology at the University of Glasgow, considers why so many teenagers have sought to join the Islamic State. He identifies sensation seeking, identity, and unchallenged religious beliefs as three root causes.
Recently, there have... Read More »
Mission creep in the anti-war left
Posted: Wed, 19 Nov 2014 by Benjamin Jones
Video has emerged of the Left Unity political party voting on whether to endorse the Islamic State. Although the amendment was easily defeated, Benjamin Jones argues that this is just the latest flirtation in a long courtship between elements of the British... Read More »
Who are the true Muslims – all or none?
Posted: Thu, 13 Nov 2014 by Matthew Syed
Moderate believers argue that Isis has misinterpreted the Koran. But no one can determine who is right or wrong, argues Matthew Syed.
Who are the real Muslims? Who are the bona fide, authentic, true-to-the-core followers of the Islamic faith? Now, that might... Read More »
What chance do Yazidis have against group too brutal for al Qaeda?
Posted: Thu, 07 Aug 2014 by Maajid Nawaz
Quilliam Co-Founder and Chairman and National Secular Society honorary associate Maajid Nawaz gives his thoughts on the crisis in North-West Iraq.
The terror group ISIS (Islamic State in Iraq and Syria) which has shortened its name to "Islamic State" or "IS",... Read More »
The world must respond to the cry of Iraq’s Christians
Posted: Thu, 24 Jul 2014 by Lord Alton
Religious cleansing in Iraq is making a "hateful mockery" of international law which should protect people and uphold their freedom to follow our own beliefs, argues Lord Alton
The last Christian has now been expelled from Mosul. The light of religious freedom,... Read More »
Secular or bust
Posted: Tue, 18 Feb 2014 by Kunwar Khuldune Shahid
Reflecting on the extremist wings of Pakistani politics and ideology, Kunwar Khuldune Shahid describes the dire need for Pakistan to place the secular narrative at the centre of its political agenda and mainstream media.
Before Pierre Gassendi gave Epicureanism... Read More »
Muslim patrols are a sign of things to come
Posted: Thu, 31 Jan 2013 by Maajid Nawaz
By Maajid Nawaz
On the streets of Greece supporters of the far-Right Golden Dawn party patrol neighbourhoods, attacking anyone who looks like an immigrant. In Denmark a group calling itself Call to Islam has declared parts of the country to be "sharia-controlled... Read More »
Disillusion for the revolutionaries who thought the Arab Spring would bring freedom and secularism
Posted: Fri, 03 Aug 2012 by Terry Sanderson
The tightening of the grip of political Islam on the Middle East continues apace. Those young people who put their lives on the line to depose dictators and demagogues are now finding that, in fact, their countrymen seem to like dictators and demagogues –... Read More »
