Join Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain (CEMB) and Født Fri (Born Free) Foundation for an evening of Film, Discussion and Poetry to mark 8 March, International Women’s Day

Sunday 8 March 2020, 5:30pm for 6:00pm start until 9:00pm

Central London

Tickets Available Now: £7 waged; £5 unwaged, including students and pensioners. No tickets sold at door.

 

Ticket holders will be sent London venue details closer to the event. Venue is in Clerkenwell and is walking distance from Farringdon Station.

UK FILM SCREENING: “No Longer Without You”

‘I will not do what you say. I’ll follow my own path, but I will not let myself be cast out. I will be different, but No Longer Without You.’

“No Longer Without You” is a documentary about a searing conversation about parenthood, tradition, religion, sex, and independence between a free-spirited daughter, Nazmiye Oral and her traditional Muslim mother, Havva in the intimate circle of a living room in front of their family following several public performances.

“How can I walk away when my legs are not my own? And how do I pave my path back? Because my place within the family is my right.”

The film screening will be followed by POETRY by Playwright and Poet Elewisa Mwhamadu Kuusi and A PANEL DISCUSSION ON APOSTASY, SHUNNING AND SURVIVAL with Actress Nazmiye Oral, Youtuber Fay Rahman, Journalist Khadija Khan, Student Activist Saff Khalique, Clinical Psychologist Savin Bapir-Tardy and Født Fri (Born Free) Foundation Director Shabana Rehman. Chair: CEMB Spokesperson Maryam Namazie. The event will be MCed by Nahla Mahmoud. There will also be a drinks reception.

BIOGRAPHIES

NAZMIYE ORAL is an actress, writer, columnist and TV presenter. She began her acting career in the 1990s in the Netherlands with series like Baantjer, Combat, Oppassen! and Westenwind. She also performed in De Gesluierde Monologen, The SuburbSafari and in No Longer Without You, a play she wrote herself. The play was selected for the Holland Festival and Crossing the Line Festival in New York and has also been made into a documentary. Nazmiye has performed in television productions like A’dam E.V.A., Undercover, Moordvrouw and Oh Mijn Hemel, starred in the series Icarus: Zorgondernemer and In Vrijheid by Floor van der Meulen for which she was awarded Best Actress at the Netherlands Film Festival and at the Lucania Film Festival. In 2011 her debut novel ‘Zehra’ was released, for which she was nominated for the E. du Perron prize. She co-founded the Zina Foundation in 2003, a theatre initiative that travels through different neighbourhoods in the Netherlands using local stories.

ELEWISA MWHAMADU KUUSI is a British-born writer, playwright, actor and spoken word artist. Being of Jamaican parentage and born into Islam has given him a niche yet broad and ever-broadening perspective on life and a yearning to expose the flaws, discrepancies and lies of mainstream paradigms. While his works do not adhere to any particular genre, he does like to tell stories and messages that would normally be ignored or left unknown. Leaving Islam in 2013 and identifying as atheist since 2019 has made his truth-seeking disposition all the stronger. He is published in the anthology ‘100 Years Unheard’ (2018), has written and performed in his own stage play ‘Love Hurts’ (2016-17), has lectured on the subject ‘What is a Man? What is a Black Man?’ for the Association of Black Humanists (2018) and West London Humanists (2019), and has performed in various stage plays throughout London since 2012.

FAY RAHMAN is a British-Bangladeshi ex-Muslim atheist Youtuber. Fay grew up in the UK, in a non-practicing Muslim family. Through Islamic schooling she joined the Tableeghi Jamaat and then later adopted the even more conservative Salafi practice of Islam with the encouragement of her father and later her extended family. Fay left Islam in secret in February 2017 and openly in October 2018 – avoiding an arranged marriage, surviving an attempt on her life and causing her family to disown her. Fay collaborates with Faith2Faithless, the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and Faithless Hijabi for activism in free-speech, women’s rights and religious freedom. She has an active YouTube channel where she shares her experience as a young woman who has left Islam, the challenges she faces and the inconsistencies in Islam in order to reach others who are doubting or closeted and assure them that they are not alone.

KHADIJA KHAN is a Pakistani journalist and a commentator currently based in UK. She writes about human rights, mainly women’s rights, as well as minorities, extremism and Islamism. She is an advocate for women’s rights, strongly believes that religion infringes women’s rights and Islam is no exception. She denounces the idea of Islamic feminism, since finding refuge for women’s rights under organised religion is not more than a myth. Being a humanist, she believes in tolerance and equality for all human beings. She criticizes the usage of blasphemy laws as a tool to crackdown on dissent and supports freedom of and from religion. She stresses the need of having freedom of speech to counter extremist ideologies in her write ups. She believes that freedom to challenge bad idea is the most effective way to counter extremist narratives.

MARYAM NAMAZIE is an Iranian-born writer and activist. She is the Spokesperson of One Law for All and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and hosts a weekly TV programme broadcast in called Bread and Roses. She is on the International Advisory Board of the Raif Badawi Foundation for Freedom and Euromind. Maryam and CEMB were featured in a 2016 film “Islam’s Non-Believers” by Deeyah Khan. She was also a character in DV8 Physical Theatre’s “Can We Talk About This?”. She was joint winner of the 2019 Emma Humphreys Memorial Prize; awarded the 2017 Henry H. Zumach Freedom From Religious Fundamentalism award; 2016 International Secularism (Laicite) Prize from the Comité Laïcité République; Atheist of the Year by Kazimierz Lyszczynski (2014); Journalist of the Year at the Dods Women in Public Life Awards (2013); awarded the National Secular Society’s Secularist of the Year Award (2005), amongst others. The Islamic regime of Iran’s media outlets has called Namazie “immoral and corrupt.”

NAHLA MAHMOUD is an environment and human rights activist originally from Sudan. She works with a number of campaigns in the UK, including One Law for All and Secular Middle East and North Africa. She leads the Sudanese Humanists Group and is former Spokesperson for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain.

SAFF KHALIQUE is a British Pakistani ex-Muslim student and activist, currently studying a masters in International Journalism. Saff left Islam in May 2018 but it was not until September 2019 that she went public with her disbelief. She launched The Sinning Skeptics podcast with the aim to provide a safe space for young Ex-Muslims and Muslims to discuss, question and critique the religion they grew up in. Through her blog, The Amber Journals, she covers issues surrounding freedom of religion, politics and women’s rights, such as collecting women’s experiences with the hijab for No Hijab day. She recently joined the Index on Censorship’s Youth Advisory Board, in which she aims to shed light on repressive apostasy and blasphemy laws across the globe and how this can impact the state’s control of its media and peoples.

SAVIN BAPIR-TARDY is a Lecturer in Psychology at the University of West London. Bapir-Tardy conducted her doctoral research at City University into how traumatic events are experienced. She has worked with adolescents, adults and older adults in a variety of mental health settings. She worked for 8 years as a Counselling Psychologist at the Iranian and Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation (IKWRO) providing psychological therapy to women who have experienced “honour” based violence, forced marriage, domestic violence and female genital mutilation. Bapir-Tardy also provided training to professionals in mainstream mental health services on “honour” based violence, forced marriage and female genital mutilation.

SHABANA REHMAN is Director of Født Fri (Born Free) Foundation and a performance artist and human and animal rights advocate. She is Norwegian with Pakistani descent. Shabana entered the stage in Oslo, Norway in 2000. In the following years, she quickly built a reputation for groundbreaking and iconoclastic comedy. Her controversial and popular comedy style along with public political stunts like Mullah-Lifting, and bodypainted with Norwegian flag as a performance artist, have given her a unique position in her native Norway. Among substantial international press cover, she has been featured both by The New York Times and by Times Magazine. In addition to her prolific comedy career, Shabana is a highly respected columnist, satirist, and public speaker in Scandinavia and the Scandinavian community in USA. She regularly writes for major newspaper and magazines in the region. A frequent participant and contributor in talk shows and public debates, she is among the most respected celebrities in Norway. Shabana has received several awards for her writing and fearless comedy. She had played her shows in several countries, among them Canada, USA, Denmark, Iceland, Faroe Islands and Germany. She recently founded the Secular Feminist Front.

For more information, contact m.namazie@ex-muslim.org.uk or visit ex-muslim.org.uk.

EVENTS ORGANISED BY CEMB

UPCOMING EVENTS

23 June 2017, 2:00-4:00pm, Meet at 2pm at Green Park Station entrance
On 23 June 2017 at 14:00, we will meet at Green Park station and go on to “eat-in” at the Saudi, Iranian, Egyptian, Bangladeshi, Pakistani, Moroccan and other embassies in London in solidarity with those defying fasting rules during Ramadan. This is hugely important given that there are many people across the globe who are arrested, beaten and fined for eating during the month; many others are pressured into fasting, including in Europe. Join us at the ‘eat-in’ if you can. Alternately, you can upload photos of yourself eating during fasting times or holding signs with messages of solidarity using hashtag: #IWillNotFast #لن_اصوم #روزه خوارى #Ramadan until the end of Ramadan. Happy fast-defiance! To participate, just show up. Email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com for more details.

Tuesday 27 June 2017, 6:30pm-8:30pm, central London by Kings Cross
Evening with Rahila Gupta, Journalist and Activist on Rojava, Northern Syria and secular space in the middle of a war

PLEASE NOTE: This is a new venue for our monthly meet-ups; if you would like to attend, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register and receive further information. If you already know the new location, just show up.

Suggested donation: £3 waged; £1 unwaged.

22-23 July 2017: International Conference on Freedom of Expression and Conscience in 21 Century. Central London. Get your tickets today.

Tuesday 26 September 2017, 6:30pm-8:30pm, central London by Kings Cross
Evening with lawyer Ana González on apostasy and asylum
Ana will go through asylum procedures and also provide one-on-one advice during the evening.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a new venue for our monthly meet-ups; if you would like to attend, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register and receive further information.

Suggested donation: £3 waged; £1 unwaged.

Tuesday 24 October 2017, 6:30pm-8:30pm, central London by Kings Cross
Evening with Peter Tatchell, Human Rights Campaigner, on the links between the gay rights and ex-Muslim rights

PLEASE NOTE: This is a new venue for our monthly meet-ups; if you would like to attend, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register and receive further information. If you already know the new location, just show up.

Suggested donation: £3 waged; £1 unwaged.

PAST EVENTS

Tuesday 23 May 2017, 6:30pm-8:30pm, central London by Kings Cross
Evening with Imad Iddine Habib and Jimmy Bangash on Pride and the CEMB contingent which will march in the gay pride parade in London on 8 July 2017.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a new venue for our monthly meet-ups; if you would like to attend, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register and receive further information. If you already know the new location, just show up.

Suggested donation: £3 waged; £1 unwaged.
Tuesday 4 April 2017, 6:30pm-8:30pm, central London by Kings Cross
Evening with Wissam Charafeddine, Co-Founder, Muslimish Support Network on Why the Classical Proof of God Does Not Work Anymore (based on his background on Islamic theology)

PLEASE NOTE: This is a new venue for our monthly meet-ups; if you would like to attend, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register and receive further information. If you already know the new location, just show up.

Suggested donation: £3 waged; £1 unwaged.

On 8 March 2017, Islam’s Non Believers will be screened by Goldsmiths University with Goldsmiths Atheist Society so there will be no meet-up this month.

Tuesday 7 February 2017, 6:30pm-8:30pm, central London by Kings Cross
Evening with lawyer Ana González on apostasy and asylum
Ana will go through asylum procedures and also provide one-on-one advice during the evening.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a new venue for our monthly meet-ups; if you would like to attend, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register and receive further information.

Suggested donation: £3 waged; £1 unwaged.

18 October 2016, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Hang-out with Secular Activist Chris Moos on gender segregation at universities
The event will be held at our regular meet-up space near Kings Cross station. You need to register if you have not been to our events before by emailing exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com with your name and phone number. Entry can be paid at the door: £1 unwaged; £3 waged.

18 July 2016
Evening Drinks with lawyer Ana González on apostasy and asylum Ana will go through the procedures and also provide one-on-one advice during the evening. E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register if this is the first time you will be attending our monthly meetups – otherwise just show up.

July 2016
Flashmob of apostates: “We need your Love”.  To join, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

27 June 2016, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening with Yasmin Rehman, Centre for Secular Space on Polygamy
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register if this is the first time you will be attending our monthly meetups – otherwise just show up.

24 June 2016
Fast-defying during Ramadan in front of Saudi, Iranian and Bangladeshi Embassies at 5pm. To join, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

12 June 2016
“Mean Tweets party” – reading and filming mean tweets received by apostates. To join, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

30 April 2016, Day Conference on Sharia Law, Legal Pluralism and Access to Justice, Central London, near Kings Cross Station
Speakers include:
Diana Nammi, Director of Iranian Kurdish Women’s Rights Organisation
Elham Manea, Author of Women And Sharia Law: The Impact Of Legal Pluralism In The UK
Gita Sahgal, Director of Centre for Secular Space
Pragna Patel, Director of Southall Black Sisters
Maryam Namazie, Spokesperson of One Law for All and Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain
Nareen Rehman, Co-Founder and Chair of British Muslims for Secular Democracy
Yasmin Rehman, Women’s Rights Campaigner

12 April 2016, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening with Halima Begum, ex-Muslim feminist researcher and blogger.
After a decade-long journey from Sunni and Shia Islam over Islamism to Secular Liberalism, Halima wrote a study on “British ex-Muslims: Negotiating the Essential and the Revolutionary”, which won the Best Dissertation Award at Birkbeck University in 2014. Halima plans to expand her research to incorporate a gendered experience of Ex-Muslim apostasy. Being a seasoned Ex-Muslim, Halima is keen to promote freedom of expression and uphold rights of personal autonomy. She hopes to share her journey and help others find the best way they can be true to themselves. £3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register if this is the first time you will be attending our monthly meetups.

10 March 2016, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening with Atheist Vlogger and Activist AronRa
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register if this is the first time you will be attending our monthly meetups.

15 February 2016, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening with CEMB Spokesperson and #ExMuslimBecause organiser Rayhana Sultan
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register if this is the first time you will be attending our monthly meetups.

18 January 2016, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Apostasy and Asylum Meet-up with Lawyer Ana Gonzales.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register if this is the first time you will be attending our monthly meetups.

13 December 2015, central London, End-Year Celebration
Tickets are selling fast for One the Law for All and CEMB end-year celebration with Philosopher AC Grayling, Secular Activist Aliyah Saleem, British Iraqi singer Alya Marquardt, Warwick Atheist Society President Benjamin David, Bread and Roses TV Host Fariborz Pooya, Founder of Council of Ex-Muslims of Morocco Imad Iddine Habib, Comedian Kate Smurthwaite, Libyan Women’s Rights Campaigner Magdulien Abaida, CEMB Spokesperson Maryam Namazie, CEMB Spokesperson Nahla Mahmoud, Ex-Muslims of Scotland founder Ramin Forghani, Bangladeshi campaigner Rayhana Sultan, Scientist Richard Dawkins and more.

16 November 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening drinks with Ibrahim Abdallah, Muslimish New York Organiser.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

26 October 2015, central London by Kings Cross, 21:00-23:00 hours
Kafir Comedy Night with Maha Kamal
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

26 October 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening drinks with Tom Holland, Historian and Author of In the Shadow of the Sword.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

28 September 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening drinks with Arif Rahman, Bangladeshi Blogger.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

27 July 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
with Karima Bennoune, Author of Your Fatwa does not Apply Here marking one month anniversary of the ISIS attack in Sousse.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

6 July 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
EVENT CANCELLED BECAUSE OF VENUE’S DOUBLE BOOKING
with Founder of Women Living Under Muslims Laws and Secularism is a Women’s Issue Founder Marieme Helie Lucas who will speak about why we need strong international secular networks.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

Join us to celebrate the 8th anniversary of the CEMB
Saturday 20 June 2015, 1500-1800 Hours
Walking distance to London Kings Cross/St Pancras stations
Join us for appetisers, drinks, music, speeches and laughs to celebrate the CEMB’s 8th anniversary.
Speakers and acts include: Iraqi British Singer Alya Marquardt, Secular activist Aliyah Saleem, Council of Ex-Muslims of Morocco Founder Imad Iddine Habib, Comedian Kate Smurthwaite, Author Kenan Malik, Southall Black Sisters Director Pragna Patel, CEMB Spokesperson Maryam Namazie and more.
Tickets: £18 (waged); £10 (unwaged)
To register, please email your name and mobile number to exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com. You can purchase your ticket(s) via Paypal or by sending a cheque made payable to ‘CEMB’ to: BM Box 1919, London WC1N 3XX.
Space is limited so buy your tickets today.
No tickets will be sold at the door.

18 May 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Apostasy and Asylum Meet-up with Lawyer Ana Gonzales.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

 27 April 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
Evening drinks with Imad Iddine Habib, Founder of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Morocco.
£3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

16 March 2015, central London by Kings Cross station, 19:00-21:00 hours
International Women’s Day evening drinks with Pragna Patel from Southall Black Sisters. £3 entry (waged); £1 entry (unwaged). E-mail exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

7 FEBRUARY 2015 SHARIA LAW, APOSTASY AND SECULARISM DAY-CONFERENCE NEAR KINGS CROSS WILL PAY TRIBUTE TO CHARLIE HEBDO AND THE MANY PERSECUTED FOR CRITICISING ISLAM AND RELIGION.
Near London Kings Cross
9am registration; 10am-5:30pm
The exciting day-conference will include discussions on Charlie Hebdo and freedom of expression, apostasy and blasphemy laws, Islamism and the religious-Right, Sharia in the Law, Educational System and Public Policy, as well as Secularism and Citizenship Rights. Speakers will discuss the successful campaigns against the Law Society and Universities UK and how the fight for equal rights and an end to discrimination against ex-Muslims and for free expression are integral to the urgent fight against Islamism and the religious-Right and for a secular society.
Speakers at the 7 February conference will include Activist Ahmed Idris, Campaigner for Secular Education Aliyah Saleem, Spokesperson of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain Amal Farah, Activist Atoosa Khatiri, Secular Activist Chris Moos, Director of the Centre for Secular Space Gita Sahgal, Founder of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Morocco Imad Iddine Habib, Spokesperson of One Law for All Maryam Namazie, Spokesperson of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain Nahla Mahmoud, Human Rights Campaigner Peter Tatchell, Southall Black Sisters Director Pragna Patel, Founder of Ex-Muslims of Scotland Ramin Forghani, Nari Diganta’s Rumana Hashem, National Secular Society President Terry Sanderson and Women’s Rights Campaigner Yasmin Rehman. See the schedule, speaker biographies and information on how to register here.

On the Religious-Right, Secularism and Civil Rights
11-12 October 2014
The Tower Hotel, St Katharine’s Way, London E1W 1LD, UK
CONFERENCE WEBSITE

Join notable free-thinkers, atheists and secularists from around the world for a weekend of discussions and debates on the religious-Right, its attacks on civil rights and freedoms, and the role of secularism for 21st century humanity. The exciting two-day conference will discuss the Arab Spring, Sharia and religious laws, the limits of religion’s role in society, free expression, honour killings, apostasy and blasphemy laws, faith schools, women’s rights, secular values and much more.

The conference will be held at the Tower Hotel with spectacular views of the River Thames and the Tower of London. On the evening of 11 October, participants will enjoy cocktails followed by a delicious three-course meal and entertainment in the company of our speakers.

Distinguished speakers and acts:
• AC Grayling is a Philosopher, Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature and the Royal Society of Arts, Honorary Associate of the National Secular Society and author and commentator.
• Amal Farah is Spokesperson for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and One Law for All. She is Somali-born and was raised in a conservative and literalist Muslim household.
• Amel Grami is Professor at the Tunisian University of Manouba; she was on the frontlines of Manouba’s successful struggle to defy a Salafist siege last year and is a leading expert on Religion and Women’s Studies.
• Amina Sboui is a Tunisian activist threatened and imprisoned after posting topless photos of herself on Facebook carrying the slogan: “My Body is not the Source of Anyone’s Honour”.
• Bahram Soroush is Public Relations Officer of the Free Them Now! Campaign to Free Jailed Workers in Iran and a co-host of Bread and Roses TV Programme.
• Ben Baz Aziz is a Presenter at Arab Atheist broadcasting and a blogger focusing on LGBT and atheist rights in the Middle East who was imprisoned in Kuwait for blasphemy.
• Caroline Fourest is a French writer, editor of the magazine ProChoix, and author of Frère Tariq, a critical look at the works of Tariq Ramadan and books on topics such as the conservative right, the pro-life movement and the fundamentalist trends in the Abrahamic religions.
• Chetan Bhatt is the director of the Centre for the Study of Human rights at LSE. His current projects include work on the emergence of virtue in modern political ideologies, new forms of the regional state in South Asia and the sociology of religious paramilitia groups.
• Chris Moos is a secular student activist who has led a successful campaign for the right to wear ‘Jesus and Mo’ t-shirts after being harassed and threatened with removal at his university. He was a nominee for the NSS’ Secularist of the Year 2014 award.
• Elham Manea is a Yemeni associate professor specialized in the Middle East, a writer, and a human rights activist. Her concept of humanistic Islam was first published in a series of articles in Arabic.
• Faisal Saeed Al-Mutar is an Iraqi born writer and a social activist living in the United States. He is the founder of the Global Secular Humanist Movement and Secular Post.
• Fariborz Pooya is the founder of the Iranian Secular Society, was one of the founding members of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and is a co-host of Bread and Roses TV.
• Fatou Sow is a Senegalese Sociologist, and a member of a number of African and international associations as well as the International Director of Women Living Under Muslim Laws.
• Gita Sahgal is an Indian-born writer, journalist, film-maker and rights activist, Director of Centre for Secular Space who was suspended by Amnesty International as head of its Gender Unit in 2010 for criticising the organisation’s relations with an Islamist group.
• Hamid Taqvaee is the Secretary of the Worker-Communist Party of Iran’s Central Committee and a leading Marxist opposition figure to the Islamic regime of Iran.
• Houzan Mahmoud is a Kurdish women’s rights campaigner and the Spokesperson of the Organisations of Women’s Freedom in Iraq. She has written and campaigned extensively on women’s rights issues.
• Horia Mosadiq has been Director of the Afghanistan Human Rights Research and Advocacy Consortium and an advisor to the Afghanistan Independent Human Rights Commission, as well as a journalist in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
• Imad Iddine Habib is a Moroccan atheist threatened for his atheism, founder of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Morocco, the first public atheist organisation in a country with Islam as the state religion.
• Inna Shevchenko is leader of FEMEN topless activists who was kidnapped and threatened by the Belarus KGB in 2011 for her activism. She was granted political asylum in France.
• Julie Bindel is an English writer, feminist and co-founder of the group Justice for Women. She was listed in the Independent’s “Pink List” as one of the top 101 most influential gay and lesbian people in the UK.
• Kacem El Ghazzali is a Moroccan secularist writer, blogger, activist and atheist. He was the head of the Moroccan Center for Human Rights’ Youth Chapter and is a member of the Executive Board of the Moroccan Bloggers Association.
• Karima Bennoune is a law professor at the University of California Davis School of Law, and author of “Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here: Untold Stories from the Fight Against Muslim Fundamentalism”.
• Kate Smurthwaite is a stand-up comedian and political activist. She has appeared on more than 500 TV and radio shows including This Morning, The Big Questions, Woman’s Hour and The Moral Maze.
• Kenan Malik is a writer, lecturer and broadcaster, a presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Analysis and a panellist on The Moral Maze. His book From Fatwa to Jihad was shortlisted for the Orwell Prize.
• Kiran Opal is a Pakistani-born human rights activist, writer, and editor living in Canada. She is co-founder of Ex-Muslims of North America and Editor of ExMuslimBlogs.
• LCP is a multimedia and multiethnic dance company which emphasises human rights issues mainly human trafficking.
• Lila Ghobady is an Iranian writer-journalist and documentary filmmaker. Her first independent release, Forbidden Sun Dance, was banned by the Islamic Republic of Iran.
• Maha Kamal is an ex-Muslim who was disowned by her parents for leaving Islam, President of the Colorado Prison Law Project, and Commissioner at the Colorado Supreme Court Chief Justice’s Commission on Inclusiveness.
• Magdulien Abaida is a Libyan Activist and president of Hakki (My Right) Organization for Women Rights. She was kidnapped by Islamists in Benghazi in August 2012 and fled after her release three days later.
• Marieme Helie Lucas is an Algerian sociologist, founder and former International Coordinator of the Women Living Under Muslim Laws. She is also the founder of Secularism Is A Women’s Issue.
• Maryam Namazie is Spokesperson for Fitnah, One Law for All and Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain; editor of Fitnah’s Unveiled; and producer and co-host of Bread and Roses.
• Nadia El Fani is a Tunisian filmmaker who risks arrest and up to five years in prison if she returns to Tunisia after Islamists filed a complaint against her film “Neither Allah nor Master”.
• Nahla Mahmoud is an environmentalist and human right activist originally from Sudan. She leads the Sudanese Humanists Group and is Spokesperson for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain.
• Nina Sankari is President of the European Feminist Initiative in Poland, and Vice-President of the Polish Rationalist Association.
• Pervez Hoodbhoy is a Pakistani nuclear physicist and recipient of a number of awards. He is also a prominent environmentalist and social activist.
• Peter Tatchell has been campaigning for rights and global justice since 1967. New Statesman readers voted him sixth on their list of “Heroes of our time”. He was Campaigner of the Year in The Observer Ethical Awards.
• Pragna Patel is a founding member of the Southall Black Sisters and Women Against Fundamentalism. She was listed in The Guardian’s Top 100 women: activists and campaigners.
• Randa Kassis is President and founder of the Movement for a Pluralistic Society. She was a member of the Syrian National Council until she was excluded for her warnings against Muslim fundamentalists in 2012.
• Rumy Hassan is Senior Lecturer at University of Sussex and author of “Dangerous Liaisons: The Clash between Islamism and Zionism” and “Multiculturalism: Some Inconvenient Truths”.
• Sanal Edamaruku is an author and founder-president of Rationalist International and the Indian Rationalist Association. In 2012, he was charged with hurting religious sentiments for his role in examining a claimed miracle at a local Catholic Church.
• Shelley Segal is a Melbourne based singer-songwriter involved in secular activism. ‘An Atheist Album’ is a passionate response to dogmatic belief, inequality, religious oppression and the idea that only the devout can be grateful and good.
• Siba Shakib is an Iranian/German film-maker, writer and political activist. She was born and raised in Tehran, Iran. Her international best-seller Afghanistan, Where God Only Comes to Weep has been translated into 27 languages and won a P.E.N. prize.
• Sue Cox is the co-founder of Survivors Voice Europe, an international organisation that has at its heart the support and empowerment of catholic clergy abuse survivors of which she is one.
• Taj Hargey is South African Muslim scholar. He was an anti-apartheid activist in South Africa and founder of the Muslim Education Centre of Oxford and the Imam of the Summertown Islamic congregation.
• Tarek Fatah is a Pakistani born Canadian writer, broadcaster and a secular activist. He is the author of “Chasing a Mirage: The Tragic Illusion of an Islamic State” and founder of the Muslim Canadian Congress.
• Taslima Nasrin is a Bangladeshi-born award-winning writer, physician, and activist, known for her powerful writings on women oppression and unflinching criticism of religion, despite forced exile and multiple fatwas calling for her death.
• Terry Sanderson is a writer and journalist and current President of the National Secular Society, which campaigns for the separation of church and state.
• Waleed Husseini is a Palestinian blogger arrested in 2010 by the Palestinian Authority for blaspheming against Islam on Facebook and in his blog. He founded the Council of Ex-Muslims of France in 2013.

An International Secular Manifesto and the establishment of a united front of secularists to meet future challenges will be the final outcome of the Conference. Conference contributions will also be published in a book.

For full details of the conference, including on registration and obtaining tickets, visit the event’s dedicated website or email maryamnamazie@gmail.com.

Please also join the event’s Facebook page and follow the conference on Twitter or Tweet #SecularConf.

The conference is endorsed by Atheist Alliance International; Children First Now; Center for Inquiry; Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain; Equal Rights Now – Organisation against Women’s Discrimination in Iran; Fitnah – Movement for Women’s Liberation; International Committee against Stoning; International Committee against Execution; International Federation of Iranian Refugees; Iran Solidarity; National Secular Society; One Law for All; Secularism is a Women’s Issue; The Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science UK; and Women Living Under Muslim Laws amongst others.

3 August 2014, 14:00 hours
CEMB Picnic
London’s Hyde Park
By Speakers’ Corner
For more details, contact: sandbad_behzad@yahoo.com

28th of June 2014
14:00 – 17:00
CitizenM Hotel
60 Renfrew St, Glasgow, G2 3BW
Apostasy, Atheism, Secularism and Ex-Muslims
THE FIRST PUBLIC SEMINAR Of Ex-Muslims Scotland

Date: Monday 28 April 2014
Time: 18:30-20:00

Ana Gonzalez, a lawyer of a well-respected law firm which has represented a number of apostate asylum claimants and CEMB members will speak about the right to asylum and apostasy.
Entry: £3; £1 unwaged.

Second Kafir Comedy Night Hosted by Maha
Date: Monday 10 March 2014
Time: 19:00-21:00
Venue: The George, 213 Strand, London WC2R 1AP (nearest Tube: Temple)

Open mic comedy for interested kuffar starts at 8pm. Look, we know it’s not easy defending yourself constantly against a religious mob. So take a break from the forums and let out the frustration with a laugh. If you’ve got some steam to let off, this is your night to do it. RSVP at exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com. But don’t laugh too much, Hell awaits us all later.*
Entry: £3; £1 unwaged.

* “Let them laugh a little: much will they weep: a recompense for the (evil) that they do” (Surah At-Taubah 9:82).

Fundraiser for Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain: Marlene Dietrich – an affectionate tribute
Date: Thursday 27 February 2014
Time: 19:30-21:45
Venue: Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL

Join Terry Sanderson as he explores the extraordinary life and career of one of the 20th century’s great entertainers. Using generous extracts from her films, he’ll examine her fantastic Hollywood career, and then accessing rare archive material, will look at her heroic war time efforts against the Nazis. The show culminates with a complete showing on the big screen of her famous one-woman show with which she toured the world. Accompanied by Burt Bacharach and his orchestra, this is Dietrich at her peak. The event is a fundraiser for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and coincides with LGBT history month. Tickets can be purchased here.

Manchester Meet and Greet
To join the 1 February Ex-Muslim North Meet and Greet in Manchester at 1pm, visit here.

29 November 2013

Evening drinks with Lawyer Ana Gonzalez on Apostasy and Asylum
5:00-6:00pm
There will be a CEMB London meetup for apostate refugees and asylum seekers at The George on the Strand, 213 Strand, London WC2R 1AP. To register your attendance, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

29 November 2013
7:00-9:00pm
Kafir Comedy Club
Hosted by DJ Zee Jay & Maha
Open mic comedy for interested kuffar starts at 8 pm.

Look, we know it’s not easy defending yourself constantly against a religious mob. So take a break from the Facebook forums and let out the frustration with a laugh. If you’ve got some steam to let off, this is your night to do it. RSVP below to get on the list. But don’t laugh too much, Hell awaits us all later.*

Entry: £3; £1 unwaged

Sponsored by the Council of Ex-Muslims Britain.

exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com | The George, 213 Strand, London (nearest Tube: Temple) | Friday November 29, 2013, 7 PM

* “Let them laugh a little: much will they weep: a recompense for the (evil) that they do.” (Surah At-Taubah 9:82)

29 October 2013
6:00pm
Ex-Muslim North In Da Pub
For more details, see the full listing.

2 November 2013
12:00 noon
Ex-Muslim North Buffet in Manchester
For more details, see the full listing.

19 September 2013
There will be a CEMB London meetup for apostate refugees and asylum seekers from 5-6pm at The George on the Strand, 213 Strand, London WC2R 1AP. For more information, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com

19 September 2013
Evening Drinks with philosopher Arif Ahmed. 6:30-8:00pm at The George on the Strand, 213 Strand, London WC2R 1AP. Entry is £3; £1 for unwaged, which can be paid at the door. All are welcome. For more information, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

7 September 2013
The Northern Ex-Muslim Meetup Group is organising a Ex-Muslim Super Event in Birmingham. For more details, see the full listing.

24 August 2013
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is organising a lunch in Manchester. For more details, see the full listing.

10 August 2013
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is organising a lunch in Dewsbury. For more details, see the full listing.

22 July 2013
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is organising a camping trip. For more details, see the full listing.

Saturday 6 July 2013, 14.00-17.00 hours
Paris, France
Launch of the Council of Ex-Muslims of France.

Join us for the launch of the Council of Ex-Muslims of France. Speakers include Femme Solidaires’ Soad Baba Aïssa, Palestinian blogger Waleed Al-Husseini, WICUR’s Lalia Ducos, Algerian Filmmaker Nadia El-Fani, Secularist Caroline Fourest, Africa 93’s Mimouna Hajjam, Secularism is a Women’s Issue Coordinator Marieme Helie Lucas, Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain’s Maryam Namazie and Women Living Under Muslim Laws’ Fatou Sow.

PLEASE NOTE YOU MUST REGISTER FOR THE MEETING AT cafem1310@live.fr. IF YOU ARE NOT REGISTERED, YOU WILL NOT BE GIVEN ENTRY INTO THE MEETING.

Here are more details about the aims of the organisation.

6 July 2013, 1pm
The Northern Ex-Muslim Meetup Group is organising a Pre-Ramadhan Lunch in Bradford. For more details, see the full listing.

29 June 2013, 12pm
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is doing a Lunch in Manchester. To join the event, visit here.

15 June 2013
Join us to celebrate the 6th anniversary of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain 15 June 2013 at 12pm for a 12:30pm start at an Italian restaurant in central London. The keynote speaker will be writer Kenan Malik. Other speakers and acts include Magician Neil Edwards, Centre for Secular Space’s Executive Director Gita Sahgal, comedian Kate Smurthwaite and CEMB spokesperson Maryam Namazie. Nahla Mahmoud will be the MC for the event. Special guests present include scientist Richard Dawkins.

Book your tickets today. Tickets for the event, which includes a three-course meal and glass of wine at a wonderful Italian restaurant, are £35.00 per person or £30.00 for students/unwaged.

To purchase tickets, send a cheque made payable to CEMB to BM Box 1919, London WC1N 3XX or pay via Paypal or Worldpay. Please make sure to include an email address and/or telephone number so that further details can be provided. Additional donations are welcome to help ensure the attendance of CEMB volunteers at the event.

7 June 2013
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up group dinner in Leeds at 8pm. To join the event, visit here.

9 May 2013
Evening drinks with Gita Sahgal, Executive Director of Centre for Secular Space. 6:30-8:00pm at The George on the Strand, 213 Strand, London WC2R 1AP. Entry is £3; £1 for unwaged, which can be paid at the door. All are welcome. For more information, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com. Author Rumy Hasan who was meant to give a talk is ill and cannot attend.

20 April 2013
Bradford, 2pm
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is meeting in Bradford at 2pm. For more details, see the full listing

6 April 2013, 7pm
Northern Desi M-Eatup in Bradford
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is doing a Northern Desi M-Eatup in Bradford. To join the event, visit here.

30 March 2013, 12pm
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is doing a Manch March Lunch in Manchester. To join the event, visit here.

24 March 2013, 2:30pm
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-Up Group is celebrating Spring equinox/Nowroz with a party in Manchester. To join the event, visit here.

22 March 2013
Evening Drinks with Sudanese Atheist Nahla Mahmoud. 6:30-8:00pm. To RSVP and receive further details, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com. £3 entry; £1 for unwaged.

15 March 2013
Muslimish is launching a new group in Chicago, USA. If you or someone you know is an ex-Muslim who is willing to start a meet-up in your city or wants to participate in the NYC, Detroit, Washington DC, Chicago or the online meetings please contact us at muslimishnyc@gmail.com. Muslimish is affiliated with the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain.

2 March 2013
The Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-up Group is going out bowling in Leeds at 2pm. To join the event, visit here.

28 February 2013
Ex-Muslim Women’s Meet-up group will meet for lunch in central London from 11:30am-1:30pm. To RSVP and receive further details, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

25 February 2013
Ex-Muslim apostate and refugee meet-up group from 11:30-1:00pm. To RSVP and receive further details, email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

23 February 2013
12pm, the Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-up Group is organising an Infidelicious lunch in Leeds. To join the event, visit here.

15 February 2013
Muslimish is launching a new group in Washington DC, USA. If you or someone you know is an ex-Muslim who is willing to start a meet-up in your city or wants to participate in the NYC, Detroit, Washington DC, Chicago or the online meetings please contact us at muslimishnyc@gmail.com. Muslimish is affiliated with the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain.

14 February 2013, 6pm
The Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-up Group is organising a meet-up in Manchester.

9 February 2013
Northern Ex-Muslim Meet-up Group is organising a day trip to Liverpool. To join the event, visit here.

28 January 2013
London, UK
There will be an ex-Muslim women’s coffee morning in January from 11:30-1:00pm and an apostate asylum seekers meet-up from 1:30-3:00pm. To RSVP, emailexmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

29 December 2012
Ex-Muslim Manchester Meet-Up Group Lunch
A CEMB-affiliated Manchester meet-up group has just been established by Sandbad. To join the group, visit here.

11 December 2012
End-Year Drinks with CEMB
Time: 18:30-20:00 Hours
Location: Central London
Entry: £10 per person; £7 for unwaged (including one drink and canapés).
Special Guest Speaker: Philosopher A C Grayling on ‘Secularism as a Human Right’.
Space is limited. Reservations will be granted on a first come, first served basis. Reservations and payment deadline: 6 December 2012 via post and 10 December via email. For more information, click here.

17 November 2012
Private Luncheon for CEMB Web-Forum users
Forum members are invited to a private luncheon to celebrate the CEMB’s forum 4th anniversary. If you are interested in attending, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com.

Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain’s fifth anniversary
23 June 2012, London
1-4pm
To celebrate the work, significance and achievements of this unique organisation on its fifth birthday, the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain are holding a fundraising luncheon on Saturday 23 June 2012 in London from 13.00-16:00 hours. Ticket(s) are £45.00 per person or £35.00 for students/unwaged. For more information, click here.

11 February 2012
Day in Defence of Free Expression
London Rally from 2-4pm, Old Palace Yard opposite the House of Lords. For more information, visit One Law for All.

International Conference on Women’s Rights, Sharia Law and Secularism
12 March 2011
10.00-19.00 hours
University of London Union, The Venue, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HY

Conference on Apostasy, Sharia Law and Human Rights
11 December 2010
10:00-19:00 hours
Conway Hall, 25 Red Lion Square, London WC1R 4RL
Sponsored by Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain, Iran Solidarity, National Secular Society, One Law for All and South Place Ethical Society.

Date: Thursday, January 28, 2010
Time: 1900 hours
Venue: Central London gastropub
Fundraising Dinner to raise money for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and One Law for All
Keynote Speaker: AC Grayling
Comedian Nick Doody, Singer/Songwriter David Fisher and Magician Neil Edward will do acts
To buy tickets to the event, which includes a three-course meal at one of the finest gastropubs in London , contact onelawforall@gmail.com or exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com. Tickets are £45 per person. If you can’t come to the event, please donate the equivalent so that volunteers of the campaign can attend the dinner.

Sharia Law, Sexual Apartheid and Women’s Rights, march 7, 2009, London
3:30-4:30pm, North Terrace, Trafalgar Square, London
Symbolic rally and march towards Red Lion Square from 4:30-5:30pm
6:00-8:00pm, Public Meeting on Sharia Law, Sexual Apartheid and Women’s Rights
Conway Hall, 25 Red Line Square, London, WC1R 4RL
Speakers at the public meeting include: Sargul Ahmad (International Campaign against Civil Law in Kurdistan Iraq Head), Yasmin Alibhai-Brown (Journalist and British Muslims for Secular Democracy Chair), Naser Khader (Democratic Muslims Founder), Gina Khan (One Law for All Spokesperson), Kenan Malik (Writer and Broadcaster), Yasaman Molazadeh (One Law for All Legal Coordinator):Maryam Namazie (Equal Rights Now Organisation against Women’s Discrimination in Iran and One Law for All Spokesperson), Pragna Patel (Southall Black Sisters and Women Against Fundamentalism founding member), Fariborz Pooya (Iranian Secular Society and Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain Chair), and Carla Revere (Lawyers’ Secular Society Chair).

One law for all: campaign against sharia law in britain launch, house of Lords, 4-5pm, December 10, 2008, london

Political Islam, Sharia Law and Civil Society, October 10, 2008 at Conway Hall, London
The Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain presents its first international conference: Political Islam, Sharia Law, And Civil Society on Friday 10 October 2008 – International day against the Death Penalty – from 10am-6pm (Registration begins at 9am) at Conway Hall London 25 Red Lion Square WC1R 4RL (Closest station: Holborn). Speakers at the event are: Mina Ahadi, Mahin Alipour, Roy Brown, Andrew Copson, Richard Dawkins,Giles Enders, AC Grayling, Johann Hari, Ehsan Jami, Rony Miah, Maryam Namazie, Fariborz Pooya, Terry Sanderson, Joan Smith, Bahram Soroush, Hanne Stinson, Hamid Taqvaee, Ibn Warraq, Keith Porteous Wood, and Zia Zaffar. Thee vent includes a comedy act by Nick Doody, Fitna Remade by Reza Moradi and Breaking the Taboo by Patty Debonitas. To see the conference proceedings, visit CEMB site: https://www.ex-muslim.org.uk/indexPressreleases.html.

CEMB’s One year anniversary celebration, Central London , July 5, 2008, from 2pm onwards
We are asking members and supporters to join CEMB executive committee members for drinks to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the establishment of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and to meet other like-minded people in central London on 5th July 2008 from 2pm onwards. For more details, please RSVP by emailing us.

Sexual apartheid, Islam and political Islam and Women’s Rights, International Women’s Day seminar, March 10, 2008, Conway Hall, London
The Council of Ex-Muslims and Equal Rights Now, an organisation against women’s discrimination in Iran are holding a seminar in commemoration of the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day on March 10, 2008 from 6-10pm at Conway Hall. The seminar will focus on Sexual apartheid, Sharia law, Islam and political Islam and Women’s Rights. Confirmed speakers at the seminar are: Louise Couling, Chair of the Regional Women’s Committee and member of the National Executive Council of Unison; Joan Smith, Novelist, columnist and human rights activist; Maryam Namazie and Mina Ahadi, the Councils of Ex-Muslims of Britain and Germany and National Secular Society Secularist of the Year award winners in 2005 and 2007 respectively, and Houzan Mahmoud, spokesperson of the Organisation for Women’s Freedom in Iraq. The event will be chaired by Hanne Stinson, Chief Executive of the British Humanist Association. The seminar has been endorsed by the National Secular Society, the British Humanist Association, the Gay and Lesbian Humanist Association and Organisation for Women’s Freedom in Iraq.

CANCELLED BECAUSE OF CORONAVIRUS

Please note that this meeting will be cancelled because of the risk of spreading coronavirus. We feel it particularly important to take action to stop the spread, particularly given the government’s inaction in the face of this epidemic.

All events will be cancelled until further notice.

 

17 March, 7-8:30pm, Central London, few minutes walk from Kings Cross station

Join us for our monthly meet-up to explore Identity Politics, Racism and Liberation with Gita Sahgal and Maryam Namazie.

Gita Sahgal is a writer, journalist, film-maker and rights activist. She is currently Founder and Director of Centre for Secular Space. She was formerly Head of the Gender Unit at Amnesty International; she was suspended in 2010 after she was quoted criticising Amnesty for its high-profile associations with the Islamist Moazzam Begg, the director of a group called Cageprisoners.

Maryam Namazie is an Iranian-born writer and activist. She is the Spokesperson of One Law for All and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain. She hosts a weekly television programme broadcast in Iran on Saturday evenings in Persian and English called Bread and Roses.

If it is your first time attending the monthly meet-up, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com to register.

Talks will be followed by Q&A, drinks and snacks.

CANCELLED BECAUSE OF CORONAVIRUS

Please note that this support group will be cancelled because of the risk of spreading coronavirus. We feel it particularly important to take action to stop the spread, particularly given the government’s inaction in the face of this epidemic.

All events will be cancelled until further notice.

 

Join us for our monthly support group, to talk about issues that still affect us after leaving Islam. Support group will be led by Marwa Wain.

If you would like to come along and have not been to a support group, please email hello@ex-muslim.org.uk for details of the venue. Otherwise show up at usual venue for support groups.

Join Urgent Online Solidarity Protest to Save Soheil Arabi’s Life

Via Livestream on Youtube and Facebook

14 April 2020

3:00-6:00pm London time/6:30-9:30pm Tehran time

Iranian atheist, activist and blogger Soheil Arabi has resumed his hunger strike on April 4 in protest to the Iranian regime’s denial of medical care and leave during the Coronavirus epidemic, inhuman prison conditions and unjust sentencing. In addition to physical problems caused by various hunger strikes, Arabi has been tortured, resulting in blunt trauma to his testicles and a broken nose, amongst other injuries. He is in need of urgent medical attention.

Arabi was arrested in December 2013 and sentenced to death for blasphemy, namely insulting the prophet, Iran’s Supreme Leader Khamenei and other Iranian officials in a Facebook post.

Upon appeal, his death sentence was reduced to seven and a half years in prison and two years of religious studies as well as a two-year ban from traveling abroad.

He was later sentenced to an additional 3 years in prison, exile and a fine on charges of “propaganda against the state” and “insulting the sacred and the supreme leader” because of his brave open letters highlighting injustice, inhumane prison conditions, torture and the situation of political prisoners in Iran.

Join our online protest action on Tuesday 14 April 2020, 3:00-6:00pm London time/6:30-9:30pm Tehran time by sending photos, videos, messages… of solidarity to be broadcast during the three-hour livestream. Do a drawing, take a photo, sing a song, recite a poem… Anything to save his life and secure his freedom. The livestream will be hosted by Veedu Vidz, Shahin Mohamadi and Maryam Namazie.

Soheil Arabi has done nothing wrong. He has a right to his opinion, belief and expression and must be released immediately as must all political prisoners and those imprisoned because of their conscience and opinion.

Join the livestream on Youtube or on Facebook.

Sign the Petition to save Soheil’s life.

#FreeSoheil

#Iran

#EndBlasphemyLaws

 

JOIN VEEDU VIDZ ON 21 APRIL VIA YOUTUBE AT 7-8:00PM LONDON TIME.

Talks will be followed by Q&A.

ONLINE – 21 April, 7-8:00pm

Join us for our monthly meet-up with Comedian and Youtuber Veedu Vidz: To laugh is to live! Importance of comedy in speaking against Islam. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik.

Veedu Vidz is a YouTube comedian who creates satirical videos on a range of topics mainly focusing on Islam. Veedu is an ex-Muslim who enjoys engaging with his religious and cultural heritage by exploring different ideas and religious preachers in the form of parodies and discussions. Veedu is a free speech advocate and stands for individual rights.

On 25th April 2020 at 6:00pm (BST) Fay Rahman and Saff Khalique are livestreaming a Pre-Iftaar Mukbang: a fast-defying feast in conjunction with Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain (CEMB). The feast is in solidarity with those who are punished for eating and drinking during Ramadan with floggings, beatings and imprisonment. We would like to also stress the importance of such an action in times such as these, where many are trapped in their homes and forced to fast against their will. Join our live “eat-in.” 

#Ramadan

#Fast_Defying_My_Right

Why Ex-Muslims Should Speak Up About #BlackLivesMatter: Ali Rizvi With Maryam Namazie, 15 June 2020

The murder of George Floyd and the protests that followed have sparked passionate conversations within many marginalized communities about how insidious systems of oppression can be, especially in this day and age. I’m going to be speaking to Maryam Namazie — the British-Iranian secularist and human rights activist often credited for making the ex-Muslim movement the global phenomenon it is today — about systemic racism, parallels between Islamic and White supremacy, showing solidarity with BLM protesters, and her own personal experience being beaten by the NYPD and thrown in jail during a protest in the early 1990s.

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, our London meet-ups will now be online until further notice. The meet-ups will be livestreamed via Youtube or Facebook.

Here is Youtube Link.

You will also be able to see it on Facebook live here.

19 May, 7:00-8:00pm, ONLINE

Join us for our monthly meet-up on Apostasy and Asylum with Ana Gonzalez. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik.

Ana Gonzalez is a solicitor and partner at Wilson Solicitors. She practises in immigration and asylum work, and has interests in human rights and European Law. Ana is an internationally recognised expert in gender and sexuality-based asylum claims as well as having extensive expertise in representing individuals from vulnerable, marginalised client groups such as victims of human trafficking, apostates and transgender individuals. Ana is frequently instructed by Local Authorities all over the Greater London area to act for children and adults in their care.

Ana is praised in Chambers and Partners for her “constant attention to cases, leading client care and real knowledge of the law.” She “continues to stand out for significant work on human trafficking cases, often raising new country guidance points” (2012). “She is a stand-out practitioner in the field of refugee law, with particular expertise in trafficking cases” (2014). She “is very experienced, passionate and has very good judgement” (2016). Ana has been described “the epitome of a fighter who cares very deeply about her clients,” in the 2019 edition.

She practises in all aspects of immigration and asylum work, and has a specialist interest in European law. Ana has extensive experience of litigating in the higher courts, having had numerous cases over the years in the Administrative Court/Upper Tribunal and Court of Appeal. She has also conducted cases in the Supreme Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg.

Talks will be followed by Q&A.

Muslimish Virtual Live Conference Broadcast talking about the Road Map to Abolishing Blasphemy Laws across the globe, and especially in the Muslim World. Speakers include:

Ibrahim Abdallah, National Organizer, Muslimish

Nicolas Little, Legal Director, Center For Inquiry

Maryam Namazie, Spokesperson, Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain

Ken Grunow, Amnesty International USA, Legislative Coordinator for Michigan and Local Group Co-ordinator

Geraldine Grunow, Amnesty International USA, Local Group Coordinator

You can see it live on Youtube

Why Ex-Muslims Should Speak Up About #BlackLivesMatter: Ali Rizvi With Maryam Namazie, 15 June 2020

The murder of George Floyd and the protests that followed have sparked passionate conversations within many marginalized communities about how insidious systems of oppression can be, especially in this day and age. I’m going to be speaking to Maryam Namazie — the British-Iranian secularist and human rights activist often credited for making the ex-Muslim movement the global phenomenon it is today — about systemic racism, parallels between Islamic and White supremacy, showing solidarity with BLM protesters, and her own personal experience being beaten by the NYPD and thrown in jail during a protest in the early 1990s.

Join us for our monthly support group, to talk about issues that still affect us after leaving Islam.

If you would like to come along, please email exmuslimcouncil@gmail.com for details of virtual support group meeting.

Five person 90 minute support group sessions are led by Savin Bapir Tardy. Larger 15 group sessions are led by Marwa Wain.

 

A larger support group led by ex-Muslim Marwa Wain. Marwa is an ACCPH accredited Counsellor and Psychology certified Life Coach. She specialises in Anxiety, Depression and Relationship issues. For the past three years has worked alongside the lead psychotherapist in managing individual and group therapy for the Grenfell fire survivors. She is a member within the Domestic Violence Forum for the East London area and part of the counselling committee for East London schools. Marwa also has a wealth of experience working with ex-Muslims and the struggles they face.

A small, five-person support group led by Savin Bapir Tardy. Savin is a Counselling Psychologist and conducted her doctoral research at City University into the experience of traumatic events. Savin has worked with adolescents, adults and older adults in a variety of mental health settings, including ex-Muslims and victims of domestic violence, ‘honour’ based violence, forced marriage and female genital mutilation.

On Why Ex-Muslims should support BLM and the Fight against Systematic Racism
Edited and Expanded Conversation between Ali Rizvi and Maryam Namazie on Professional Novice Podcast

Ali Rizvi: Welcome to Professional Novice with Ali Rizvi.

I like bringing people on who I really respect in terms of their ideas and their thoughts. And today’s obviously no exception. We will be speaking with one of my heroes, Maryam Namazie. Maryam is a British-Iranian secularist and human rights activist. She’s often credited for making the ex Muslim movement the global phenomenon that it is today. She launched the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain in 2007. I think the first time I saw you, Maryam, was at a conference in 2008. I don’t know if you remember, but it was a conference here in Toronto and I was in the audience and asked you question. I was completely in awe. There were very few people openly talking critically about Islam. And you were one of them. So you’ve been a hero of mine ever since.

Today, we’re talking about the Black Lives Matter movement. The murder of George Floyd, as everybody knows, triggered a range of protests in the US and worldwide. It’s sparked a lot of passionate conversations, not only amongst the black community but also within other marginalised communities about systems of oppression, how insidious they are, and how we might detect them, especially in this day and age. So Maryam, I think, is the perfect person to talk to about this. There has been a lot of conversations about this in ex-Muslim circles as well. Some are saying systemic racism is real; others are saying it’s not.

We’re going to get into the stats and the data on this a little bit. But one of the things those refuting systematic racism do the most is quote studies about police shootings, which are the most lethal form of police intervention, but also the rarest. Here, I want to drive home the point that George Floyd wasn’t shot by police. Eric Garner, Freddie Gray, Trayvon Martin or Rodney King weren’t shot by police. None of these were police shootings. And the slogan, “I can’t breathe,” which we see with Black Lives Matter was not only about shootings. We have to zoom out from the focus on shootings and talk about systemic racism and all the different ways that it manifests itself. It will obviously include the killings and the shootings as well, but this is about much more than that.

Maryam, thank you for coming on. You have also had a personal experience being subjected to police brutality at the hands of the NYPD for protesting peacefully. But I wanted to start with some of your initial thoughts about the protests and the way this conversation is unfolding in the ex-Muslim community.

Maryam Namazie: Thank you, Ali, for organising this hugely important discussion. Let me preface by saying that some ex-Muslims have been concerned about disagreements within our “community” and the polarization over BLM but the reality is that we’re not a homogeneous community any more than any other so-called community – whether it be Muslim, LGBT, black, white… Also, differences are not a “betrayal” of some imagined collective “identity” but as a result of our individual politics and choices. I have seen these differences often, when for example, I have defended open borders and refugee rights or condemned Brexit. Similarly, discussion on BLM, systematic racism and police brutality are uncomfortable because of fundamental differences in politics but that is why we need to have them. It has to be added that discomfort is not the same as “bullying,” Also, vehement disagreements are not the same as being silenced.

As someone firmly on the Left, for me, BLM is an important movement that has brought the issue of systematic racism in policing into the mainstream narrative. It’s inspiring to see and I feel very much like we are witnessing a new phase of an unfinished civil rights movement. As an activist, I believe that it is in the streets that the status quo can be challenged and this is what BLM is doing. The fact that we have seen protests in other countries shows how much institutional racism is part of the experience of black and minority women and men in countries outside the US too. That doesn’t mean I don’t have criticisms of aspects of BLM as I do of the ex-Muslim movement, for example, but I understand its importance and relevance (beyond a limited organisational scope), particularly during a Trump presidency that relies on white supremacy and identity politics.

Before we delve into the issue I depth, I would also like to add that one cannot address the issue of systematic racism in policing without seeing its pervasiveness in other aspects of the lives of black and minority women and men in the US, for example in education, mortgages, jobs, in the prison industrial complex, the health care system…

Ali Rizvi: I work in the healthcare system, where there is overwhelming, demonstrated evidence of racial bias. In fact, we are trained to be aware of these racial biases, particularly with conditions like sickle cell disease where the racial stigma is so strong that black people often avoid seeking treatment for it. Our students and residents have received training on this, and we are taking all kinds of measures to address it as well.

Maryam Namazie: Of course, police violence is meted out against primarily the poor and working class, including white people, so class is hugely relevant to the discussion. And yes, statistics are important, especially for a movement that prides itself on rationalism but if you focus only on some statistics, whilst disregarding others, and you refuse to recognise the historical and ongoing systems at play, the biases that inform the statistics, the flaws in statistics… then you miss the point. Feigning impartiality by hiding behind statistics is dishonest because no one is impartial here; everyone uses statistics and facts to prove their politics. We are activists after all. But a focus on some statistics and class aspects cannot erase the existence of systematic racism.

Ali Rizvi: This is a really important point that I wanted to talk about. As someone who has worked in science and medicine for several decades, we are trained to read research articles critically. We took specific courses on critical reading. The way that I look at a journal article, or any kind of scientific publication, is that I look at the figures first, then the materials and methods, results, and then go on to the introduction and discussion. Critical reading is key to the processing of any presentation of data. This is why peer review is so important. Moreover, data must be contextualized. Of course, statistics and data are the only way we have to eventually get to some sort of objective sense of what is happening, but it can’t always be evaluated in a vacuum.

For example, according to the UN, the prevalence of rape in Sweden is 24 times higher than India and 135 times higher than in Saudi Arabia. Now, most of us will look at this data and we won’t believe it. And there is a good reason we won’t believe it: we know that reporting rape carries a heavy stigma—and even risk of punishment—in India and Saudi Arabia, and many times, it is being actively covered up by the authorities. The data that we’re getting from Saudi Arabia and India is often coming from the same establishment that is covering up for these crimes. The Catholic Church is another example. Child molestation is systemic in the Catholic Church. They say, we have a few bad apples and this doesn’t represent the Church. But what happens to these “bad apples”? They are simply moved from one place to another. Their colleagues just look the other way. What makes the child molestation systemic is the complicity of their colleagues that helps the perpetrators get away with it.

Remember, the 1992 LA riots didn’t happen after the beating of Rodney King. Rodney King was beaten by police a year earlier. The riots were sparked by the acquittal of the four officers who beat him. Similarly, Black Lives Matter didn’t start because of Trayvon Martin’s shooting. It started after his murderer was acquitted. This is about justice and accountability. I’d also like to note here for those who cite police shooting data all the time that neither of these cases were cases of police shootings.

Maryam Namazie: Moreover, many things cannot be measured with available statistics for a number of reasons, including bias in data collection as well as cover-ups – e.g. much of the statistics on policing in the US, for example, is provided by the police themselves. It can also be a question of blind spots. When I started the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain in 2007, a number of journalists and others asked why there was a need when there were no statistics available to show that leaving Islam was even an issue. That’s why for me statistics or facts collected by activist campaigns are so important as they bring attention to problems that have been ignored – e.g. in the case of honour-related crimes, apostasy and also systematic racism in policing.

Ali Rizvi: Whenever we talk about these protests and the importance of them, a lot of people point out that the US is actually one of the least racist countries in the world. I understand this as somebody who is also an immigrant, who has come to North America from places like Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, where, racism is much more rampant, open, and even state-endorsed. The way the Saudis treat Indians, Pakistanis, Filipinos and non Arabs, I can tell them I agree that yes, it is one of the least racist countries in the world, though Canada is much better. These are pluralistic nations of immigrants, and I appreciate that. But it is important to understand how the US became this way. It is precisely because of protests like the ones we’re seeing today, many of which were much more violent and bloody in the past, even if you don’t count the Civil War. In contrast, the vast majority of protesters today—and this is now the largest protest in US history—are peaceful.

Maryam Namazie: One response to the assertion that the US is not a racist country would be that things might be better because of struggles similar to BLM – like the civil rights movement in the US, which was met with incredible violence by the state and white supremacists, including for example the assassination of civil rights leaders. Even so, it is questionable to consider the US as one of the least racist countries in the world given its history of slavery, racial segregation via Jim Crow laws, and the continued racism practiced today. 13^th is an excellent film on how this racism continues in the prison industrial complex by incarcerating huge numbers of black men in particular and like slavery facilitates slave labour and the denial of citizenship rights. Much of the US’ criminal justice system was established during the Jim Crow era so it is unsurprising that racial biases continue in all areas, including in education. Despite changes in law– e.g. Brown vs Board of Education – to desegregate schools, segregation is still rife. My sister is a teacher in Yonkers where most of the students are black and minority.

Also, saying other countries are more racist is a form of whataboutery that we ex-Muslims are familiar with. When we speak about Islamism, we are reminded about US imperialism as if one cannot speak about a specific injustice and inequity. Now, we are reminded about racism in Saudi Arabia or Pakistan when we defend protests against racism in the US. I think those who try to take the focus elsewhere are more interested in making political and ideological points rather than addressing issues like Islamism or racism.

Racism is institutionalised in the US because as the abolitionist Angela Davis says, it hasn’t transitioned into a post-slavery society to include former slaves. The people who think that the US is the least racist country in the world really have no idea what racism means and its effects on people’s lives.

Ali Rizvi: I want to talk about the looting and vandalism that many right-wingers have tried to make the face of BLM, despite the fact that the majority of protesters are peaceful. We did see it initially in the first few days as we have in past historical events when particularly egregious incidents, in this case the horrific Floyd killing, spark intense public anger. People get angry. They immediately react. They want to be seen and heard for once. And then the conversation begins. It’s worth noting that the leaders of the Black Lives Matter movement, President Obama, Atlanta mayor Keisha Bottoms, celebrities like Killer Mike, and even the family of George Floyd, have denounced the looting as a distraction from the goal. To be sure, people do understand why it happens, they sympathize with the anger and the frustration and the helplessness, but it nevertheless did die down. And of course, there were opportunistic actors also coming in. But again, people who want to oppose the protests want to make looting the face of it, but these are the largest protests in the history of the US, and they have been astoundingly peaceful. People in my family, my nephews, nieces, they’ve all participated in them. Interestingly, since we’re talking about police brutality, it’s curious that when you look at these videos of looters, there’s no police in sight; but you see countless videos of the police tear gassing peaceful protesters.

Maryam Namazie: When you have mass movements and people on the streets, there will be those who want to take advantage of the situation. As ex-Muslims we know how the far-Right tries to hijack our movement and we have those who have bought into this narrative but you cannot tar a mass movement for equality and an end to discrimination in this way. Mass movements are messy and often not coordinated and not everything always goes according to plan but you need to look at the aims and the actions of movements to determine their legitimacy. BLM has brought attention to an epidemic of police violence and state violence against black and also minority people in the United States. And what it’s done is it has shifted culture in a very short period of time. Seeing George Floyd die in front of our eyes helped people see what anti-racists have been saying for many decades. So this shift has to be celebrated and strengthened and supported so that change can come about. It’s particularly important at this period in time too given that Trump is in the presidency – someone who clearly promotes white identity politics and privileges supremacy. In a period of Trump, Boris Johnson, and far-Right parties in Europe,

a progressive people’s movement taking a stand for equality is a victory for us all. And I think that’s one of the most important points that I want to raise – BLM is a gain for us. When we agree that Black Lives Matter, we’re not saying that other lives are not important, but that all lives can truly matter if black lives matter.

I don’t see myself merely as an ally of BLM. I don’t like the term ally. I have skin in the game. For me, this is my movement. And as I would like others who are not ex-Muslim to see our movement as their own. And this is what BLM has managed to do despite all the misinformation. They have brought lots of different people out on the streets. The protests have been inclusive and inspiring. And because of this deep-seated impact, everybody’s jumping on the bandwagon – from the NFL to Starbucks to Boris Johnson – because the narrative has shifted and it’s shifted in people’s favour.

We need to recognise important moments like these if we are going to build on them and push for equality and human rights for everyone.

Let me also add that not everyone defending or opposing Black Lives Matters are friends or enemies. Also, your enemy’s enemy is not necessarily your friend. I decide what side I take based on its politics and its positive impact on human life and welfare. I know Islamists are jumping on the BLM movement to promote their anti-Americanism. Ayatollah Khamenei speaks of African American’s being brutalised when a pillar of his regime has been based on the brutalisation of minorities, workers, women, LGBT, atheists, dissenters and so on. Also, his regime promotes racism and bigotry against migrants, including Afghan migrants in Iran. But I cannot stop defending BLM because the Iranian regime has Tweeted in its favour, nor am I going to stop defending protests in Iran because Trump Tweeted in their favour. Trump’s or the Islamic regime of Iran’s “support” is only to win political points against one another rather than out of any real concern for people’s lives.

Moreover, there are some on the Left (what is now for me at least confusingly called Woke) that denigrate and accuse anyone who doesn’t agree with them. This section of the Left has long accused us of Islamophobia when criticism of religion and the religious-Right is clearly not the same as bigotry against believers but I am not going to start supporting the far-Right and white nationalists just because some on the Left make false accusations. I do not determine my politics based on what the Islamists or the so-called Woke Left say. And I don’t think anyone should.

As an aside, though, I think there is a lot of hypocrisy with the focus being solely on what is called the woke Left or Social Justice Warriors. To me, it seems like a sly, underhanded way of attacking the Left in general whilst legitimising right-wing politics or at the very least remaining silent on the Right’s role in promoting Islamism or racism or what have you. For example, much of the support for Islamism has come from Right-wing governments. Islamism was brought to centre-stage because of United States foreign policy during the Cold War and its attempt at creating a green Islamic belt around the Soviet Union at the time. Some of the US’ or UK’s closest allies are Islamist states like the Saudi government that can even cut into pieces a journalist in their embassy in another country and business carries on as usual. What I want to say is that there are those on the Right and Left that defend Islamism. The Right’s role has had the most impact because it has been part of state policy so the focus on SWJs saying something on Twitter or even cancelling a talk is not on par with how those in power have facilitated Islamism. A little perspective might help those who only seem to see the Left bogeyman but never manage to hold the Right responsible for its actions. There is never any excuse for the SJW or Wore Left but there are always excuses for the far-Right and the white nationalists. You can see this in all the discussions taking place nowadays. For example, people are quick to rightly condemn identity politics which homogenises the Muslim “community” and equate criticism with bigotry but some of those very same people buy into white identity politics and its victimhood narrative to the extent that they will say that there is not systematic racism against black people in policing (using limited statistics) whilst saying – without their almighty statistics mind you – that there is in fact systematic racism against white people!

For me, in the end, where you stand on BLM boils down to your politics and which side one stands with. People should stop hiding behind statistics and instead they should have the courage to defend their politics. My politics are clear. I’m going to keep pushing for people to support Black Lives Matter, to support an end to police violence, racism in policing in the same way that I’m going to push for an end to blasphemy and apostasy laws. I think they’re linked. And I think it’s important that we see those links if we’re going to move forward. No movement can win in isolation. You can’t win women’s rights if men are not involved in the fight for liberation. You can’t win rights for ex-Muslim if Muslims are not fighting in your corner. Black Lives Matter has become a mass movement. We need to both support them but also show them how our movements are linked, how our lives are linked, how our rights are linked. That’s how change always comes about I think that is key for me.

Ali Rizvi: Well, for once, you’re far from alone. Something very different is happening this time round. I’ve heard all the doomsday prophesizing about a moral panic and impending chaos, but most people don’t think so. For the first time, and this is actually incredible, 74% percent of people in the US support the protests. And even more amazingly, 53 percent of Republicans—that’s Trump’s party—support the protests. These are very, very compelling numbers and we can see the impact. NASCAR has banned Confederate flags from its races. Mississippi, the last state to have it on its flag, is now removing it. Major sports leagues in the US have embraced Black Lives Matter, including the NFL, which once shunned Colin Kaepernick for taking a knee, but now openly admits that was a mistake. People often dismiss these cultural changes, but they are very significant. Corporations and companies that never get into these charged issues have released strong statements. This is something that I have never seen before.

They’re talking seriously about getting rid of qualified immunity, a special tier of immunity that’s given to police officers, allowing them to get away with much more than the rest of us can. There is a bipartisan effort now to try to get rid of it. So, this is a fight that we’re winning.

For all of you who are disillusioned by the systemic racism-deniers, especially on social media, know that for once, this movement is really gaining ground, not only in the US, but internationally.

Maryam Namazie: Statistics are often used to deny systematic racism so we should look more carefully at these statistics but if I am completely frank, I feel some are hiding behind statistics in order to put forward a certain type of politics. There is political impetus for denying systematic racism against black people (using statistics) whilst maintaining systematic racism against white people (without any statistics). None of us are impartial and we are all trying to put forward our political perspectives – including the far-right, the Islamists… As I said before, differences are about politics and there is a level of dishonesty to hide behind statistics rather than defend one’s position clearly.

For me, placing the focus on “racism against white people” and denying racism against black people is because those people have bought into white nationalism and white identity politics, which is another form of identity politics.

On the issue of statistics, though, I want to reiterate a few points. There are many things you can’t show with statistics, especially if biases or blind spots exist. The statistics on police violence, for example, is gathered by the police themselves, and that’s one of the main problems with available government statistics. The police can lie, can hide the truth and the blue shield of silence means that they will never be held to account. It’s only when video evidence comes to light and their narrative is challenged that we get to see what really happened.

For example, when I was arrested by the NYPD in 1991 at a protest against the War Parade welcoming returning soldiers from the first Gulf War, I was pulled over the barricades, kicked in the face, my glasses broken; one police jumped on my stomach with his knee. I was so shocked I remember asking him “What are you doing?” while he was on my stomach. I had internal bleeding. It was a traumatic experience for me. In jail, we were woken up in the middle of the night and photographed and told we wouldn’t be protesting if we had been fucked properly… We became known as the War Parade 18 (I was working on a one year contract at Amnesty International at the time) and charged with obstructing government administration, resisting arrest, disorderly conduct, felony riot… charges that could have ended with 13 years in prison. The court case took many years. We were attacked by police at the court as well. None of us had money for lawyers so we were lucky that a group of left-wing lawyers agreed to take up our case pro bono and that a War Parade 18 Defence Campaign helped to raise funds for court-related costs. Eventually, news footage was discovered showing how the police had actually attacked and beaten us and the charges were finally dropped.

I tell you my experience to explain how you cannot rely on police statistics. Police brutality, if recorded, will blame the victim by claiming – for example – that they resisted arrest. My own arrest and the ensuing court case opened my and my family’s eyes to the immense violence and brutality of the police. One of the black women arrested with me had braids from her head completely pulled out. Another 16 year old black woman had a concussion as cops told her she would get the Rodney King treatment when they attacked us in the court house! I hope I would have had empathy without my traumatic experience but because of what happened to me, a world previously hidden opened up. Political commentator Trevor Noah makes an excellent point about this; with only 21% of US adults coming in contact with police, and opinions on police formed via television programmes showing how they can do no wrong, one can begin to see why the general public have taken so long to understand the extent of racism in policing. Until George Floyd when perceptions shifted considerably. As we know from his case, the initial police report was very different from what we all saw on our screens during the last harrowing nearly 9 minutes of George Floyd’s life. Initially, the police report said he was resisting arrest but the video clearly showed otherwise – him pleading for his life, calling for his mother and saying he couldn’t breathe.  In the case of Breonna Taylor who was shot dead in her own home, the police report initially listed her injuries as none – though she had been shot 8 times. In the case of Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia, the father and son who killed him whilst he was jogging were only arrested two months later. Initially, the police said there were no grounds for arrest as the father and son had used their citizen’s arrest rights in confronting Arbery. Later when the video came to light showing that he was in fact jogging, it was revealed that there had even been orders not to arrest the two white men. Two District Attorneys also had to recuse themselves because of connections with one of the killers…

So, if statistics are based on police reports, you can see very clearly how they can be fallible and deceptive. And we only know the reality is very different in the rare cases that video footage or other evidence comes to light.

Therefore, I find it absurd when some say that according to statistics only a few of those killed were actually innocent! More importantly, even if someone has committed a crime, why should they be killed during arrest? And how many were killed like George Floyd and there is no video footage to prove it?

In 2016, a US government pilot project to count police killings which drew on open-source data and a survey of local authorities found that the rate of those killed were much more than official reports. It recorded 270 homicides by officers in three months in 2015. The FBI said earlier this year that it had counted just 442 in all of 2015 because the FBI’s annual count of homicides by police, depends on police chiefs voluntarily submitting their numbers. So, clearly, data is not being fully shared. Also, when other police officers are the only witnesses, they will defend other cops and it is hard to get the facts and data in all the cases.

Ali Rizvi: One of the studies that is quoted by a lot of systemic racism-deniers is the Harvard study by Roland Fryer, which looked both at police shootings and non-lethal force—which is serious in and of itself. As I said before, George Floyd, Eric Garner, and Freddie Gray weren’t shot by police. Fryer found that black people are at least 50% more likely to be roughed up by police, and this disparity cannot be explained by offending rates alone. But he found no racial disparities when it comes to shootings. The paper was widely criticised. For one, it wasn’t peer-reviewed and this is stated in a disclaimer at the outset. Second, the police shootings data came almost entirely from police reports, often written by the involved officers themselves. This is like obtaining data on medical malpractice from the accused doctors themselves. Obviously, when you’re getting your data from law enforcement authorities who also have the power and interest to hide these incidents from the public eye, you’re not going to get an accurate picture. Third, looking at racial bias among police shootings alone ignores a fundamental component of the story: police encounters. Most police killings happen during routine traffic stops, arrests for non-violent or petty crimes, responses to domestic disturbances, and so on. And every killing begins with an encounter. Studies on police shootings that find no racial disparities, such as the PNAS Johnson and Cesario study, typically analyse all shootings, when they should really be looking at how frequently police use force in all encounters, and then correct for differences between blacks and whites. Recently, the authors of the PNAS study retracted the study in full for this reason. And a letter criticising the study for being based on “flawed science” was signed by an astounding 871 academics and researchers from a variety of disciplines, ranging from criminal justice and economics to medicine, engineering, and statistics.

And by the way, the data on systemic racism in police encounters is unequivocal. Many studies show that black people are more likely to be stopped by police. A recent study of 95 million traffic stops—the largest study of this kind to date, I believe—showed that this disparity disappears at night, when the race of the driver can’t be clearly discerned. That’s jarring. And once stopped, black people are more likely than whites to be searched, but less likely to be carrying contraband. Once arrested, they are more likely to be charged, incarcerated, and receive longer sentences and higher bail for similar offenses compared to whites. They are more likely to be subjected to physical force, even after adjusting for higher offense rates. Young black men are more likely to be seen as threatening by police than young white men. People sometimes say black people resist arrest. This is also baseless. The data shows that black people are less likely to resist arrest, and more likely to be unarmed. And even when they’re compliant, black people are 21% more likely to experience police aggression than compliant whites. So being compliant and cooperative with arresting officers actually disproportionately benefits whites significantly more than blacks.

The thing is, you simply cannot divorce police shootings from police encounters, where the evidence of systemic racism is robust and unambiguous. Physicist Neil deGrasse Tyson knows a thing or two about data analysis, and he puts it simply and clearly when he says, “If your demographic gets stopped ten times more than others, then your demographic will die at ten times the rate.”

Maryam Namazie: As an aside, even if someone resists arrest, how does that justify killing them? Why is it considered justifiable for the police to kill? We are always hearing about how the person in question would have been alive if only they hadn’t resisted arrest or ran or … As Trevor Noah says “There’s one common thread beyond all the ifs. If you weren’t black, maybe you’d still be alive.”

And BLM isn’t just relevant in the US. Some ask why BLM exists in the UK as if the UK doesn’t have a racism problem. One of the reasons, George Floyd’s death moved so many across the world is because the racism, the dehumanisation, the brutality hit a nerve. It was personal for a lot of people who had seen this day in and day out throughout their own lives. And racism isn’t history or old news as some would like us to believe. Take into account the wider context, from race science and eugenics, which Angela Saini documents in her book “Superior,” the perpetuation of the idea that black people are biologically inferior and white people biologically superior, colonialism, the hostile environment… and you can see its ugly effects very much today. The recent Windrush scandal in Britain shows that this is not past history and that it’s very much part of present-day British history in the making. People who came to Britain 50-60 years ago as children and Commonwealth/British citizens were detained and abused and deported from the only home they had known because no proof was enough to show they had lived here all their lives. Later, it was revealed that the Home Office had actually torn up their landing cards so they could deport large numbers of people. Some died before being able to return to Britain and some have not yet been able to return to their homes and families.

Even slavery is not in the past. British taxpayers only stopped paying for slavery in Britain in 2015. An equivalent of 17 billion pounds was paid in reparations not to the enslaved but to slave owners for loss of property!

Ali Rizvi: I don’t think those who say slavery or the Jim Crow laws ended many years ago understand how the collective mindset behind these, still continue to this day. Yuval Noah Harari wrote about this in one of the most eloquent ways that I’ve seen, in Sapiens. From the time they were brought to America as slaves, black people were thought of as unclean, unintelligent, and incompetent. When slavery ended, they were still thought of that same way—the stereotype persisted into the segregated Jim Crow era, which was essentially premised on the stereotype. If some of these freed black people got a good education and then applied for a good job, they were very likely to lose it to an equally or even less qualified white person because of the stereotype. Then, the society sees that despite being freed and having a shot at education, white people still hold all the good jobs, and that probably means that black people really aren’t as smart or competent, so our stereotype was right. To quote Harari: “Trapped in this vicious circle, blacks were not hired for white-collar jobs because they were deemed unintelligent, and the proof of their inferiority was the paucity of blacks in white-collar jobs.” So no, it hasn’t ended, and Black Lives Matter isn’t just about George Floyd. It’s about the overall system. George Floyd was just a catalyst. His killing was the straw that broke the camel’s back. The system was built in the Jim Crow era and hasn’t significantly been updated since.

Maryam Namazie: There are instances in history where masks are removed and the truth comes through despite all the propaganda and lies and I think George Floyd’s death was one such moment. It was 8 minutes and 46 seconds of police sitting on his back and neck with such impunity and disregard for human life even though they knew they were being filmed. It’s because there is never any accountability and they felt they would get away with it. Chauvin who kneeled on Floyd’s neck had 18 prior complaints against him as did some of the other officers involved.

Apart from that fact that there is no accountability, the problem is systematic, which doesn’t mean that everyone in the system is racist but that regardless of individuals within, the systems and institutions perpetrates racism and produce disparate outcomes.

In the UK, it was the killing of Stephen Lawrence in 1993 that highlighted institutionalised racism in policing. Stephen was an 18-year-old young black man who was murdered by a group of white racists in Eltham, southeast London whilst waiting for a bus. It took 20 years for two of those who were responsible to be prosecuted. The McPherson inquiry into his killing found that his family were failed because the police were not able to recognise both the racism that killed him but also the racism in the police. All the officers involved in the investigation denied racism or racist conduct and genuinely believed that he or she had acted without bias or discrimination. They also wouldn’t accept that the murder was racially motivated. So what this case showed is that racism is often hidden, unconscious, insidious, difficult to detect and even unintentional so it doesn’t show up in statistics.

Racism in general terms consists of conduct or words or practices which disadvantage or advantage people because of their colour, culture, or ethnic origin. In its more subtle forms, it can be as damaging as in its overt forms.

The McPherson inquiry stated that institutional racism was “the collective failure of an organisation to provide an appropriate and professional service to people because of their colour, culture, or ethnic origin. It can be seen or detected in processes, attitudes and behaviour which amount to discrimination through unwitting prejudice, ignorance, thoughtlessness and racist stereotyping which disadvantage minority ethnic people.”

Ali Rizvi: It is also important to recognise what systemic racism isn’t. It is expressly not about an army of racist cops going out and looking to kill black people. You can’t see what’s going on inside someone’s head. We don’t even know if Chauvin was genuinely racist, or just a general sociopath who may have done the same to a white man—unless we have mind-reading fMRI type technology, we can’t objectively evaluate that. But what we can say is that the criminal justice system produces racially disparate outcomes. For that, the evidence is overwhelming, as I cited earlier. This system produces and trains white cops, black cops, good cops, and bad cops. It’s similar to what we see with religion. Major religions like Islam and Christianity are fundamentally misogynistic, and we can see these misogynistic attitudes manifest themselves in religious women as well. Sure, no analogy is perfect, but you do see, and studies have shown, that black officers who come out of the system can also harbour its inherent biases. Now you have artificial intelligence being used to predict crime, where some communities are given more policing attention than others. And if the data being fed into these AI algorithms is bad, you will have officers of all races making assumptions about people in one community potentially being more violent than another, and that will affect how they approach, say, routine traffic stops. This problem is huge, and its roots are deeply entrenched in very contaminated soil.

Maryam Namazie: The criminalisation of the black male in particular has helped pave the way for a new form of slavery as shown very clearly in Ava DuVernay’s brilliant documentary – 13^th – on mass incarceration in America. The view of black men as naturally violent and criminal hasn’t changed much from the view that was perpetrated during slavery and the Jim Crow era. This view of black men gives permission to the police to act with impunity.

Ignoring all these facts and realities and using limited statistics to “prove” there is no racism against black people, whilst also regurgitating the racist narrative of the “violent criminal” black man isn’t about being rational but about hiding behind some statistics to promote a politics that is informed by white identity politics. My politics in support of BLM is clear. What is unclear to me at least is why those who hide behind statistics don’t just come out and defend their politics rather than reducing an important social and political issue to a question of statistics.

If you rely on statistics alone, you can reach the shocking conclusion of Tulsa police major who said “All of the research says we’re shooting African Americans about 24% less than we probably ought to be, based on the crimes being committed”!

Also, as I mentioned before, official statistics can be misleading and deceptive. So when looking at statistics, it helps to look at those gathered by activists and human rights defenders like Mapping Police Violence, which shows how there were only 27 days in 2019 where police didn’t kill someone with black people being three times more likely to be killed than white people; three times more likely to be unarmed compared to white people. Also, the level of violent crime in US cities doesn’t determine the rate of police violence. For example, in Buffalo, New York, where the percentage of “people of colour” is 50 percent, violent crime rate is twelve per thousand and no one has been killed by Buffalo police from 2013-16. In Florida, where the percentage of “people of colour” is 42 percent and violent crime rate is nine per thousand – less than Buffalo – 13 people have been killed by Orlando police in that same period. And there’s no accountability for these killings. 99 percent of police killings from 2013-19 haven’t resulted in anyone being charged.

As Maurice Mcleod writes: “Black people are being killed by law enforcement in the USA at a rate of about two deaths per week. This is almost identical to the rate that lynchings took place in the Jim Crow era. Lynching didn’t stop in the USA, it just put on a uniform.”

Ali Rizvi: And while we’re talking about evidence, there’s the data from the National Academy of Sciences Frank Edwards, Hedwig Lee, and Michael Esposito, showing the lifetime risk of a black man being killed by police to be 1 in 1000. That’s staggering. Over the course of their lifetime, one of every 1000 black men can expect to be killed by police. And when they point out that black people offend at a higher rate than whites—which many of the studies showing racial bias adjust for, by the way—we also have to look at what is being implied. Why did it become that way? Is it in their DNA? Is it genetic? Could it possibly be the effect of the same systemic biases that these people are denying? Are we going to talk about that? Why are black people on average at a lower socioeconomic tier? What are the reasons for it? And are those reasons systemic? And that will also bring you back to this whole conversation about systemic racism. Some things become so deeply entrenched in society that we consciously forget how big they are. It’s like Google, which just started as a company, but is now literally a verb that means “search for on the web.” Google this, Google that. It becomes part of our day-to-day living, and we consciously forget that it’s actually a brand. The demonisation and criminalisation of black men, I think, operates at that level.

Maryam Namazie: The Sentencing Project shows that “African Americans are more likely than white Americans to be arrested; once arrested, they are more likely to be convicted; and once convicted, and they are more likely to experience lengthy prison sentences. African-American adults are 5.9 times as likely to be incarcerated than whites and Hispanics are 3.1 times as likely. As of 2001, one of every three black boys born in that year could expect to go to prison in his lifetime…” Also, they show that the same crime by a white and black person doesn’t have the same consequences.

A large part of this is as I mentioned before the criminalisation of black men in America. It’s like the criminalisation of migrant men who are seen as threats to “our white women”. This is a continuation of racist propaganda seen in the Jim Crow era that feeds into fear and legitimises scapegoating and dehumanisation whilst encouraging silence.

On the issue of violence, too, it is interesting how the more expansive all-encompassing, institutionalised violence inflicted by the state is never seen as violence but taking food or shoes from a shop is. I’m not for looting, but the British Museum is filled with things that have been looted from Iran and other countries. The West was built on the looting of other countries. The looting of those in power, however, is completely legal and legitimate. But if you are poor and disenfranchised, then it is a major offence. The division between legal and illegal looting is important here as is legal and illegal violence.

It is perfectly legal for the police to kill you with impunity. And still be fully funded. Look at police budgets. The NYPD budget is $11 Billion – imagine! 1 in every 125 New Yorker is homeless, people don’t have health care, schools are dilapidated, services are being cut but the police budget keeps growing and growing. That’s why people are calling for defunding the police and pouring money into the communities instead. Community policing can be dangerous as Rahila Gupta explains with “community leaders” acting as gatekeepers and it’s difficult to see how police can be abolished in a capitalist system but transformation is desperately needed. Much of the money poured into police departments should be poured into social services and welfare.

Ali Rizvi: Police reform is key. And smarter funding isn’t just a hypothetical thought experiment. It has been tried and tested in places like Camden, New Jersey. As you said, these police departments have monstrous budgets. But the problem is they’re dealing with things that they really shouldn’t have to deal with, like traffic stops, where so many of these unfortunate incidents happen. Why do you need super armed police with tasers and guns giving out speeding tickets? Why do you need super armed police to deal with homelessness, domestic disputes, mental health issues, or drug addiction? You should have substance abuse specialists dealing with that. You should have social workers dealing with domestic issues. Of course, it’s still dangerous work, and police could still have a role, but it would be a secondary role. It’s putting too much pressure on the police that if there is a mental health issue, if there is a homelessness issue, well, call the police. They’re underqualified for all of this and overworked already. We should absolutely be talking about redistributing these resources to other disciplines as well. I do want to say here that from a branding perspective, I don’t exactly love slogans like “defund the police” or “abolish the police.” You always end up having to explain what it means, and that becomes a distraction from the issue. I hope they call it something that’s quicker and clearer to understand, even something more aggressive sounding, like “radical police reform.”

Maryam Namazie: Now that attention is on the police, there is a chance to push for fundamental changes. It is going to be difficult because I think the police play an important role in managing communities for those in power. And violence is an important component of that control and management. I wonder if the police are really reformable and if reform is enough?

Ali Rizvi: It’s like the conversation we have about reforming Islam versus being ex-Muslim. It really depends what you mean by “reform.” If you look at it, what Minneapolis is doing is they’re dismantling the entire police force and then they’re building it again from the ground up. Right-wing alarmists love to talk about the dismantling part without mentioning the part about rebuilding. Nonetheless, that is also a form of reform. There is a misunderstanding that this means that they’re going to absolutely get rid of policing, which is not the case there, and it certainly wasn’t the case in Camden, New Jersey. No one serious is talking about getting rid of the police. In Camden, they dismantled what they had, and then rehired a lot of the officers. They implemented new systems of training. They established new protocols on de-escalation of situations. In this sense, yes, I do think reform is possible. I’ve had friends who are police officers who genuinely want to help, have good intentions, and want to do the right thing, often at great risk to their lives, livelihoods, and mental health. Another parallel with Islam and Muslims: I often hear apologists say that the problems in the Muslim world aren’t because of Islam. Islam is great, they say, but Muslims are the problem and they misrepresent it. The “bad apples” thing. And I think it’s the other way around. Most Muslims are good, conscientious people. It’s the system, the ideology that is warped.

Maryam Namazie: I understand what you’re saying but, if I’m honest, I hate the police as I hate immigration. I shake when I pass a border, when I see the police as I do when I pass the embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran. It makes me feel very uncomfortable. And again, there might be wonderful police officers but the system is unjust and it has to change. And because of public attention and pressure right now, there is the possibility for demanding accountability. But for transformation, I can’t see it happening under this system. I am very much on the left. And I do think that racism, sexism… is intertwined with capitalism and a system that puts profit before human welfare. Whatever gains we make, if we’re not vigilant, can easily be taken away so the fight for equality or an end to racism is ongoing. But whilst attention is on BLM, it is important to push for change. And to remember that an injury to one is an injury to all. This is not a slogan. If our societies are unequal and racist, it affects everybody, even those who are not facing that inequality directly.

Ali Rizvi: I think you’re right that it is the system that is unjust, and it tars everyone who is a part of it. We may not align on everything politically even as fellow left-liberals, but on that fundamental point, I’m with you.

I also wanted to talk to you about identity politics. I’ve often heard you talk about identity politics and how problematic it is. This is also something we hear right-wingers complain about all the time, even though identity politics is even more rampant on the right. They’ll complain about how the left fetishizes black and brown identity. I saw a funny comic about what would happen if these Trumpistanis were around at Martin Luther King, Jr.’s time, saying, “There you go, Martin, making everything about race again!” But they’re so obviously blind to the much more insidious identity politics on their side, about white nationalism, “race realism,” preserving their European or Judeo-Christian heritage, and so on. They talk about how the nation states of Europe must maintain their identity, as if it’s somehow immutable. But you, I think, are one of the only people I know who has called both sides out on this.

Maryam Namazie: There’s confusion on what identity politics is. Some feel Black Lives Matter is about identity politics. But there is a difference between promoting difference / superiority and demanding equality and rights. Like ex-Muslims are. I think it’s important to make distinctions between liberation movements, between movements that are defending rights, that are defending equality like BLM versus identity politics, which defends difference and superiority (two sides of the same coin) and promotes a form of narrow nationalism and the idea that it’s only authentic members of your in-group that matter. We’ve seen this perspective often and it’s detrimental to liberation movements. With BLM, like with any movement, it is important to look at what they say and do and their aims. BLM protests include all types of people – and is based not on identity – but on common cause – to end institutional racism in the police.

Ali Rizvi: If your identity has been the basis of discrimination against you and you call it out, that’s not the kind of identity politics we’re talking about. We are talking about identity politics being problematic when identity is exploited to gain some kind of privilege, not when it is asserted to fight for equal treatment. Which brings us to the question of white privilege, which I also want to ask you about. One thing that has been really unprecedented about these protests is the diversity. You have white people, black people, brown people, men, women, gay, straight, trans—all marching together. Not only are a majority of white people showing solidarity with the protesters, but also, as we mentioned earlier, a majority of Republicans. So even though we know white privilege is real, how helpful is it to bring it up in this context? Is it a distraction? Does it take away from BLM’s focus on trying to get rid of systemic racism?

Maryam Namazie: Personally, I don’t like the term white privilege because I agree with the writer Kenan Malik that “viewing white people – all white people – as ‘guilty and complicit’ distorts political issues and deflects from real causes.” Just as men can be feminists, white people can be anti-racists but I can understand the concepts of privilege and entitlement. As ex-Muslims, as LGBT, as women, once can understand how the default in society is religious, straight or male. It’s also white.

Ali Rizvi: Another issue I wanted to get your views on. A lot of people are concerned about vandalism and the destroying of statues. Anti-BLM folk have made this the face of the movement. Do they have a point? Are they right to be concerned about historical revisionism? They want to get rid of the statues of Winston Churchill. There is a street in the city that I live called Winston Churchill and they want to change the name of it. Some wanted to get rid of statues of Gandhi. There’s a petition saying we must bring down the Gandhi statue because he was a racist. Set aside the long-overdue acknowledgment here that people of colour can also be racist, but how do you view this issue of statues?

Maryam Namazie: It’s not really revisionism or erasure of political figures if there are no statues glorifying them. There is a space for historical statues in museums but in the public space? Is it fitting to have statues of slave owners, for example, or the Belgian king Leopold II whose rule killed 10 million Africans or of Winston Churchill whose crimes included 50,000 men, women and children forced into concentration camps? Stalin also fought the Nazis, but do we want a statue of murderer like him in the public space? In history, victors decide who is glorified and a large part of that actually includes erasure and revisionism of reality.

Ali Rizvi: I understand. But there is another way that I look at this. First of all, I’ve never cared all that much for statues in general. It doesn’t really matter to me. And I don’t have a problem with some of these statues being moved from the public space into museums. But I want to channel something that Barack Obama said: people are complex, and people change. I grew up in the 80s, when homophobia was vastly normalised. In my school, we used anti-gay slurs as part of what was the norm. We would use the “f” word and call things we didn’t like “gay.” As I grew older, more aware, and the public conversation changed, I evolved my views on this, and felt embarrassed about how I used to think. We sometimes underestimate the power of indoctrination from your environment. We have seen countless examples of people who embraced misogyny and anti-scientific thinking when they were religious, and then changed when they left the religion. Cultural and political views work the same way. So when the questions come up, “Is this a statue we should destroy?” or “Is this a historical figure we should permanently cancel?” I put it through a test: If I was a white man living in North America in the early 1800s, would I be sympathetic to the idea of owning slaves? Chances are, yes. If I were a man living in 1915, would I subscribe to the idea of determined gender roles? Most of us would. A lot of these white Antifa kids today would probably harbour any number of racist and homophobic attitudes if they were transported back to the 1940s. From that lens, I give some historical figures a pass. But if I were transported back to the time of the Civil War, I know I wouldn’t be on the side of the Confederacy. If I went back to 1930, I know I would be evolving in favour of suffrage, just as I evolved in favour of LGBTQ+ rights in the late 1980s and early 1990s. So for me, there is a clear distinction between tearing down a Lincoln statue versus the statue of a Confederate general. It’s strange to me to imagine if two generations in the future, when lab-grown meat is the norm and killing animals for food is obsolete, people began to equate Obama and Trump as equally bad because both ate meat. It muddles history when we view it through the lens of our current ethics and moral standards.

Maryam Namazie: But current moral and ethics standards matter because it is part of human progress and history. Why celebrate slaver owners and criminals when there is so much of human history that deserves celebration. Those in power have very good reason for why they glorify slave traders and criminals and no amount of discussion will get them to change their minds. There had been years of petitioning to remove the statue of Colston in Bristol. He was a slave trader! Let that sink in and they did nothing so protesters took action and dumped the statue in the sea. I don’t see anything wrong with it. It’s not an act of violence. But it pushes boundaries and makes the authorities understand that glorifying slave traders is not acceptable – not in the 21 century. Every right that has been fought for has pushed boundaries and made unacceptable what was normal before the struggle reached fruition. “Riots” for civil rights, gay rights, for women’s suffrage, people arrested, killed…

Ali Rizvi: They were killed, Martin Luther King and Harvey Milk were assassinated.

Maryam Namazie: After a fight has been won, it shifts culture, perceptions, laws, policies, society and it is seen as a positive movement in hindsight but not so when it is taking place all around us. Then it is labelled violence, rioting, vandalism, criminal…

Ali Rizvi: I’m with you on that. The transformative revolutions of the past that brought about changes like suffrage for women, civil rights, abolition of slavery, and gay rights were much more violent and bloody than what you’re seeing today. All those movements were called riots in their time. That doesn’t mean violence is okay, of course, but those who want to make a few incidents of violence and vandalism the face of the largest protest in American history are laughable.

I wanted to talk to you about one last point. We were talking about statistics and some of the problems with them, like data on shootings coming from police officers themselves. Often with data, people start dismissing lived experiences as anecdotes, as if they are of no significance. And I find that especially strange coming from ex-Muslims. How many times have we been told, well, your experience isn’t real, you only left Islam so you could get attention, make money, have sex and drink alcohol? In Bangladesh in 2015, when we saw a half-dozen secular bloggers violently hacked to death with machetes in a matter of months, people were talking about how this is not a serious issue in Bangladesh, the government is officially secular, and these are just a few bad Muslims who don’t represent Islam. Where were the statistics and data? I see the videos that Ex-Muslims of North America does, they are personal stories, anecdotal for sure, but do you dismiss them for want of more data?

When Rodney King was beaten, and black people were telling us this was the norm and not the exception, how much data was there on systemic racism and police brutality? Not everyone had a cell phone camera in 1992 like they do now so there is every reason to think that this was much more rampant back then than it is now, even though we see more videos of it now. When people asked at that time, we don’t know if this is really happening—where’s the evidence?—there wasn’t really a lot of it, was there? I was in high school at the time and it was no surprise to me, maybe because I used to listen to a lot of the early ‘90s hip-hop. NWA’s Fuck the Police was amazing, and Ice-T had a great song called Cop Killer, which sparked a lot of controversy for those who didn’t understand it. It obviously wasn’t a call to kill cops. It was a cry of protest, an expression of the frustration and anger around being on the receiving end of this immense injustice that remained invisible to the public eye. Funny enough, he plays a cop on TV now. So when Rodney King was beaten, my friends and I thought, okay, that’s what these guys have been rapping about for a few years now. It was depressing, obviously, but not as shocking as it was to the deniers. The thing with data and statistics when it comes to systemic racism in policing is that this is an ongoing inquiry where we’re still finding out about it. There are many things about it you can’t draw firm conclusions on, especially those who say it doesn’t exist. I think it was Carolyn Porco who talked about how hard it is to prove that something doesn’t exist. To prove there’s a cockroach in your house, all you need is to find one cockroach and you’re done. But to prove there isn’t, you have to search every nook and cranny thoroughly, repeatedly, and simultaneously. It’s essentially impossible. It is irresponsible and dangerous to conclude that systemic racism isn’t real when the evidence for it is so overwhelming. As rationalists, we should be following the evidence, in all its forms, and not the political narratives of denial that have almost become dogma in themselves.

It is bizarre to see some ex-Muslims who rightly lambasted the regressive left for turning a blind eye to Islamic supremacy now themselves turning a blind eye to white supremacy. Do you have any final comments on this?

Maryam Namazie: I would like to end by saying that BLM as a movement must be supported. I am not talking about a specific organisation. But about a movement for equality and an end to racism in policing. This isn’t saying that only black lives matter but that they matter too.  The writer, Arundhuti Roy says arguing #alllivesmatter… “is a sly way of draining the politics out of what is being said by resorting to meaningless truisms. Asians and Whites are not being murdered, incarcerated, disenfranchised and impoverished in the US in the way African Americans are. Ever since slavery in the US ended there has been a concerted effort to violently hobble, hold down and enslave African Americans in other ways that appear to fit into the social contract and legal framework of a democracy.” Saying All Lives Matter is like saying AllPeopleMatter during Gay Pride or AllMenMatter during International Women’s Day. The aim is not to defend everyone but to trivialise and diminish the fight for gay rights or women’s rights and in this instance black lives.

As feminist Jessica Crispin wrote recently: “When we are dealing with someone who is indoctrinated or besotted with bad or regressive thinking, the intuitive approach is to educate or instruct. But there truly is no replacement for actual, physical, social encounter between humans to create a shared perspective. And right now, in this uprising, that is where the counterintuitive, but constructive, answer is forming. We are encountering each other in our shared (and forced) encounters with the police. The building can start from there. There is no shortcut. We must find one another on the streets.”

Whist things have shifted in such a short time in favour of those fighting against racism, what becomes of this fight in terms of lasting change depends on us all. No fight for equality or liberation is guaranteed. What happens in the end will depend on what we each do next.

It is an uphill battle. There are huge historical and real forces that are against racial equality, that are against an end to racism in policing because racism is a useful tool for control like religion or sexism as is a policy of divide and rule. But if there is hope, it is the streets where we find it most by standing with and for each other and recognising our common humanity.

Ali Rizvi: Well said. Thank you, Maryam.

Ali Rizvi is Pakistani-Canadian author of The Atheist Muslim and host of the Professional Novice. Maryam Namazie is Iranian-born activist and Spokesperson of Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain. The above is an edited and expanded transcript of a 15 June 2020 podcast discussion.

 

 

27 June 2020, 5-8pm London time

Join Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain (CEMB) in a livestreamed online discussion 27 June – on Persecution, Shunning and Survival: Being Ex-Muslim/Muslim and LGBT for Pride Month, 5:00-8:00pm London time

Livestreamed on Facebook and Youtube here: https://youtu.be/fBNkn4iUap4

With Jimmy Bangash, Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain Spokesperson; Khakan Qureshi, Gay Muslim activist and Stonewall LGBT+ school role model and Diversity Role Mode; Lilith, Trans Woman with migration background; Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed, French-Algerian openly gay Imam and founder of the first European inclusive mosque in Paris; Nadia El Fani, Tunisian Filmmaker; Nemat Sadat, Author of the Carpet Weaver and first public gay ex-Muslim from Afghanistan; Saima Razzaq, Birmingham Community Activist and first Muslim woman to lead UK Pride event; and Sohail Ahmed, Counter-extremism and LGBT Activist. Poetry by Halima Salat. Event will be chaired by CEMB spokesperson Maryam Namazie and Youtuber Fay Rahman.

BIOGRAPHIES

FAY RAHMAN is a British-Bangladeshi ex-Muslim atheist Youtuber. Fay grew up in the UK, in a non-practicing Muslim family. Through Islamic schooling she joined the Tableeghi Jamaat and then later adopted the even more conservative Salafi practice of Islam with the encouragement of her father and later her extended family. Fay left Islam in secret in February 2017 and openly in October 2018 – avoiding an arranged marriage, surviving an attempt on her life and causing her family to disown her. Fay collaborates with Faith2Faithless, the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and Faithless Hijabi for activism in free-speech, women’s rights and religious freedom. She has an active YouTube channel where she shares her experience as a young woman who has left Islam, the challenges she faces and the inconsistencies in Islam in order to reach others who are doubting or closeted and assure them that they are not alone.

HALIMA SALAT is an ex-Muslim Kenyan Somali. She defines herself as a free thinker, a rebel and an atheist. She was born Muslim but no longer believes in Islam. She was a closet non-believer for a while until when she came to live in the Netherlands 3 years ago. Halima just recently had her “coming out” declaration in Amsterdam. She has many problems with Islam but the core problem is that she truly believes Islam is against a woman’s individual right to steer her own path. Halima is also a spoken word artist and reads her poetry in the few English spoken word scenes in Amsterdam.

JIMMY BANGASH is a Gay Ex-Muslim Human Rights Activist living in the UK. He grew up in a traditional Pashtun family in London where he struggled with both the homophobia and ardent misogyny within his community. He is a contributing author to the book ‘Leaving Faith Behind’ a collection of stories of individuals who have left Islam and he has published poetry and prose on Sedaa; a website that gives voice to people of Muslim heritage. His activist work involves; Spokesperson for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain; Committee Member of Faith to Faithless and he is the resident Life Coach at Free Heart Free Minds where he provides one to one coaching and mental health support to Ex-Muslim in Muslim Majority Countries. As an activist, he seeks to unbridle the reins of patriarchy from gays and women of Muslim heritage. As a coach, he works to empower individuals to live lives of authenticity, wellness and self-expression.

KHAKAN QURESHI is the founder of Birmingham South Asians LGBT – Finding A Voice – Birmingham’s first independent non funded social/support group for South Asians who identify as LGBTQI+ regardless of faith and culture. He sits on the multi-faith advisory panel for the National “Impact on Faith and Sexuality” survey created by The Ozanne Foundation, is Administrator for Gay Muslims United, an international online support group on FB, is Co-administrator for British Asians LGBTI, another online support page which attempts to support those within the UK. He is also Stonewall LGBT School Role Model, Diversity Role Model and Independent Speaker, listed on The Independent Rainbow List 2015, Shortlisted for the European Diversity Award 2016, National Diversity Award 2018 and British LGBT Award 2019. He was nominated for the NDA 2019, organised the first South Asians LGBT Conference 2018 in Birmingham and co-ordinated the LGBTIQ+ Intersectionality and Islam Conference 2019. He has written articles about his personal experiences, homophobia within South Asian communities and Islamophobia within the wider community for Attitude, Gay Times, The Gay UK, Gay Star News and other digital magazines.

LILITH is a trans woman with migration background. She is working for the rights of LGBTI refugees and asylum seekers in Germany since 2015. Since November 2017 she is working for the German-wide LSVD e.V Project “Queers Refugees Deutschland”. The aim of the project is to network the structures existing throughout Germany as well as refugee LGBTI activists and to support them in their work. Other than that she is a board member of “Schwules Netzwerk NRW e.V.” and provide her expertise on the matters of trans* persons in the state of NRW. She is involved in the “Queer European Asylum Network” where she provides information on the Queer Refugees and their needs in Germany so that the project can help further for policy briefing for federal government in Germany. She has a degree in Environmental Sciences with a focus on migration due to environmental changes in Island States. She is also an active supporter for the rights of atheists and Ex-Muslims.

LUDOVIC-MOHAMED ZAHED is a French-Algerian openly gay imam, founder of the first European inclusive mosque and CALEM confederation, Founder member of the interfaith network GIN-SSOGIE, Founder member of the Inimuslim international network, and Member of INERELA – theologians living with HIV/aids. He is Associate editor of the Arab research and development (Batna & Amaan universities), one of the 3 French gays of the year (2012), Queer Muslim Award winner of the year (2014), Pierre Guénin prize (for CALEM, 2012), and awarded for Moral Courage (2013). He is currently rector of the CALEM Institute and has Doctorates in Anthropology and in Psychology of religious facts.

MARYAM NAMAZIE is an Iranian-born writer and activist. She is the Spokesperson of One Law for All and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and hosts a weekly TV programme broadcast in called Bread and Roses. She is on the International Advisory Board of the Raif Badawi Foundation for Freedom and Euromind. Maryam and CEMB were featured in a 2016 film “Islam’s Non-Believers” by Deeyah Khan. She was also a character in DV8 Physical Theatre’s “Can We Talk About This?”. She was joint winner of the 2019 Emma Humphreys Memorial Prize; awarded the 2017 Henry H. Zumach Freedom From Religious Fundamentalism award; 2016 International Secularism (Laicite) Prize from the Comité Laïcité République; Atheist of the Year by Kazimierz Lyszczynski (2014); Journalist of the Year at the Dods Women in Public Life Awards (2013); awarded the National Secular Society’s Secularist of the Year Award (2005), amongst others. The Islamic regime of Iran’s media outlets has called Namazie “immoral and corrupt.”

NADIA EL FANI a Tunisian film-maker who risked arrest and up to five years in prison in Tunisia after Islamists filed a complaint against her for her film “Neither Allah nor Master”. The film is an account of Tunisian life immediately before and after the fall of Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. She was unable to return to Tunisia for 7 years because of the complaint. She lost her production company and is now living between France and Italy. Others films include, “Bedwin Hacker”, “Lenin’s Children”,”It doesn’t even hurt” and “Our breasts, our weapons!”

NEMAT SADAT is the author of the debut novel The Carpet Weaver, which was published by Penguin Random House India in June 2019. Sadat’s debut opened to wide critical acclaim in the Indian national press and was India’s most written about debut fiction last year. Sadat was also profiled in many publications such as Grazia India, The Sunday Guardian, and VOGUE India. Sadat is the first native from Afghanistan to have publicly come out as gay and ex-Muslim and to campaign for LGBTQIA rights in Afghanistan and Muslim communities worldwide. He was interviewed by CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and many other journalists after the Orlando massacre–the largest single attack on LGBT people in recorded history. While teaching at the American University of Afghanistan, Sadat secretly mobilized a gay movement off campus but was then persecuted by the Afghan authorities and deemed a national security threat for allegedly subverting Islam. Sadat has previously worked as a journalist at the UN Chronicle, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS, and ABC News Nightline, and has earned six university degrees, including graduate degrees from Harvard, Columbia, and Oxford. He is working on his second novel, Keeping Up With The Hepburns, while pursuing a master’s degree in writing at Johns Hopkins University.

SAIMA RAZZAQ is a community activist from Birmingham and the first Queer Muslim woman to lead a pride event in the U.K. She is chair of SEEDS (Supporting the Education of Equality and Diversity in Schools), a campaigning group that was formed in light of anti-LGBTQI protests outside schools in Birmingham, in 2019. Saima also runs Birmingham’s only floating hotel; Boatel Birmingham with which she hopes to diversify the inhabitants of the city’s waterways.

SOHAIL AHMED is a counter-extremism and LGBT rights activist. He has appeared on various UK and US TV channels / networks, including the BBC, ITV, CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News. He has also written for various outlets including the International Business Times and Gay Star News. Sohail is a former Islamist radical, and now describes himself as an ex-Muslim / Cultural Muslim. He is currently studying undergraduate Mathematics and Statistics and his interests include politics, science, and psychology.

Join Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain (CEMB) in a livestreamed online discussion – on Persecution, Shunning and Survival: Being Ex-Muslim/Muslim and LGBT for Pride Month, 5:00-8:00pm London time

Livestreamed on Facebook and Youtube here: https://youtu.be/fBNkn4iUap4

With Jimmy Bangash, Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain Spokesperson; Khakan Qureshi, Gay Muslim activist and Stonewall LGBT+ school role model and Diversity Role Mode; Lilith, Trans Woman with migration background; Ludovic-Mohamed Zahed, French-Algerian openly gay Imam and founder of the first European inclusive mosque in Paris; Nadia El Fani, Tunisian Filmmaker; Nemat Sadat, Author of the Carpet Weaver and first public gay ex-Muslim from Afghanistan; Saima Razzaq, Birmingham Community Activist and first Muslim woman to lead UK Pride event; and Sohail Ahmed, Counter-extremism and LGBT Activist. Poetry by Halima Salat. Event will be chaired by CEMB spokesperson Maryam Namazie and Youtuber Fay Rahman.

BIOGRAPHIES

FAY RAHMAN is a British-Bangladeshi ex-Muslim atheist Youtuber. Fay grew up in the UK, in a non-practicing Muslim family. Through Islamic schooling she joined the Tableeghi Jamaat and then later adopted the even more conservative Salafi practice of Islam with the encouragement of her father and later her extended family. Fay left Islam in secret in February 2017 and openly in October 2018 – avoiding an arranged marriage, surviving an attempt on her life and causing her family to disown her. Fay collaborates with Faith2Faithless, the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and Faithless Hijabi for activism in free-speech, women’s rights and religious freedom. She has an active YouTube channel where she shares her experience as a young woman who has left Islam, the challenges she faces and the inconsistencies in Islam in order to reach others who are doubting or closeted and assure them that they are not alone.

HALIMA SALAT is an ex-Muslim Kenyan Somali. She defines herself as a free thinker, a rebel and an atheist. She was born Muslim but no longer believes in Islam. She was a closet non-believer for a while until when she came to live in the Netherlands 3 years ago. Halima just recently had her “coming out” declaration in Amsterdam. She has many problems with Islam but the core problem is that she truly believes Islam is against a woman’s individual right to steer her own path. Halima is also a spoken word artist and reads her poetry in the few English spoken word scenes in Amsterdam.

JIMMY BANGASH is a Gay Ex-Muslim Human Rights Activist living in the UK. He grew up in a traditional Pashtun family in London where he struggled with both the homophobia and ardent misogyny within his community. He is a contributing author to the book ‘Leaving Faith Behind’ a collection of stories of individuals who have left Islam and he has published poetry and prose on Sedaa; a website that gives voice to people of Muslim heritage. His activist work involves; Spokesperson for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain; Committee Member of Faith to Faithless and he is the resident Life Coach at Free Heart Free Minds where he provides one to one coaching and mental health support to Ex-Muslim in Muslim Majority Countries. As an activist, he seeks to unbridle the reins of patriarchy from gays and women of Muslim heritage. As a coach, he works to empower individuals to live lives of authenticity, wellness and self-expression.

KHAKAN QURESHI is the founder of Birmingham South Asians LGBT – Finding A Voice – Birmingham’s first independent non funded social/support group for South Asians who identify as LGBTQI+ regardless of faith and culture. He sits on the multi-faith advisory panel for the National “Impact on Faith and Sexuality” survey created by The Ozanne Foundation, is Administrator for Gay Muslims United, an international online support group on FB, is Co-administrator for British Asians LGBTI, another online support page which attempts to support those within the UK. He is also Stonewall LGBT School Role Model, Diversity Role Model and Independent Speaker, listed on The Independent Rainbow List 2015, Shortlisted for the European Diversity Award 2016, National Diversity Award 2018 and British LGBT Award 2019. He was nominated for the NDA 2019, organised the first South Asians LGBT Conference 2018 in Birmingham and co-ordinated the LGBTIQ+ Intersectionality and Islam Conference 2019. He has written articles about his personal experiences, homophobia within South Asian communities and Islamophobia within the wider community for Attitude, Gay Times, The Gay UK, Gay Star News and other digital magazines.

LILITH is a trans woman with migration background. She is working for the rights of LGBTI refugees and asylum seekers in Germany since 2015. Since November 2017 she is working for the German-wide LSVD e.V Project “Queers Refugees Deutschland”. The aim of the project is to network the structures existing throughout Germany as well as refugee LGBTI activists and to support them in their work. Other than that she is a board member of “Schwules Netzwerk NRW e.V.” and provide her expertise on the matters of trans* persons in the state of NRW. She is involved in the “Queer European Asylum Network” where she provides information on the Queer Refugees and their needs in Germany so that the project can help further for policy briefing for federal government in Germany. She has a degree in Environmental Sciences with a focus on migration due to environmental changes in Island States. She is also an active supporter for the rights of atheists and Ex-Muslims.

LUDOVIC-MOHAMED ZAHED is a French-Algerian openly gay imam, founder of the first European inclusive mosque and CALEM confederation, Founder member of the interfaith network GIN-SSOGIE, Founder member of the Inimuslim international network, and Member of INERELA – theologians living with HIV/aids. He is Associate editor of the Arab research and development (Batna & Amaan universities), one of the 3 French gays of the year (2012), Queer Muslim Award winner of the year (2014), Pierre Guénin prize (for CALEM, 2012), and awarded for Moral Courage (2013). He is currently rector of the CALEM Institute and has Doctorates in Anthropology and in Psychology of religious facts.

MARYAM NAMAZIE is an Iranian-born writer and activist. She is the Spokesperson of One Law for All and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and hosts a weekly TV programme broadcast in called Bread and Roses. She is on the International Advisory Board of the Raif Badawi Foundation for Freedom and Euromind. Maryam and CEMB were featured in a 2016 film “Islam’s Non-Believers” by Deeyah Khan. She was also a character in DV8 Physical Theatre’s “Can We Talk About This?”. She was joint winner of the 2019 Emma Humphreys Memorial Prize; awarded the 2017 Henry H. Zumach Freedom From Religious Fundamentalism award; 2016 International Secularism (Laicite) Prize from the Comité Laïcité République; Atheist of the Year by Kazimierz Lyszczynski (2014); Journalist of the Year at the Dods Women in Public Life Awards (2013); awarded the National Secular Society’s Secularist of the Year Award (2005), amongst others. The Islamic regime of Iran’s media outlets has called Namazie “immoral and corrupt.”

NADIA EL FANI a Tunisian film-maker who risked arrest and up to five years in prison in Tunisia after Islamists filed a complaint against her for her film “Neither Allah nor Master”. The film is an account of Tunisian life immediately before and after the fall of Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. She was unable to return to Tunisia for 7 years because of the complaint. She lost her production company and is now living between France and Italy. Others films include, “Bedwin Hacker”, “Lenin’s Children”,”It doesn’t even hurt” and “Our breasts, our weapons!”

NEMAT SADAT is the author of the debut novel The Carpet Weaver, which was published by Penguin Random House India in June 2019. Sadat’s debut opened to wide critical acclaim in the Indian national press and was India’s most written about debut fiction last year. Sadat was also profiled in many publications such as Grazia India, The Sunday Guardian, and VOGUE India. Sadat is the first native from Afghanistan to have publicly come out as gay and ex-Muslim and to campaign for LGBTQIA rights in Afghanistan and Muslim communities worldwide. He was interviewed by CNN’s Christiane Amanpour and many other journalists after the Orlando massacre–the largest single attack on LGBT people in recorded history. While teaching at the American University of Afghanistan, Sadat secretly mobilized a gay movement off campus but was then persecuted by the Afghan authorities and deemed a national security threat for allegedly subverting Islam. Sadat has previously worked as a journalist at the UN Chronicle, CNN’s Fareed Zakaria GPS, and ABC News Nightline, and has earned six university degrees, including graduate degrees from Harvard, Columbia, and Oxford. He is working on his second novel, Keeping Up With The Hepburns, while pursuing a master’s degree in writing at Johns Hopkins University.

SAIMA RAZZAQ is a community activist from Birmingham and the first Queer Muslim woman to lead a pride event in the U.K. She is chair of SEEDS (Supporting the Education of Equality and Diversity in Schools), a campaigning group that was formed in light of anti-LGBTQI protests outside schools in Birmingham, in 2019. Saima also runs Birmingham’s only floating hotel; Boatel Birmingham with which she hopes to diversify the inhabitants of the city’s waterways.

SOHAIL AHMED is a counter-extremism and LGBT rights activist. He has appeared on various UK and US TV channels / networks, including the BBC, ITV, CNN, MSNBC, and Fox News. He has also written for various outlets including the International Business Times and Gay Star News. Sohail is a former Islamist radical, and now describes himself as an ex-Muslim / Cultural Muslim. He is currently studying undergraduate Mathematics and Statistics and his interests include politics, science, and psychology.

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, our meet-ups will be online until further notice.

All meet-ups will be livestreamed via Facebook or Youtube. Relevant link will be posted here the day before event.

Talks will be followed by Q&A.

21 July 2020,  7-8:00pm

Join us for our monthly meet-up to explore identity politics, racism and liberation with Gita Sahgal and Maryam Namazie. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik.

Gita Sahgal is a writer, journalist, film-maker and rights activist. She is currently Founder and Director of Centre for Secular Space. She was formerly Head of the Gender Unit at Amnesty International; she was suspended in 2010 after she was quoted criticising Amnesty for its high-profile associations with the Islamist Moazzam Begg, the director of a group called Cageprisoners. For many years she served on the board of Southall Black Sisters and was a founder of Women Against Fundamentalism and Awaaz: South Asia Watch. With Nira Yival Davis, she edited “Refusing Holy Orders: Women and Fundamentalism in Britain” (London, 1992). Among her articles are “Legislating Utopia? Violence Against Women, Identities and Interventions” in “The Situated Politics of Belonging”. During the 1980s, she worked for a Black current affairs programme called “Bandung File” on Channel 4 TV. She made two films about the Rushdie affair, “Hullaballoo Over Satanic Verses” and “Struggle or Submission”. She has also made two programmes for Dispatches Channel 4, “The Provoked Wife” on the case of Kiranjit Ahluwalia and “The War Crimes File”, an investigation into allegations of war crimes, committed by members of the Jamaat i Islami in Bangladesh in 1971.

Maryam Namazie is Co-Spokesperson for One Law for All, the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and Fitnah. She hosts a weekly television programme called Bread and Roses. She is on the International Advisory Board of the Raif Badawi Foundation for Freedom; National Secular Society Honorary Associate; a Patron of London Black Atheists and Pink Triangle Trust; International Advisory Board Member of Feminist Dissent and a columnist for The Freethinker. The Islamic regime of Iran’s media outlets has called Namazie immoral and corrupt and did an ‘exposé’ on her entitled “Meet this anti-religion woman.” Maryam was a character in DV8 Physical Theatre’s Can We Talk About This?, which deals with freedom of speech, censorship and Islam. She was awarded the 2017 Henry H. Zumach Freedom From Religious Fundamentalism award; 2016 International Secularism (Laicite) Prize from the Comité Laïcité République and was honoured by the National Secular Society for her campaigning work defending free speech at universities (2016) despite attempts at barring her by Student Unions or Islamic Society efforts to intimidate her and cancel her talks. She was also awarded Atheist of the Year by Kazimierz Lyszczynski (2014); Journalist of the Year at the Dods Women in Public Life Awards (2013); selected one of the top 45 women of the year by Elle magazine Quebec (2007); one of 2006′s most intriguing people by DNA, awarded the National Secular Society’s Secularist of the Year Award (2005), amongst others.

August 18, 2020

This month’s online Meet-up is with Cemal Knudsen Yucel, founder of Ex-Muslims of Norway on Islam, Childhood, Superstitions and their impact on growth. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik. Talk will be followed by Q&A.

Due to the Coronavirus pandemic, our meet-ups will be online until further notice.

You can click on this link to view it live.

Cemal Knudsen Yucel was active in the youth branch of an Islamist movement. He is now an ex-Muslim atheist activist and founder and chair of Ex-Muslims of Norway. He writes articles, participates in debates related to apostasy, blasphemy, women’s status in Islam, Islamic reform, and political and social issues.

15 September, 7-8:00pm, Online

WATCH HERE.

Join us for our monthly meet-up with Writer and Activist Rahila Gupta on Political Blackness. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik.

Rahila Gupta is a freelance journalist and writer. Her work has appeared in The Guardian and New Humanist among other papers and magazines. Her books include, “Enslaved: The New British Slavery”; “From Homebreakers to Jailbreakers: Southall Black Sisters”; “Provoked”; and “Don’t Wake Me: The Ballad of Nihal Armstrong” (Playdead Press, 2013). She is co-authoring a book with Beatrix Campbell with the title “Why Doesn’t Patriarchy Die?” She is also patron of Peace in Kurdistan, on the management committee of Southall Black Sisters, chair of the Nihal Armstrong Trust which she set up in 2004 in memory of her dearly loved, disabled son who died in 2001, a judge on the Emma Humphreys Memorial Prize awarded to individual women and groups who have campaigned, raised awareness of and supported women escaping violence, amongst others.

If it is your first time attending the monthly meet-up, please email hello@ex-muslim.org.uk to register.

Talk will be followed by Q&A.

20 October, 7-8:00pm, Online

Join it Live Or Watch it Here.

Join us for our monthly meet-up on Apostasy and Asylum with Ana Gonzalez. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik.

Ana Gonzalez is a solicitor and partner at Wilson Solicitors. She practises in immigration and asylum work, and has interests in human rights and European Law. Ana is an internationally recognised expert in gender and sexuality-based asylum claims as well as having extensive expertise in representing individuals from vulnerable, marginalised client groups such as victims of human trafficking, apostates and transgender individuals. Ana is frequently instructed by Local Authorities all over the Greater London area to act for children and adults in their care.

Ana is praised in Chambers and Partners for her “constant attention to cases, leading client care and real knowledge of the law.” She “continues to stand out for significant work on human trafficking cases, often raising new country guidance points” (2012). “She is a stand-out practitioner in the field of refugee law, with particular expertise in trafficking cases” (2014). She “is very experienced, passionate and has very good judgement” (2016). Ana has been described “the epitome of a fighter who cares very deeply about her clients,” in the 2019 edition.

She practises in all aspects of immigration and asylum work, and has a specialist interest in European law. Ana has extensive experience of litigating in the higher courts, having had numerous cases over the years in the Administrative Court/Upper Tribunal and Court of Appeal. She has also conducted cases in the Supreme Court and the Court of Justice of the European Union in Luxembourg.

If it is your first time attending the monthly meet-up, please email hello@ex-muslim.org.uk to register.

Talks will be followed by Q&A, drinks and snacks. Ana will also do one on one sessions with asylum cases.

17 November, 7-8:00pm

See it Live here.

Join us for our monthly meet-up on The Ex-Muslim Movement with Maryam Namazie. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik.

Talk will be followed by Q&A.

15 December, 7-8:00pm

Online Meetup with Halima Salat on growing up in Islam and raising children without it.

She is an ex-Muslim Kenyan Somali. She defines herself as a free thinker, a rebel and an atheist. She was born Muslim but no longer believes in Islam. She was a closet non-believer for a while until when she came to live in the Netherlands 3 years ago. Halima just recently had her “coming out” declaration in Amsterdam. She has many problems with Islam but the core problem is that she truly believes Islam is against a woman’s individual right to steer her own path. Halima is also a spoken word artist and reads her poetry in the few English spoken word scenes in Amsterdam.

Join us for our monthly meet-up. Meet-ups are run by Ali Malik.

22 January 2019, University of Warwick
Warwick for Free Speech and Human Rights on Free Speech, Religion and Gender Equality

Warwick for Free Speech and Human Rights at the University of Warwick is organising an event to tackle the issue of Free Speech and Gender Equality in Religious as well as Secular countries / politics / governments.

Maryam Namazie will be speaking about Iran and secularism. She will be speaking about her campaigns targeted at fighting Islamist extremists and patriarchal norms in Iran and in the UK.

Steven Kettell, an Associate Professor at the University of Warwick, in the department of Politics and International Studies. He is a specialist in the politics of secularism, non-religion and the role of religion in the public sphere.

LGBT & Secular Rights At Risk: A Bangladesh Perspective
20 January 2019, Conway Hall
12:00-5:00pm

Human Rights are at risk in Bangladesh. Especially, the rights of the LGBT+ community and the secular community are the most vulnerable. We want to speak on behalf of these communities and raise our voice. We want to defend their rights. We want to reach towards the wider communities and gain support through this conference.

Speakers: Maryam Namazie, Gita Sahgal, Sadia Hameed, Lizzie Streeter, Hsien Chew, Henna Khanom, Sadikur Rahman Rana, Jimi Bangash, Mediah Ahmed, Bonya Ahmed, Jamie Jane, Riaz Osmani, Asif Mohiuddin, Simon Ware.

More information can be found on Facebook event page.

Get free tickets here.

A frank and open panel discussion on the menstrual taboo: why it exists, how it manifests itself, and how we can lift it.

The natural, biological process of menstruating is a source of shame, inconvenience and awkwardness for millions of women all over the world. Many hide that they’re on their periods, and are made to feel ashamed of it. Menstruation has been used across many cultures, religions and even in folklore to vilify and taint women.

In some countries the taboos and myths that surround it can be extremely harmful and lead to devastating consequences. Such as in Nepal where in December 2016, a 15-year-old girl died after being banished to a badly ventilated shed during her period. She was victim of an old tradition known as chhaupadi, practised in rural areas in the west of the country, which have forced women into seclusion, often in cattle sheds alongside the animals. From extreme to subtle, many societies shun mentsruatinxg women and shroud periods in euphemism. Even adverts for sanitary protection use blue liquid instead of red to demonstrate absorbency of period products. Why the fear of menstrual blood?

A UK government health report published in 2018 details that women’s concerns about period pains and periods are their third biggest reproductive health worry. They just don’t dare speak about it. It’s time we did!

Our panellists are historian Louise Foxcroft, activist Sadia Hameed and Obstetrician and Gynaecologist Shazia Malik, comedian and campaigner Chella Quint.

The debate will be followed by a drinks reception during which you will also have the opportunity to meet brands who offer a range of alternative period products, such as period pants and mentruation cups. Take the opportunity to speak freely about bleeding! Let’s lift the shame.

 

Get your tickets using the following links:

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/bloody-shame-how-to-lift-the-menstrual-taboo-debate-drinks-tickets-53583908914

or

http://www.equationx.co.uk/

14 February, 6:30pm-10pm, Conway Hall, London

Why we defended Rushdie and why it is still important today: 30 Years After

On this Valentine’s Day, the 30th anniversary of the fatwa against Salman Rushdie, join Feminist Dissent to defend the right to apostasy, to love, to flee persecution and seek asylum/Oppose blasphemy laws, the threat to free speech and the deportation of apostates.

Get tickets here.

Programme:

6:30 pm: Registration and Refreshments

7:00 pm: Film Screening

“Hullabaloo over The Satanic Verses” and “Struggle or Submission? Women in Islam” (films by Gita Sahgal)

8:00 pm: Panel Discussion

Maureen Freely (editorial collective member of Feminist Dissent; author, journalist, translator and academic; Chair of English PEN and advocate for writers at risk, especially in Turkey)

Maryam Namazie (secularist and human rights activist, commentator and broadcaster; co-founder of Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and the One Law for All campaign)

Pragna Patel (editorial collective member of Feminist Dissent; co-founder of Women Against Fundamentalism, Director of Southall Black Sisters)

Gita Sahgal (editorial collective member of Feminist Dissent; writer, film-maker, human rights activist; founder of the Centre for Secular Space which challenges fundamentalism in all religions and co-founder of Women Against Fundamentalism)

Salil Tripathi (writer and journalist; PEN International, Writers in Prison committee; author of The Colonel Who Would Not Repentand Offence: the Hindu Case.)

Background: On May 27, 1989, 40 women of many religions and none stood at Parliament Square to oppose a massive march of orthodox Muslims demanding the banning of Salman Rushdie’s novel The Satanic Verses, as well as a National Front demonstration making racist attacks on Muslims in Britain. The march by orthodox Muslims called for the promulgation of blasphemy law to protect Islam from what they saw as an attack on their religion. They were supporting a fatwa by Ayatollah Khomeni demanding that Rushdie be killed. Under the banner, ‘Our Tradition, Struggle Not Submission’, the women’s stand for Rushdie was part of their defence of their secular traditions and for their own right to read and dissent and to defend secular values and religious freedom. This was a foundational moment for Women Against Fundamentalism, a group committed to opposing the rise of fundamentalism in all religions across the world.

Although WAF no longer exists as a formal organization, many of its members have allied with other organisations to continue to campaign against fundamentalism’s impact on women and sexual minorities, as well as against blasphemy laws, and to support the growing movement of people known and unknown across the world who are fleeing from fundamentalist violence. In Britain, they oppose the UK government’s hostile environment against migrants and refugees, as well as the police’s failure to deal with death threats against atheists.

Conway Hall was the location of a benefit/fundraiser for WAF in August 1989. We are proud to be returning to this historic location to continue WAF’s work against fundamentalism and racism.

23 March 2019, 18:00-23:00 hours to celebrate the first ever International Atheist Day
Holborn, Central London

Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain will celebrate the first ever International Atheist Day with a panel discussion of ex-Muslim women speaking out, namely Somali Poet Halima Salat, Moroccan Activist Ibtissame Betty Lachgar, CEMB Spokespersons Maryam Namazie and Sadia Hameed, Ex-Muslim YouTuber Mimzy Vidz and Faithless Hijabi Founder Zara Kay. Singer/Songwriter Shelley Segal will perform her new songs and there will be an art exhibition by Samint. CEMB’s 2019 awards and Coming Out Ceremonies will follow. Nahla Mahmoud will MC the event.

Tickets for the event at a spectacular venue in central London are only £10 waged and £5 unwaged and includes access to the full event with drinks and appetisers.

SCHEDULE

18:00 Registration with drinks and appetisers and Artwork by Samint
19:00 Opening
19:20 Panel Discussion on Ex-Muslim Women Coming Out
20:30 Comedy
20:40 Poetry
20:50 Coming out Certificates
21:00 CEMB 2019 Awards Ceremony
21:30 Shelley Segal: Premiere of Our Way to Freedom, a new CEMB Anthem for ex-Muslims and atheists
21:45 Drinks and Music
23:00 End of Event

SPEAKER BIOS

Halima Salat is an ex-Muslim Kenyan Somali. She defines herself as a free thinker, a rebel and an atheist. She was born Muslim but no longer believes in Islam. She was a closet non-believer for a while until when she came to live in the Netherlands 3 years ago. Halima just recently had her “coming out” declaration in Amsterdam. She has many problems with Islam but the core problem is that she truly believes Islam is against a woman’s individual right to steer her own path. Halima is also a spoken word artist and reads her poetry in the few English spoken word scenes in Amsterdam.

Ibtissame Betty Lachgar is a clinical psychologist specialised in criminology and victimology, particularly violence against women and sexual violence. She is co-founder and Leader of MALI (Alternative Movement for Individual Liberties), which is universalist, feminist and secularist. The civil disobedience movement fights for individual liberties, against discrimination and breaks taboos. Their first action in 2009 was a picnic during the day in Ramadan to protest against the law which condemns those “known as Muslim” who do not fast to 6 months in prison. In 2012, she invited the NGO Women on Waves from the Netherlands (Abortion Boat) to fight for the right to abortion and for the decriminalisation of abortion. She also organised a Kiss-in in 2013 and coloured Rabat’s fountains in red in 2017 in the fight against violence against women. She initiated the first LGBT movement in Morocco in 2012, the IDAHOT. Her work is censored by the majority of organisations in Morocco, even progressive and feminist ones. Ibtissame has been the victim of sexual assault by the police whilst in custody for her protests in Sept 2016. There is a trial in progress against her and she has faced numerous threats as a result of her work.

Maryam Namazie is Co-Spokesperson for One Law for All, the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and Fitnah. She hosts a weekly television programme called Bread and Roses. She is on the International Advisory Board of the Raif Badawi Foundation for Freedom; National Secular Society Honorary Associate; a Patron of London Black Atheists and Pink Triangle Trust; International Advisory Board Member of Feminist Dissent and a columnist for The Freethinker. The Islamic regime of Iran’s media outlets has called Namazie immoral and corrupt and did an ‘exposé’ on her entitled “Meet this anti-religion woman.” Maryam was a character in DV8 Physical Theatre’s Can We Talk About This?, which deals with freedom of speech, censorship and Islam. She was awarded the 2017 Henry H. Zumach Freedom From Religious Fundamentalism award; 2016 International Secularism (Laicite) Prize from the Comité Laïcité République and was honoured by the National Secular Society for her campaigning work defending free speech at universities (2016) despite attempts at barring her by Student Unions or Islamic Society efforts to intimidate her and cancel her talks. She was also awarded Atheist of the Year by Kazimierz Lyszczynski (2014); Journalist of the Year at the Dods Women in Public Life Awards (2013); selected one of the top 45 women of the year by Elle magazine Quebec (2007); one of 2006′s most intriguing people by DNA, awarded the National Secular Society’s Secularist of the Year Award (2005), amongst others.

Mimzy Vidz (Marwa) is an ex-Muslim Youtuber who discusses issues that Muslims and non Muslims face. She is part of the movement to normalise ex Muslims and put an end to blamsphemy and apostate scrutiny in Muslim communities and raise awareness of these problems. Marwa went to a Muslim school most of her life in London. She was a very religious Muslim and involved in various Muslim organisations and communities before becoming an Atheist 2 years ago.

Nahla Mahmoud is an environment and human rights activist originally from Sudan. She works with a number of campaigns in the UK, including One Law for All and Secular Middle East and North Africa. She leads the Sudanese Humanists Group and is former Spokesperson for the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain.

Sadia Hameed is a Spokesperson of the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain and has been featured in a 2016 film, “Islam’s Non Believers”, by award-winning filmmaker Deeyah Khan. She is also a human rights activist and Honour Based Violence, Forced Marriage and FGM Consultant, based in Gloucestershire, working in the sexual violence field, with a focus on Black Minority Ethnic women. Sadia organised a hugely successful event titled ‘Let’s Talk Honour’ in October 2016, which was held at Gloucester University. She also launched Critical Sisters. She is Winner of IKWRO Special Recognition: Activist of the Year 2017.

Samint is a painter and a universalist secularist feminist who uses her art as a weapon against patriarchy. Her goal is to highlight and expose the violence due to male domination, and to condemn the numerous religious precepts imposed on girls and women. Her recent collection, entitled ‘the basics of patriarchy’, denounces the oppression of the islamic veil through works entitled “my hair is mine” and “modest men,” the extremism of islamist group Boko Haram through hashtag #BringBackOurGirls, and against female circumcision and the commodification of women’s bodies.

Shelley Segal is a singer-songwriter involved in secular activism. Her first record, “An Atheist Album” is a passionate response to dogmatic belief, inequality, religious oppression and the idea that only the devout can be grateful and good. The record gives a voice to the often underrepresented views of non-religious people, the fastest growing minority in many countries. It also creates opportunities to discuss issues of secularism with the mainstream media. Her voice has taken her around the world including England, Australia and ten tours of the United States. She has released seven recording projects of her own and runs independent record label True Music where she works with other artists. An award winning songwriter, powerful performer and explicit story-teller, Shelley uses her music not only to express the way she sees the world but to create the world she wants to see.

Zara Kay is a Tanzanian ex-Muslim Atheist Activist, based in Australia. Zara spent most of her childhood in Tanzania and was brought up as a Shia Muslim in the Khoja Shia Ithnasheri Jamaat society. Zara is the founder of Faithless Hijabi, a platform to enable ExMuslim women to share their stories, about their journey from religion to reason. Over time FH expanded to being an advocate for women’s rights, from organising funding to collaborating with teams internationally to ensure women who had left Islam are getting the support they need.

More information on Seular Conference 2019 website or email maryamnamazie@gmail.com.