The conclusion that I have come to is that actually, no religion, whether it’s Islam, Christianity or any idea based on scripture or texts, is a religion of ‘anything,’ really. – Maajid Nawaz
Academic institutions in Britain have been infiltrated for years by dangerous theocratic fantasists. I should know: I was one of them. – Maajid Nawaz
The positive is I’m delighted at the way the Liberal Democrats as a party have supported me and the way in which the work I’m doing, through the Liberal Democrats, has abled to broaden some of the work I work on. – Maajid Nawaz
I became, suddenly, not just a Muslim in faith. I became a Muslim in politics. Somebody whose politics were pre-defined by one interpretation of Islam. – Maajid Nawaz
I really didn’t grow up religious, and I didn’t grow up acknowledging my Muslim identity. For me, I was a British Pakistani. – Maajid Nawaz
There were people who had sampled my voice from speeches when I was an Islamist and made them the chorus of pro-Islamist rap songs who then began talking about me as an apostate. – Maajid Nawaz
I realised that the idea of enforcing sharia is not consistent with Islam as it’s been practised from the beginning. In other words, Islam has always been secular, and I had been totally ignorant of the fact. – Maajid Nawaz
Not all Muslims wish to express themselves in public through a communal religious identity. Identities are multiple, and some may wish to speak instead just as citizens in their professional capacity, through their political party, or their neighborhood body. – Maajid Nawaz
Imams must ridicule Caliphate fantasies. Exchange programmes between Muslim-only schools and non-Muslim-majority schools should be initiated. Community-based debates around these themes must no longer be shut down from fear of offence. – Maajid Nawaz
To be forced to defend oneself is an inherently undesirable position to be in. The focus shifts from ideas to the person conveying them. – Maajid Nawaz
In the United Kingdom, we need to promote an inclusive British identity that involves and empowers people from all ethnic and faith backgrounds. – Maajid Nawaz
Islamism is not Islam. Islamism is the politicisation of Islam, the desire to impose a version of this ancient faith over society. – Maajid Nawaz
Traditionally, open-minded secular liberal rationalists have not made a case for tolerance. – Maajid Nawaz
The first point of contact for radicalisation is almost always a personal one. Prisons and universities, for example, tend to be easily and regularly infiltrated by radical groups, who use them as forums to propagate their ideas. – Maajid Nawaz
I had a mind inquiring enough to question world events, as well as the passion fostered by my background to care, but I lacked the emotional maturity to process these things. That made me ripe for Islamist recruitment. Into this ferment came my recruiter, himself straight out of a London medical college. – Maajid Nawaz
Satire has been a sanctuary historically monopolized by progressives, originally used as a discreet tool against Western religious fundamentalism. – Maajid Nawaz
Having our fundamental assumptions about life challenged is never a comfortable thing. – Maajid Nawaz
After much soul searching I was able to renounce my past Islamist ideology, challenging everything I was once prepared to die for. – Maajid Nawaz
Chance explorations on search engines do not ‘accidentally’ lead users to extremist websites. – Maajid Nawaz
The only certainty we have is that those who are certain of a way to arrive at worldly salvation, are committed enough to organize around this, and seek power to enforce it, will invariably descend into a bloody totalitarian fascism. – Maajid Nawaz
If liberalism is to mean anything at all, it is duty bound to support without hesitation the dissenting individual over the group, the heretic over the orthodox, innovation over stagnation, and free speech over offense. – Maajid Nawaz
The only way we can challenge Islamism is to engage with one another. We need to make it as abhorrent as racism has become today. Only then will we stem the tide of angry young Muslims who turn to hate. – Maajid Nawaz
The rise of ISIS in Iraq is a wider threat to the stability of the Middle East and the West than many realise. – Maajid Nawaz
America did not invade Iraq because Iraqis are Muslims. Oil, money, economic interests. Who knows? But it was not because Iraqis are Muslims. – Maajid Nawaz
The British state already invests in early intervention campaigns in drug abuse and sexual health. Challenging extremism should be no less of a priority. – Maajid Nawaz