Displaying Author: Bridge Initiative Team

Article

30 Jul 2019

Religious freedom for whom? Islamophobia at the Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom

Earlier this month, the State Department hosted its second Ministerial to Advance Religious Freedom. Under the leadership of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Ambassador-at-Large for International Religious Freedom Sam Brownback, the Ministerial made sweeping calls for the protection of religious freedoms worldwide. Behind these lofty ideals, however, lurked a troubling reality: the conveners of the Ministerial have a long history of denigrating Islam and infringing on the civil rights of Muslims.  read the complete article

Video

22 Jul 2019 | Educational

RSIS Distinguished Public Lecture by Dr John L. Esposito

The resurgence of religion, in particular that form of religious revivalism popularly referred to as “religious fundamentalism,” has had deep roots and a profound impact on global politics and society since the late twentieth century. The resurgence has occurred in all the world’s major religions and across the world, from Africa, North America and Latin America to the Middle East and Asia. The conventional wisdom in modernisation and development studies had been that modernisation required the secularisation of politics and society. As one prominent expert put it, the choice in the Muslim world was between Mecca or mechanisation! The reassertion of religion in politics and society signaled a process of de-secularisation which has seen religion as a major factor and challenge in domestic and international politics and society in many parts of the world. This lecture will look at the role and future of religion in global politics and in combating violent extremism and terrorism in the 21st century. Distinguished Public Lecture by Bridge Founder and Director Dr. John L. Esposito. Courtesy: RSIS read the complete article

Video

22 Jul 2019 | Educational

Who is Kevin Johnston?

As polls indicate rising anti- Muslim animus in Canada, we take a look at the actors who are furthering Islamophobia in the country. Kevin Johnston is an anti-Muslim blogger and activist in Canada who ran for mayor of Mississauga with a pending hate crime charge against a Muslim community in Ontario, Canada. Johnston has owned, operated, and maintained websites, online media publications, and multiple social media accounts, which he has utilized to promote and reinforce his anti-Muslim activities and networks. read the complete article

Report

02 Jul 2019 | Policy/Law

The Muslim Bans

On January 27, 2017, one week after his inauguration as President of the United States, President Trump issued Executive Order 13796, titled “Protecting the Nation from Foreign Terrorist Entry into the United States.” The executive order banned nationals from seven Muslim majority countries from immigrating or traveling to the United States, citing national security as a primary justification. read the complete article

Podcast

20 May 2019 | Educational

Sayeeda Warsi/ On Islamophobia & being Muslim in Britain

The Conservative Party in the United Kingdom has been accused of having an Islamophobia problem, as evidence of anti-Muslim comments made by MPs and incidents of anti-Muslim rhetoric continue to pile up. The party has failed to take any considerable action in tackling this issue, as it has ignored calls to carry out a formal inquiry. Additionally, it has not adopted a formal definition of Islamophobia. Mobashra Tazamal talks about all that and more with Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, former Co-Chair of the Conservative Party. read the complete article

Podcast

13 May 2019 | Educational

CAIR’s new report on Islamophobia: An interview with Zainab Arain

In May 2019, the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) released its latest report—Hijacked by Hate: American Philanthropy and the Islamophobia Network. Bridge Initiative Senior Research Fellow Kristin Garrity Şekerci spoke with Zainab Arain, the National Research and Advocacy Manager at CAIR National, about the report and its findings. Namely, are mainstream charitable and philanthropic organizations like Fidelity, Schwab, and Vanguard inadvertently funding anti-Muslim groups in the U.S? read the complete article