Today marks exactly twenty-five years since 9/11. It remains, quite rightly, a day of mourning for the nearly 3,000 people killed in those attacks, and for the families and communities whose lives were altered forever. Any serious reflection on the last quarter of a century must begin there: with grief, with loss, and with the…… Continue reading The Long Shadow of 9/11: Memory, Injustice and the Politics of Security
Tag: Muslims
Who Gets to Be British? The Far Right’s Dangerous Conflation
Imagine standing in a crowded town square, watching a mob chant about “taking our country back”, while a young man of South Asian descent clutches his dark blue passport — a document that legally declares “British Citizen” but is treated by the rioters as a worthless piece of paper. I am keen to explore the…… Continue reading Who Gets to Be British? The Far Right’s Dangerous Conflation
British Muslims at a Crossroads: Class, Belonging and the Politics of Representation
There seems to be quite a distinction in current commentary concerning the view that British Muslims are at a particular juncture in their history. One view suggests that they are at a precipice, about to fall into an oblivion from which there may be no way back. There is also the concern, however, that Muslims…… Continue reading British Muslims at a Crossroads: Class, Belonging and the Politics of Representation
The Pen and the Poison
Satire, Cynicism, and the Lasting Legacy of Rod Liddle’s Islamophobia Rod Liddle has died at 66. The tributes call him brilliant, provocative, inimitable. They are silent on the twenty years he spent making British Muslims the punchline — and on the industry that decided this was a style, not a record. Rod Liddle died on…… Continue reading The Pen and the Poison
Mosque Security in Britain Must Be About Trust, Not Just Protection
At a time when mosques in Britain are reportedly attacked, vandalised, or physically damaged every few days, the question of mosque safety is no longer peripheral. It sits at the centre of British Muslim life, shaping how people worship, travel, organise, and imagine their place in society. This essay reflects on the National Emergency Conference…… Continue reading Mosque Security in Britain Must Be About Trust, Not Just Protection
The Weaponisation of Racial Inequality: How the Far Right Sells Working-Class Communities a Lie
There is a dangerous fiction taking hold in British politics, and it is being sold hardest to those who have the least. Across the airwaves, in manifestos, and through social media channels, the far right and populist radical right are pushing a single, seductive message: that diversity, inclusion and equity initiatives are themselves a source…… Continue reading The Weaponisation of Racial Inequality: How the Far Right Sells Working-Class Communities a Lie
The Architecture of Silence: Power, History, and the Unspeakable
On why the Israel-Palestine debate is not really about Israel-Palestine There is a room. In it sit Jews and Muslims who want to do the right thing. The desire matters; it may be everything. But the room is not sealed. Outside it, machinery operates that determines which voices survive the door, and the machinery is…… Continue reading The Architecture of Silence: Power, History, and the Unspeakable
The Three Lives of Faragism: How British Populism Reinvented Itself – and Built Its Own Trap
When the UK voted to leave the European Union in 2016, many commentators assumed Nigel Farage’s political story had reached its final chapter. After all, what use is an anti-EU insurgency once the country has actually left the EU? The assumption was simple: Faragism was a single-issue fever, and the fever would break as soon…… Continue reading The Three Lives of Faragism: How British Populism Reinvented Itself – and Built Its Own Trap
The Messy Truth of Golders Green: Antisemitism, Mental Health, and the Politics of the Easy Narrative
It is important to reflect on the recent incident in Golders Green, which has left the Jewish community in a state of shock and despair at what has been recognised as an acute act of antisemitism. When random Jewish community members are targeted on the streets of Golders Green for no other reason than that…… Continue reading The Messy Truth of Golders Green: Antisemitism, Mental Health, and the Politics of the Easy Narrative
Square Zero: Anxiety, Geopolitics, and the Weight of Constant Crisis
I am in one of those really weird moments when one suddenly thinks it’s all going to go really bad, but actually, how much worse can it get? A bit of good political news I’ve heard today is that Hungary is about to elect a centre-right prime minister, shifting the current landscape dominated by Viktor…… Continue reading Square Zero: Anxiety, Geopolitics, and the Weight of Constant Crisis