Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Is the rise of terrorism and violence justifiably traced to the teachings of Islam, or is this call to war a twisted interpretation of the true Muslim faith? Most of the world’s 1.5 billion Muslims are moderates who see Islamic terrorism as a violation of their sacred texts. Is it wrong to let a radical minority represent authentic Islam? Has fear blinded us to its lessons of tolerance and peace?
For
Zeba Kahn
Writer and advocate for Muslim-American civic engagement
For
Maajid Nawaz
Director of the Quilliam Foundation
Against
Douglas Murray
Founder and Director of the Centre for Social Cohesion
Against
Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Founder, A.H.A. Foundation
Moderator
John Donvan
Author and correspondent for ABC News.
Listen to the edited radio broadcast
NPR - Islam Is A Religion Of Peace | |
Listen to the unedited radio broadcast
NPR - Islam Is A Religion Of Peace | |
Subscribe to the PodcastFor The Motion
Zeba Kahn
Writer and advocate for Muslim-American civic engagement
is a writer and advocate for Muslim-American civic engagement. Born and raised in Ohio by devout Muslim parents, she attended Hebrew school for 9 years all while actively participating in her local Muslim community. In 2008, she launched Muslim-Americans for Obama, an online network to mobilize Muslim-American voters in support of the Obama presidential campaign. Since then, she continues to work on issues of Muslim-American civic engagement and was recognized for her work by the American Society for Muslim Advancement as a 2009 Muslim Leader of Tomorrow.
Learn moreFor The Motion
Maajid Nawaz
Director of the Quilliam Foundation
is director of the Quilliam Foundation. Formerly, Nawaz served on the UK national leadership for the Islamist party Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT), and was involved in HT for almost 14 years. He was a founding member of HT in Denmark and Pakistan and eventually served four years in an Egyptian prison as a “prisoner of conscience” adopted by Amnesty International. In prison, Maajid gradually began changing his views until finally renouncing the Islamist Ideology for traditional Islam and inclusive politics.
Learn moreAgainst The Motion
Ayaan Hirsi Ali
Founder, A.H.A. Foundation
was born in Somalia and raised a devout Muslim. She escaped an arranged marriage by immigrating to the Netherlands in 1992 and served as a member of the Dutch parliament for 3 years. She has since become an active critic of fundamentalist Islam, an advocate for women's rights and a leader in the campaign to reform Islam, establishing the AHA Foundation in 2007.
Learn moreAgainst The Motion
Douglas Murray
Founder and Director of the Centre for Social Cohesion
is a bestselling author and award-winning journalist. He is also founder and director of the Centre for Social Cohesion (CSC), a non-partisan think-tank in Westminster, London, which focuses on radicalization and has published work on both Islamist and far-right extremism.
Learn moreDeclared Winner: Against The Motion
Online Voting
Research
Research For The Motion:
- Articles & Publications: Nawaz, Maajid
- Articles & Publications: Khan, Zeba
Research Against The Motion:
- Articles & Publications: Murray, Douglas
- Articles & Publications: Ali, Ayaan Hirsi
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About This Event
Event Photos
http://intelligencesquaredus.org/debates/past-debates/item/573-islam-is-a-religion-of-peace#sigProGalleriaf8ecf5fbef
5 comments
- Comment Link
Sunday, 19 May 2013 19:17 posted by Marco @Dane Where is the honour in killing?? The answer is there isn't honour in killing! This is what I learned from the Quran. You are confusing culture with religion. While I appreciate you promoting the Quran by asking people to read it, I invite you to not only read it but study it. Because without proper studies and true effort to understand it, perhaps neither yourself nor I are qualified to speak of it's teachings.
- Comment Link
Friday, 10 May 2013 12:43 posted by James Ayaan Hirsi Ali was talking over EVERYBODY!
- Comment Link
Thursday, 09 May 2013 03:01 posted by Dane That's just it Siraj, from YOUR experience that's what you believe, go read the Quran. You have not experienced the full law of Islam, honour killings etc. And when is there ever a proper reason for lying?
- Comment Link
Friday, 25 January 2013 05:47 posted by Siraj @ Bill Howard : "This faith is not only a violent one but it is in fact incompatible with almost every other faith on the face of the earth that does not submit to it."
Too tough a judgment about the religion from the debate. Have you considered actually reading the Quran and Hadith to find out if it teaches this or if what the debate panel conveyed is only their opinion and their experiences?
From my personal experiences, Islam does not authorize (without proper reason for point 2 and 3) any of the above 4 points you have mentioned. - Comment Link
Tuesday, 27 November 2012 10:56 posted by Bill Howard Very good debate! I enjoyed watching and learning from them...both sides make compelling arguments however, the facts are undenieble and well documented. The following is a list of what I learned from this debate and the points that caused me to vote against this motion:
1) Why do people have to go into hiding should they speak out against the prophet Mahommed if it were a religion of peace. No other religion causes such upheaval to my knowledge.
2) It promotes martyrdom while practicing Muslims sit silently refusing to condem these acts.
3) It promotes lying to others which was evident to me by the panel members:
4) It allows for, rape, murder and almost every other aberrant behavior as long as you label the other person an infidel. This faith is not only violent one but it is in fact incompatible with almost every other faith on the face of the earth that does not submit to it.
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