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Secularists and free thinkers - Maryam Namazie on the freedom to choose

http://www.europe-solidaire.org/spip.php?article54423

Publisher:  Europe Solidaire Sans Frontieres
Date Written:  16/10/2020
Year Published:  2020  
Resource Type:  Article

A veteran campaigner for human, especially women's rights, Maryam Namazie speaks with the eloquence and quiet confidence that comes with years of sustained activism on issues ranging from Islamophobia, to blasphemy, misogyny and sex apartheid.

Abstract: 
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Excerpt:

Maryam Namazie returns more than once to the issue of identity politics. Particularly, how it has worked to further divide people who should be standing together to fight for universal human rights. ‘People think that human rights are Western – and are associated in some cases with neo-colonialism. But for us, human rights are universal.

...

The close relationship between identity politics and religion is particularly dangerous for women and minority groups like LGBT. When asked about veiling and the anti-veiling protests that have gained ground in her native Iran, Maryam Namazie is unequivocal in her response. Women may submit to wearing the veil, or comply with veiling regulations but take away the climate of intimidation, violence and fear and see how many will really choose to do so. There may, of course, be some women who choose to wear the veil, just as there are some women who choose to stay in violent relationships. But this doesn’t mean we should not be able to have open, frank discussions about these issues’.

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