Mathew Guest, Durham University This autumn’s Brazilian presidential election offers a glimpse of how 21st century populist leaders are using religion to enthuse their support base. The incumbent, right-wing firebrand Jair Bolsonaro, rose to power in 2018 with support from … Continue reading Brazil: how populist politicians use religion to help them win
Ahmet T. Kuru, San Diego State University A Sri Lankan working in Pakistan, Priyantha Kumara, was lynched by a mob of hundreds of people on Dec. 3, 2021, over allegations of blasphemy, or sacrilegious act. After being assaulted, he was … Continue reading Understanding the history and politics behind Pakistan’s blasphemy laws
Saba Sattar, The Institute of World Politics India’s position as a secular nation is under threat. Under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pro-Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party, the country’s 200 million Muslim minority population has been increasingly targeted. Over the past … Continue reading How one atheist laid the foundation of contemporary Hindu nationalism
How two Islamic groups fell from power to persecution. Ahmet T. Kuru, San Diego State University Mohammed Morsi, Egypt’s first-ever democratically elected president, died unexpectedly during a trial in June 2019. He was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, an … Continue reading Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood and Turkey’s Gulenists
but few know about it Michael Vicente Perez, University of Memphis and Matthew Ingalls, American University in Dubai Nora is a rare sight at the Universidad de Chile. Dressed in a long abaya, or Islamic robe, that covers all but her hands and face, her outfit distinguishes her from other students on campus. In between classes, she’ll often seek a quiet, sheltered space to lay out a small carpet and pray. If one were to ask Nora, as we did, about her distinct appearance on campus, she would say she doesn’t mind. She’s content with her dress, her prayers and the … Continue reading Chile has a growing Muslim community
At a meeting on January 10, 1971, Syed Munawar Hasan, leading a pack of young turks, launched a frontal attack on Syed Abul Ala Maudoodi, the founder and ameer (chief) of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), blaming him for the party’s rout in the country’s first democratic elections. Because of his move, the JI was thrown into turmoil leading to Maudoodi’s resignation the following year. Forty-three years later, as the Jamaat kicks out Munawar Hsasan from the office of ameer, he has defaced Maudoodi’s party, leaving it in a far worse shape than the founder had in 1972, not only in … Continue reading Change of guard at Mansoora
Mohammed Abbasi 