Friday 4 August 2017

How to identify a genuinely progressive Muslim « Why Evolution Is True

Maajid Nawaz, one of my favourites of the Muslim reformers.
Ever eloquent, principled and brave

For a while now, I've been meaning to put together a list of Muslims and ex-Muslims who are what I call "sound" on Islam.  Ones you can trust to be telling the full picture of Islam and trying to reform it.  I've procrastinated and the result is like the Chinese philosophy says — "Wu Wei", which means do nothing…. and things will solve themselves and often that really is the wisest course of action (or inaction).
And it is here.  Jerry Coyne has put together such a list, though without the ex-Muslims.
Here it is a his "Why Evolution is True" website.
The Muslims that you can trust, or as Jerry has it, you can "pay attention to".  I agree with it, knowing, as I do, virtually all of these folk. (well…. I don't quite know if Malala should be on the list….)
Reza Aslan
Linda Sarsour
Tariq Ramadan
Hatem Bazin
Keith Ellison (the only a Muslim member of the U.S. Congress)
Mehdi Hasan

To which I would add Mustafa Akyol, who's like an even smoother Tariq Ramadan. Slickly suave, but an apologist for Islam despite appearing like a reformer
Note that many in the West and on the Left lionise these folk: the ones on the latter list.  They've been deluded by them, is the most charitable explanation.