Tariq Ramadan: What I Believe
Dubbed “a Muslim Martin Luther” by the Washington Post’s Paul Donnelly, Tariq Ramadan is one of the most prominent—and controversial—voices of Islamic reform. In fact, his passionate criticism of American foreign policy has earned him enemies: in 2004, the Bush administration denied him entry to the United States under provisions of the Patriot Act, a ban that was lifted in January of this year.
Yet his outspoken criticism of Shariah law and dictatorships has made Ramadan enemies, as well. As of 2009 Ramadan was persona non grata in Tunisia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Libya, and Syria because of his criticism of “these undemocratic regimes that deny the most basic human rights.”
A devout Muslim whose grandfather was a founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Ramadan seeks to negotiate the treacherous territory between the West and Islam. He urges Muslims in the United States to embrace its non-Muslim society as their own, while bringing their Islamic values into the civic sphere to change society for the better.
Tariq Ramadan is Professor of Islamic Studies on the Faculty of Theology at Oxford University, Senior Research Fellow at St. Antony’s College (Oxford), Doshisha University (Kyoto, Japan), and the President of the European Muslim Network (EMN) think-tank in Brussels. He is the author of Radical Reform: Islamic Ethics and Liberation, In the Footsteps of the Prophet: Lessons From the Life of Muhammad, Western Muslims and the Future of Islam, and Islam, the West, and Challenges of Modernity.
To Reserve: This event is open to the public. The fee is $10 for members, and $15 for non-members. Reservations are required but cannot be accepted until Tuesday, September 28. Please call the Athenæum’s events reservation line, (617) 720-7600.
Mr. Ramadan’s book will be on sale after his lecture through the Globe Corner Book Store.
