Maryam Namazie är Storbritanniens, och kanske en av världens, starkaste ex-muslimska röster. Hon är bland annat talesperson för Fitnah – Kvinnornas Befrielserörelse, Storbritanniens Ex-muslimska råd samt One Law for All, en organisation som arbetar mot att islamistiska shariadomstolar tillåts att döma i familjerättsärenden inom Storbritannien. Hon har varit behjälplig med uppstarten av ex-muslimska organisationer runt om i Europa. Hon är en stark motståndare till kulturrelativism då hon menar att rättigheter är till för människor och inte för religioner och kulturer. Människor från en viss kultur eller religion ska inte ha färre rättigheter än andra, särskilt inte inom gränserna för samma land. Hon är en kontroversiell röst på det feministiska slagfältet, har blivit anklagad för islamofobi för sina skarpa uttalanden om islams inverkan på människors liv och anses av många som alltför provokativ. Men hon är en varm och engagerad kvinna som inte låter sig tystas och nedan följer en intervju med henne som Humanisten fick med henne i anslutning till konferensen för ex-muslimer i Oslo.
You are the ”Godmother” of ex-Muslims. If you could give three pieces of advice to a young Muslim who wants to leave their religion, what would that be?
1. Be safe always. 2. Be loud where you can. History is made by Apostates and Heretics. 3. Never forget, we are the innumerable.
What are your ten top worst issues with Islam?
Islam (and religions in general) are misogynist, patriarchal, homophobic, xenophobic, racist, merciless, cruel, inhuman, violent and the greatest male supremacist idea/project ever encountered in human history.
What is your Muslim background and are you in contact with your Muslim family?
I was born into a Muslim family in Tehran, Iran. My grandfather was a clergyman. I am still very much in touch with and supported by my loving immediate and extended family. My last name means ‘one who prays’ but I have failed miserably to live up to my name.
You are controversial, among other things for being naked in public. Why do you do this? What does the naked body add to your fight against a regime that can’t even stand female hair? How do you answer people who say that the nakedness might destroy the seriousness of the topic?
Nudity in women’s own hands is an important form of political resistance, particularly when faced with fundamentalists that want to erase women and girls from the public space. Women’s bodies are usually the battleground for women’s and society’s suppression. In our own hands, it becomes a battleground for emancipation. What could be more serious?
What kind of support would you like individual secular humanists to give to the ex-Muslim movement?
The ex-Muslim movement is one of the most important civil rights movements of our era. Unfortunately, still, it is not seen as such by many in mainstream humanism. A politics of solidarity with ex-Muslims will be hugely important in bringing about real and lasting change.
Racism IS an issue in the Western world today, how do you handle that issue without losing your firmness in the topic of critique against Islam?
Racism is an issue everywhere. In Iran, for example, the racism against Afghan refugees is unbearable. But you can oppose racism AND apostasy/blasphemy laws by fighting on many fronts for our common humanity. You cannot ignore racism because of fundamentalism nor ignore fundamentalism because of racism.
Do you see any hope in a ”reformed” Islam?
The only ‘reformed’ religion is the one that no longer has power. To ‘reform’ any religion, an enlightenment or mass political movement is needed to push organised religion out of public squares and reinstate it as a private belief where it belongs. Societies where organised religions are in charge of soup kitchens and not the state are much better for societal health.
Janna Aanstoot
