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[[New Atheism|New Atheist]] activist, author and neuroscientist [[Sam Harris]] co-authored the book ''[[Islam and the Future of Tolerance]]'' (2015) with Nawaz. Harris has used the term,{{#tag:ref||group="note"|name="credit"}} claiming the greatest danger is that regressive leftists are willing to give up [[free speech]] "out of fear of offending minorities", which will lead to [[censorship]] imposed by those minorities, citing American journalist [[Glenn Greenwald]]'s comments on the [[Charlie Hebdo shootings]] as an example.<ref name="Chris Beck">{{Cite web |url=http://www.splicetoday.com/politics-and-media/sam-harris-unloads-on-the-regressive-left |title=Sam Harris Unloads on the Regressive Left |author=Chris Beck |work=[[Splice Today]] |publisher=[[Russ Smith (publisher)|Russ Smith]] |date=21 October 2015 |accessdate=23 November 2015}}</ref><ref name=Salon20151125>Sean Illing. ''Sam Harris talks Islam, ISIS, atheism, GOP madness: “We are confronting people, in dozens of countries, who despise more or less everything that we value”'' [http://www.salon.com/2015/11/25/harris_and_illing_correspondence/]</ref> Harris considers [[Reza Aslan]]<ref name="Chris Beck"/><ref name=Salon20151125/> and [[Noam Chomsky]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rawstory.com/2015/10/sam-harris-is-still-mad-about-liberals-who-followed-noam-chomsky-off-the-edge-of-the-world/|title=Sam Harris is still mad about ‘liberals who followed Noam Chomsky off the edge of the world’|publisher=}}</ref><ref>The Last Word With Lawrence O'Donnell' on Oct. 15, 2015. [MSNBC]</ref> to be regressive left. Harvard's Institute of Politics hosted Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz at a public forum.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI9QwEKqrso |title=Islam and the Future of Tolerance |author=Harvard’s Institute of Politics hosting Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz |publisher=Harvard’s Institute of Politics |date= |accessdate=3 January 2016}}
[[New Atheism|New Atheist]] activist, author and neuroscientist [[Sam Harris]] co-authored the book ''[[Islam and the Future of Tolerance]]'' (2015) with Nawaz. Harris has used the term,{{#tag:ref||group="note"|name="credit"}} claiming the greatest danger is that regressive leftists are willing to give up [[free speech]] "out of fear of offending minorities", which will lead to [[censorship]] imposed by those minorities, citing American journalist [[Glenn Greenwald]]'s comments on the [[Charlie Hebdo shootings]] as an example.<ref name="Chris Beck">{{Cite web |url=http://www.splicetoday.com/politics-and-media/sam-harris-unloads-on-the-regressive-left |title=Sam Harris Unloads on the Regressive Left |author=Chris Beck |work=[[Splice Today]] |publisher=[[Russ Smith (publisher)|Russ Smith]] |date=21 October 2015 |accessdate=23 November 2015}}</ref><ref name=Salon20151125>Sean Illing. ''Sam Harris talks Islam, ISIS, atheism, GOP madness: “We are confronting people, in dozens of countries, who despise more or less everything that we value”'' [http://www.salon.com/2015/11/25/harris_and_illing_correspondence/]</ref> Harris considers [[Reza Aslan]]<ref name="Chris Beck"/><ref name=Salon20151125/> and [[Noam Chomsky]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rawstory.com/2015/10/sam-harris-is-still-mad-about-liberals-who-followed-noam-chomsky-off-the-edge-of-the-world/|title=Sam Harris is still mad about ‘liberals who followed Noam Chomsky off the edge of the world’|publisher=}}</ref><ref>The Last Word With Lawrence O'Donnell' on Oct. 15, 2015. [MSNBC]</ref> to be regressive left. Harvard's Institute of Politics hosted Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz at a public forum.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PI9QwEKqrso |title=Islam and the Future of Tolerance |author=Harvard’s Institute of Politics hosting Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz |publisher=Harvard’s Institute of Politics |date= |accessdate=3 January 2016}}
</ref> Harris sees [[ISIS]] as, "fully explained by a commitment to a specific interpretation of Islamic scripture".<ref name=Salon20151125/>
</ref> Harris sees [[ISIS]] as, "fully explained by a commitment to a specific interpretation of Islamic scripture".<ref name=Salon20151125/>

[[File:Dave Rubin Hosting The Rubin Report.JPG|thumbnail|right|Dave Rubin has used the term "regressive left" on his talk show ''The Rubin Report''.]]
Liberal talk show host [[Dave Rubin]] has hosted discussions about the "regressive left" in many of ''[[The Rubin Report]]'' show segments.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/10/8/milo-yiannopoulos-and-dave-rubin-discuss-gay-rights-and-cultural-libertarians-0_40xbq9svp490|title=Milo Yiannopoulos and Dave Rubin Discuss Gay Rights and Cultural Libertarians|publisher=Ora TV|accessdate=2015-10-08}}</ref> He once said, "The reason I feel like naming them [the regressives] is so important, is because I now view these regressives as the left's version of the [[Tea Party movement|Tea Party]]. The Tea Party went unchecked by the right until it was too late, and now the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] is a fractured mess often only held together by its worst beliefs. I really believe these regressives are doing this to the left, and if we don't have the courage to stop them, then a year or two from now, we'll wonder why our system is screwed up even more than it is now."<ref name="Rubin7Oct"/> Rubin has lamented his struggle to contain the show's content from become too focused on the regressive left although now many in his audience include himself want the show to amplify "real liberal voices" to combat regressive ideology.<ref name="real liberals">{{cite news|last1=Rubin|first1=Dave|authorlink1=Dave Rubin|title=Dave Rubin on the Battle Against the Regressive Left|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq3oLYY_QMw|accessdate=3 January 2016|date=22 December 2015}}</ref> In a series of interviews, Rubin analyzed this concept and its implications with [[Peter Boghossian]], and with [[Ayaan Hirsi Ali]], [[Maajid Nawaz]],<ref name=Nawaz>{{cite news|last1=Rubin|first1=Dave|title=Maajid Nawaz and Dave Rubin Discuss the Regressive Left and Political Correctness|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/10/2/maajid-nawaz-and-dave-rubin-discuss-the-regressive-left-political-correctness-0_twq2e3jhwn8|accessdate=3 January 2016|work=Rubin Report|date=2 October 2015}}</ref> [[Nick Cohen]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/12/11/nick-cohen-and-dave-rubin-discuss-the-regressive-left-free-speech-radical-islam-0_5a17hbvw846c|title=Nick Cohen and Dave Rubin Discuss the Regressive Left, Free Speech, Radical Islam|work=Ora TV}}</ref> and [[Douglas Murray (author)|Douglas Murray]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/11/6/douglas-murray-and-dave-rubin-talk-free-speech-isis-israel-full-interview-0_5i6uq59btmia|title=Douglas Murray and Dave Rubin Talk Free Speech, ISIS, Israel (Full Interview)|work=Ora TV}}</ref>
Liberal talk show host [[Dave Rubin]] has hosted discussions about the "regressive left" in many of ''[[The Rubin Report]]'' show segments.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/10/8/milo-yiannopoulos-and-dave-rubin-discuss-gay-rights-and-cultural-libertarians-0_40xbq9svp490|title=Milo Yiannopoulos and Dave Rubin Discuss Gay Rights and Cultural Libertarians|publisher=Ora TV|accessdate=2015-10-08}}</ref> He once said, "The reason I feel like naming them [the regressives] is so important, is because I now view these regressives as the left's version of the [[Tea Party movement|Tea Party]]. The Tea Party went unchecked by the right until it was too late, and now the [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] is a fractured mess often only held together by its worst beliefs. I really believe these regressives are doing this to the left, and if we don't have the courage to stop them, then a year or two from now, we'll wonder why our system is screwed up even more than it is now."<ref name="Rubin7Oct"/> Rubin has lamented his struggle to contain the show's content from become too focused on the regressive left although now many in his audience include himself want the show to amplify "real liberal voices" to combat regressive ideology.<ref name="real liberals">{{cite news|last1=Rubin|first1=Dave|authorlink1=Dave Rubin|title=Dave Rubin on the Battle Against the Regressive Left|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aq3oLYY_QMw|accessdate=3 January 2016|date=22 December 2015}}</ref> In a series of interviews, Rubin analyzed this concept and its implications with [[Peter Boghossian]], and with [[Ayaan Hirsi Ali]], [[Maajid Nawaz]],<ref name=Nawaz>{{cite news|last1=Rubin|first1=Dave|title=Maajid Nawaz and Dave Rubin Discuss the Regressive Left and Political Correctness|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/10/2/maajid-nawaz-and-dave-rubin-discuss-the-regressive-left-political-correctness-0_twq2e3jhwn8|accessdate=3 January 2016|work=Rubin Report|date=2 October 2015}}</ref> [[Nick Cohen]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/12/11/nick-cohen-and-dave-rubin-discuss-the-regressive-left-free-speech-radical-islam-0_5a17hbvw846c|title=Nick Cohen and Dave Rubin Discuss the Regressive Left, Free Speech, Radical Islam|work=Ora TV}}</ref> and [[Douglas Murray (author)|Douglas Murray]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.ora.tv/rubinreport/2015/11/6/douglas-murray-and-dave-rubin-talk-free-speech-isis-israel-full-interview-0_5i6uq59btmia|title=Douglas Murray and Dave Rubin Talk Free Speech, ISIS, Israel (Full Interview)|work=Ora TV}}</ref>


Revision as of 19:57, 4 January 2016

The regressive left[1][2] is a political term that finds fault with a section of left-wing politics that tolerates illiberal principles and ideology.

It was introduced in 2012 by British liberal activist Maajid Nawaz[note 1] to describe a section of the left that has "an inherent hesitation to challenge some of the bigotry that can occur within minority communities [...] for the sake of political correctness, for the sake of tolerating what they believe is other cultures and respecting different lifestyles."[4][5][note 2][7]

The concept and its potential implications have been analyzed by Sam Harris, Bill Maher, Richard Dawkins, Dave Rubin and Peter Boghossian, who have spoken about the potential effects on free speech.

Origin

Maajid Nawaz's use of "regressive left" has been a part of his advocacy against Islamism, the literalism pole of Islam that places more emphasis on Sharia (Islamic law), pan-Islamic political unity, and an Islamic state.

Nawaz, who in 2007 thoroughly renounced his previous association with the radical Islamism group Hizb ut-Tahrir, in favor of Secular Islam, is the co-founder and chairman of Quilliam, a counter-extremism think tank based in London that seeks to challenge the narratives of Islamism extremists.[3][8]

Nawaz has used "regressive left" to denote the concept of left-leaning people who, in his opinion, defend Islamism, which he defines as "an ideology that seeks to impose any version of Islam over society" and which he opposes on the ground that "any desire to impose any version of Islam over anyone anywhere, ever, is a fundamental violation of our basic civil liberties."[9] According to Nawaz, such sympathizers of Islamism include "atheists who are on the side of the Islamists, defending Islamism in the name of cultural tolerance."[10]

According to Nawaz, the notion that Muslims cannot cope with criticism or mockery of Islam and only react violently, is "patronizing, self-pity inspiring mollycoddling" of the very Muslims it claims to serve and emancipate, because it does not expect them to be civil and control their anger.[9] This "racism of low expectations" lowers the moral standards of people within minorities, seeking excuses if they happen to express, for example, misogyny, chauvinism, bigotry, or antisemitism, whilst holding members of the majority to universal liberal standards.[7]

Haras Rafiq, managing director of Quilliam, expressed the view that there is a tendency of some on the left to excuse Islamism. "We have not got to grips with the symbiotic relationship between Islamism and far-right hatred, and the regressive left that is prepared to excuse Islamism."[11]

Analysis

Earlier expressions of concern that a subset of left-wing politics is Islam-favouring were put forward by French philosopher Pascal Bruckner, under the banner of Islamo-Leftism.[12]

In 2013, the One Law for All campaign issued a report, Siding with the Oppressor: The Pro-Islamist Left.[13] According to The Independent, the report expressed concern at "working enthusiastically with those advocating the murder of homosexuals" and also with "religious fascists".[13] The Independent expressed the opinion that "In a disastrous irony, the pro-Islamist left has ended up in the same place as the white far-right. The perception of Muslims as synonymous with Islamism - criticism of Islamism is characterised as criticism of Muslims - is precisely the view taken by groups such as the EDL." The Independent article concluded that political confirmation bias was responsible, driven by a "pathological anti-Americanism that is quite attractive to a certain type of degenerated progressive."[13] It also quoted Maryam Namazie, a spokeperson for several organisations including Iran Solidarity, One Law for All and the Council of Ex-Muslims of Britain as identifying several organisations who are, "there as prefects to silence dissenters and defend islamism as a defence of ‘Muslims’.”[13]

Spiked writer Elliot McArdle adds that some "so-called liberals/leftists" treat liberal Muslims like Nawaz and ex-Muslims like Namazie as "native informants", "traitors" or "not real Muslims", because such critics of Islam(ism), who have a Muslim background themselves, don't fit the desired narrative of Muslims as a homogenous and oppressed group.[14]

New Atheist activist, author and neuroscientist Sam Harris co-authored the book Islam and the Future of Tolerance (2015) with Nawaz. Harris has used the term,[note 2] claiming the greatest danger is that regressive leftists are willing to give up free speech "out of fear of offending minorities", which will lead to censorship imposed by those minorities, citing American journalist Glenn Greenwald's comments on the Charlie Hebdo shootings as an example.[15][16] Harris considers Reza Aslan[15][16] and Noam Chomsky[17][18] to be regressive left. Harvard's Institute of Politics hosted Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz at a public forum.[19] Harris sees ISIS as, "fully explained by a commitment to a specific interpretation of Islamic scripture".[16]

Liberal talk show host Dave Rubin has hosted discussions about the "regressive left" in many of The Rubin Report show segments.[20] He once said, "The reason I feel like naming them [the regressives] is so important, is because I now view these regressives as the left's version of the Tea Party. The Tea Party went unchecked by the right until it was too late, and now the Republican Party is a fractured mess often only held together by its worst beliefs. I really believe these regressives are doing this to the left, and if we don't have the courage to stop them, then a year or two from now, we'll wonder why our system is screwed up even more than it is now."[6] Rubin has lamented his struggle to contain the show's content from become too focused on the regressive left although now many in his audience include himself want the show to amplify "real liberal voices" to combat regressive ideology.[21] In a series of interviews, Rubin analyzed this concept and its implications with Peter Boghossian, and with Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Maajid Nawaz,[22] Nick Cohen[23] and Douglas Murray.[24]

The Washington Post reported that American comedian and show host Bill Maher and British biologist and New Atheist author Richard Dawkins "lamented regressive leftists who fail to understand they are anything but liberal when it comes to Islam".[2] Maher noted a willingness to criticise anything except Islam, excusing it as "their culture", to which Dawkins responded: "Well, to hell with their culture."[1][25] The Sunday Express characterized Dawkins as having "attacked western society's relaxed attitude to radical Islam in an extraordinary outburst". Making reference to student initiatives to disinvite ex-Muslim speakers on campus, Dawkins saw this as, "a betrayal of the Free Speech Movement of the 1960s".[26]

Notes

  1. ^ On p. 210 of Radical (2012), Nawaz wrote: "Is not winning the war more important than truth? This maxim, I knew, was also subscribed to by some on the left, the regressive left. For them, winning against capitalism was far more important than it was to their allies. I watched as our ideology gained acceptance and we were granted airtime as Muslim political commentators. I watched as we were ignorantly pandered to by well-meaning liberals and ideologically driven leftists. How we Islamists laughed at their naïveté".[3]
  2. ^ a b On 2 October 2015, Bill Maher credited Sam Harris for coining the term "regressive leftists" that week, but five days later Dave Rubin corrected him that Maajid Nawaz used it at least as early as 2012.[6] In a dialogue published on 4 July 2012 in New Statesman between Nawaz and Mehdi Hasan, the latter reviews Radical, writing "regressive left" in quotation marks, indicating he is citing from Nawaz' book.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b "Real Time with Bill Maher: Richard Dawkins – Regressive Leftists (HBO)". Real Time with Bill Maher. HBO. 2 October 2015. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  2. ^ a b Kellan Howell (3 October 2015). "Bill Maher, Richard Dawkins blast 'regressive liberals' giving a 'free pass' to Islam". The Washington Times. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  3. ^ a b Nawaz, Maajid (2012). Radical: My Journey out of Islamist Extremism. WH Allen. p. 210. ISBN 9781448131617. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
  4. ^ a b Nawaz, Maajid; Hasan, Mehdi (4 July 2012). "Age of extremes: Mehdi Hasan and Maajid Nawaz debate". New Statesman. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  5. ^ "Maajid Nawaz and Dave Rubin Discuss the Regressive Left & Political Correctness [Full Interview]". The Rubin Report. 2 October 2015. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  6. ^ a b "Dave Rubin: Regressives are the Left's Tea Party". The Rubin Report. The Rubin Report. 7 October 2015. Retrieved 25 November 2015.
  7. ^ a b Maajid Nawaz (18 November 2015). "Je Suis Muslim: How Universal Secular Rights Protect Muslim Communities the Most". Big Think. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  8. ^ Maajid Nawaz (Quilliam) http://www.quilliamfoundation.org/about/staff/maajid-nawaz/
  9. ^ a b Maajid Nawaz (8 August 2015). "The British Left's Hypocritical Embrace of Islamism". The Daily Beast. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  10. ^ Tony Jones (28 October 2015). "Lateline: An atheist and a Muslim on the future of Islam". Lateline. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  11. ^ ADAM LEBOR. Donald Trump: The AMERICAN STEREOTYPE EUROPEANS LOVE TO HATE. Newsweek Dec/14/15 [1]
  12. ^ Bruckner, Pascal (2010). The Tyranny of Guilt: An Essay on Western Masochism. Princeton University Press. p. 25. ISBN 1400834317.
  13. ^ a b c d James Bloodworth (28 June 2013). "Why is the left so blinkered to Islamic extremism?". The Independent. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  14. ^ McArdle, Elliot (4 December 2015). "The liberal racism faced by ex-Muslims". Spiked. Brendan O'Neill. Retrieved 11 December 2015.
  15. ^ a b Chris Beck (21 October 2015). "Sam Harris Unloads on the Regressive Left". Splice Today. Russ Smith. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  16. ^ a b c Sean Illing. Sam Harris talks Islam, ISIS, atheism, GOP madness: “We are confronting people, in dozens of countries, who despise more or less everything that we value” [2]
  17. ^ "Sam Harris is still mad about 'liberals who followed Noam Chomsky off the edge of the world'".
  18. ^ The Last Word With Lawrence O'Donnell' on Oct. 15, 2015. [MSNBC]
  19. ^ Harvard’s Institute of Politics hosting Sam Harris and Maajid Nawaz. "Islam and the Future of Tolerance". Harvard’s Institute of Politics. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
  20. ^ "Milo Yiannopoulos and Dave Rubin Discuss Gay Rights and Cultural Libertarians". Ora TV. Retrieved 8 October 2015.
  21. ^ Rubin, Dave (22 December 2015). "Dave Rubin on the Battle Against the Regressive Left". Retrieved 3 January 2016.
  22. ^ Rubin, Dave (2 October 2015). "Maajid Nawaz and Dave Rubin Discuss the Regressive Left and Political Correctness". Rubin Report. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
  23. ^ "Nick Cohen and Dave Rubin Discuss the Regressive Left, Free Speech, Radical Islam". Ora TV.
  24. ^ "Douglas Murray and Dave Rubin Talk Free Speech, ISIS, Israel (Full Interview)". Ora TV.
  25. ^ John Worthing (27 October 2015). "'To hell with their culture' - Richard Dawkins in extraordinary blast at Muslims". The Independent. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  26. ^ Tyler Kingkade (3 October 2015). "Richard Dawkins: College Students Are Betraying The Free Speech Movement". HuffPost on HPMG News. Retrieved 3 January 2016.
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