Undeterred by the inevitable death threats, Mina has pressed on, determined as ever to protect women from the ravages of Islam.… Read the rest
All entries by this author
Anthony McIntyre on Maryam Namazie 
Oct 21st, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
It is this idea of political Islam as a voice for the oppressed and voiceless which annoys her most.… Read the rest
Religious Marriage Settlement Not Binding
Oct 21st, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘The more you can make the whole concept secular, the better off you’re going to be in a civil court.’… Read the rest
Atheism in America
Oct 21st, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Atheism may have made its way into the public discourse but it remains verboten in our politics.… Read the rest
Archbish Wants Women to Agonize More
Oct 21st, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
They treat their bodies as their own; it’s an outrage.… Read the rest
Atheism in Australia
Oct 21st, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Phillip Adams, Pamela Bone, David Nicholls, Tamas Pataki, Emily Maguire do without a deity.… Read the rest
Seyla Benhabib on Mosque and State
Oct 21st, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
On some very deep level, there is more symbolic religious politics in the US than anywhere else in the world.… Read the rest
Mina Ahadi Named Secularist of the Year
Oct 21st, 2007 | By Terry SandersonRichard Dawkins says that it is “the awakening of women” that will solve the problem of “the worldwide menace of Islamic terrorism and oppression”.
His remarks came while praising the winner of this year’s “Secularist of the Year” award from the National Secular Society. The £5,000 prize went to Mina Ahadi, an Iranian woman who was forced to flee her native country after leading a campaign against the compulsory veiling of women. Because of her resistance to the clerical regime, her husband and four of her colleagues were executed, and she only narrowly escaped the same fate.
She now lives in Germany and has founded the Committee of Ex-Muslims, a movement that is rapidly spreading across Europe. She has also … Read the rest
Atheist propagandists?
Oct 20th, 2007 3:57 pm | By Ophelia BensonI don’t think this is quite right. I think it misses the mark.
… Read the restI’d like to say his heart is in the right place, unlike the current crop of atheist propagandists, but the trouble is that, as with many Episcopalians, it is more mind than heart…I have no use for anti-Darwinian campaigners, but I do have a lot of respect for popular skepticism. The people do not trust those who present themselves as elite…[R]ead any of the self-indulgent, virulent atheists in circulation today – Sam Harris and Christopher Hitchens being just two. Contrary to their professed intentions, such writers buttress the faithful; their loathsome arrogance shields evangelical churches from doubt. That part of the American population that believes God made
Libel Laws Silence Critics
Oct 20th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Did the Society of Homeopaths engage with these criticisms? No. They sent a threatening legal letter.… Read the rest
The Psychology of Believing News Reports
Oct 20th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
People are more likely to discount information if they are suspicious of the motives behind its dissemination.… Read the rest
Why not Find bin Laden, and Lord Lucan Too?
Oct 20th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Since there’s a magic box that can find anyone with just a bit of DNA…… Read the rest
Bhutto Refuses to Submit
Oct 20th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
‘We are prepared to risk our lives, but we are not prepared to surrender our great nation to the militants.’… Read the rest
Jesus and Mo Make Up
Oct 20th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The barmaid shows them the way.… Read the rest
Manager of Somali Radio Station Murdered
Oct 20th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Last month government troops fired on the station and ordered it to stop broadcasting.… Read the rest
Prayer Will Remain Legal: It Has no Truth Value
Oct 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
The Swedish government has announced plans to clamp down hard on religious education.… Read the rest
Women Die to Give Birth
Oct 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Around half a million women in developing countries die annually before, while, or soon after giving birth.… Read the rest
Preventing Harm: Empowering Women
Oct 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Helping women gain greater power and more options in life is key to improving reproductive health.… Read the rest
Ostracized Women
Oct 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
Each year, 100,000 women who give birth in poor countries develop obstetric fistula.… Read the rest
Lucky Dube Murdered in Johannesburg
Oct 19th, 2007 |
Filed by Ophelia Benson
One of the great reggae artists and one of the apartheid regime’s most outspoken critics. … Read the rest
