Deeyah Khan

“Britain has supported theocrats and dictators as long as it served British business interests, whether under Tory or Labour rule.”

“Extremist movements are driven by their inability to tolerate the basic human fact of pluralism. They refuse to accept the natural cultural and religious diversity of our world, seeking to impose their own beliefs and behaviours as a universal pattern for humanity.”

“Attacking racism and discrimination is a very important way to work against radicalisation.”

“The thing is, what most people don't understand is that there are so many of us growing up in Europe who are not free to be ourselves. We're not allowed to be who we are. We are not free to marry or to be in relationships with people that we choose. We can't even pick our own career. This is the norm in the Muslim heartlands of Europe.”

“Our freedoms are shared freedoms: they are bound up in each other. The ability to confront oppression in the guise of religion is linked to our ability to worship as we choose: both are acts of expression.”

“A hedonistic lifestyle contrary to all the rules and expectations of Islam is not an unusual precursor to radicalisation: in fact, some young radicals see joining in the jihad as a way of achieving redemption for past sins.”

“The Trump phenomenon shows us how much fear of Muslims there is out there and how easily it can be exploited.”

“Living through the intersections of cultural diversity has given me an intimate understanding of the dynamics of living between the dimensions of East and West, traditional and modern, and political and spiritual.”

“Freedom of speech is a human right and the foundation upon which democracy is built. Any restriction of freedom of speech is a restriction upon democracy.”

“Some women facing 'honour' crimes require relocation far outside the reaches of their extended families and changes of identity to escape detection.”

“Censorship in all its forms must be challenged.”

“We must defend democracy using its own mechanisms, through explaining and exemplifying its merits rather than through the heavy-handed and arbitrary silencing of its critics. This is how we will build a sustainable alternative to the contorted worldview of extremists.”

“I'm just trying to stretch the public space wider and make it more open so that a wider variety of people and faces and stories and perspectives and also expertise can come through. So everything that I do rests on that, trying to support on other voices.”

“If we value human rights, they should be at the core of the project against violent extremism, and women a key part of our imagined future.”

“Like Theresa May, I regularly find myself infuriated by the rantings of Anjem Choudary and other hate preachers.”

“Muslim women can save the world from ISIS.”

“We ignore the similarities between the religious extremism and ethno-nationalism at our peril.”

“Having more than one legal system running is not a sign of a healthy or inclusive society. It is just one less thing that people have in common.”

“For many young men, joining in a radical movement is a way of feeling powerful, which is particularly intoxicating for men who feel their masculinity has been called into question, whether through victimisation or a failure to achieve the status that they feel they are entitled to.”

“Women's empowerment, whether through legal, financial, or cultural routes, will tend to increase their agency and their ability to take part in activism.”