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" 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. "

Deeyah Khan

Will

Own

Democracy

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" I come from a Muslim family. The label 'Muslim' is one aspect of me, but it's not the only part of me. "

" I know some women's rights activists have seen so much abuse that they can't stand men, but I have a sense of empathy with the men. Without excusing the abuse they are capable of, many of them are trapped within these communities and bound by expectations they didn't necessarily ask for. "

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

" Our media provides a continuing message that for men, heroism is defined through association with control, independence, and the ability to commit violence, from superheroes to crime dramas. "

" Through adopting radical extremism, some young men who previously felt humiliated and emasculated by their peers can now feel powerful and intimidating - and gain status, attention from young women, and the comradeship and solidarity of other young men like themselves. "

" No one is born a terrorist, but the route to become one is surprisingly easy. We need to listen to those who have been there, and those who have made their way back, if we want to stop others from taking their first steps down this same path into darkness. "

" Left to the mercies of their communities, Muslim women and children remain in abusive households and face losing their financial security over issues like child maintenance and inheritance through the judgments of 'sharia' courts. "

" I'm a woman of colour. I am the daughter of immigrants. I am a Muslim. I am a feminist. I am a lefty liberal. "

Deeyah Khan

Daughter

I Am

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

" Within a life that seems uncomfortably scripted by family and community pressures, hyper-religiosity can provide a way to break with parental expectations and flee from parental control. "

" 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. "

Deeyah Khan

Diversity

Spiritual

" Ability to speak the majority language is not just important for inclusion; it is important for minorities to be able to claim their rights and entitlements. "

" 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. "

" The self-proclaimed Islamic State cannot tolerate diversity, which is why we must celebrate it. "

" While religious fundamentalism is treated as a serious social problem because it has the potential to lead to rare but devastating acts of terrorism against the public, with a variety of programmes and interventions to address it, everyday violence against women occurring in the name of fundamentalism has long been neglected. "

" If our values are worth anything, we should stand up for them and live by them, both within Britain and across the world. "

" We cannot leave vulnerable young men open to the exploitation of extremists, both for our own security and their own wellbeing. "

" We need a broader perspective on what counter-radicalisation means. "

" People do the most remarkable things in the most difficult of circumstances. "

" Self-expression should not be a challenge that demands extraordinary talent but should be a right accessible to all. "

" The problem with Muslim women is less that we cannot speak the language, but that no one listens to us. "

Deeyah Khan

Speak

Women

" As a girl, I abandoned a promising singing career due to violent harassment by Islamists. "

" Music, performance, and a woman is very rarely accepted within Muslim communities. "

" Muslim women can save the world from ISIS. "

" Rather than shutting down free speech, we need to broaden it, to make it possible for young people to say even the things we dislike so we can talk them down. And we need politicians to articulate a picture of the future that includes all of us. Not British values but shared human values. "

" Women with education, skills, and independent sources of income are more able to withstand the pressures of the patriarchal family and more able to express their opinions and to move freely within their communities. "

" 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. "

" 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. "

" 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. "

" People at risk of 'honour'-based violence require long-term support, often years past the closure of a case, for continuing culturally-sensitive psychological support and the development of long-term protection plans. "