"Infidel" by Ayaan Hirsi Ali (Free Press, ISBN
9780743289696, $15.00)
You may not recognize the name Ayaan Hirsi Ali, but if you've ever seen one
of her interviews, you won't have forgotten her striking presence: the
Somali-born Dutch former politician has an aquiline face, an authoritative
voice, she speaks English with a faintly curious accent, and her habit of
mincing no words leaves a lasting impression. Similarly, after delving into
her bestselling memoir "Infidel," newly released this week in paperback, you
will never forget her history; it's filled with enough drama for several
lifetimes, and it bears directly on the present and pressing question of how
the West will engage with conservative Islam in the Twenty-first Century.
Hirsi Ali was born into a nomadic clan in Somalia and spent her youth in
east Africa and Saudi Arabia. By her account, she was forcibly circumcised
as a child and taught to wear a full-body hijab. She split with her
conservative family while in her twenties when she refused an arranged
marriage with a distant cousin in Canada. Seizing the engagement as an
opportunity for escape, she stopped en route to North America and sought
asylum in Holland in the early 1990s using a partly fabricated cover story.
Once there, she uncovered her hair, enrolled in university, and took up work
as a translator for other African asylum seekers.
Following the attacks of September 11, Hirsi Ali was outspoken in blaming
what she calls the "backwardness" of much of Muslim society, which she
believes provides the religious underpinnings for extremist violence and
oppression of women. Herself an immigrant to the West, she became a leading
figure in Europe's heated debate over immigration, religion, and civil
freedoms of speech and association. She writes, "I had come to incarnate the
situation that Holland was beginning to perceive itself to be in, and was
shocked by."
Revered and hated by opposing corners of Dutch society, Hirsi Ali stood for
parliament with the Dutch Labor party in 2002 and soon embarked on a short
and controversial political career. She also helped create a divisive film,
titled "Submission," about women's roles in Islam, and in 2004 her
co-creator, firebrand filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, was murdered by a religious
extremist in the morning streets of Amsterdam. One of the two knives left
stabbed into his body pinned down a note threatening further violence: it
was addressed to Hirsi Ali.
In hiding and under government protection, Hirsi Ali remained in office and
continued speaking out until controversy over her right to asylum and Dutch
citizenship brought her political career to a burning halt. She has since
divided her time between the U.S. and the Netherlands and continues to live
under heavy security.
In "Infidel," Hirsi Ali describes all these fascinating events and explains
how they have shaped her provocative view that the West must reaffirm its
commitment to liberty by supporting the rights of individual Muslims,
especially women, rather than uphold what she sees as repressive religious
traditions. Her writing displays a penchant for tough-minded argument and
establishes her as a rare public figure who has gained fame for asking the
right questions for the time--and for refusing to be put off or silenced by
insufficient answers.
This is a book to wrestle with, to question and to argue about; it's a
perfect choice for an inquisitive book club, and an excellent book to push
on thoughtful friends. It's a timely appeal that argues for making the
rights of women and children central to the ongoing conversation about the
evolution of Islam in the West. Hirsi Ali's voice rings clear, and her words
build up a life story that's as remarkable and important as it is
unforgettable.
Review by
Mark David Bradshaw, March 20, 2008
Hirsi Ali's first book "The Caged Virgin: an Emancipation Proclamation for
Women and Islam" is also new this week in paperback. Read a review here:
http://www.watermarkbooks.com/review0806-010.html
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