Supporting Maajid Nawaz and Ayaan Hirsi Ali

Here's a list of the main articles in support of Maajid Nawaz and Ayaan Hirsi Ali in the wake of the outrageous "listing" of both of them on a list of allegedly "anti-Muslim extremists" by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Latest on top.

• The curious case of the blacklisting of Maajid Nawaz. One one of many monkeys. 7 November. 
• Leftist group: Saying Islam has a problem makes you a terrorist. The Federalist. 3 November 
• SPLC: talk our kind of talk, or we will smear you as a bigot.  Why Evolution is True blog, 2 November.
• Branding moderates as 'anti-Muslim', Wall Street Journal,  Editorial, 1 November.
• SPLC receives backlash after placing activist Maajid Nawaz on 'anti-Muslim extremist' list, Yahoo News, 1 November
• Nick Cohen Adds His Voice to the Defence of Maajid Nawaz, Heather Hastie Heather's Homilies, 1 November
• Jerry Coyne on his blog Why Evolution is True. 1 November; 30 October;  29 October
• The white left has issued its first fatwa, Nick Cohen. The Spectator, 31 October
• Maajid Nawaz himself: I'm A Muslim Reformer. Why Am I Being Smeared as an 'Anti-Muslim Extremist'?, Daily Beast, 29 October
• How did Maajid Nawaz end up on a list of 'anti-Muslim extremists?' David Graham, The Atlantic, 29 October
• Maajid Nawaz an "Anti-Muslim Extremist" according to Southern Poverty Law Center. Homo economicus' blog, 28 October
• The Southern Poverty Law Center and the demand for anti-Muslim Bigotry. Amjad Khan, Sedaa.org, 27 November
• The New Anti-Racist Racists, Douglas Murray, Gatestone Institute, 28 October
• Principles and Politics: The Southern Poverty Law Center Loses The Plot, Sarah Haider, The Ex-Muslim, 27 October 
• Maajid Nawaz an "Anti-Muslim Extremist" according to Southern Poverty Law Center, Harry's Place. 27 October

I would like to have seen more defence of some others on the list. Especially Robert Spencer, who is all to often characterised as an "Islamophobe", but is nothing of the sort in my view, and I've seen him in innumerable videos, and read all his books in the last ten years.  He's done his own defence of the scandalous SPLC listing of him along with 14 others (also here).  I call their list lazy, sloppy, tendentious, vicious, vacuous and, well, just plain horrible.  I can't even bring myself to link to their list.

LATER (3 November 2016): Sam Harris’s talk with Ayaan Hirsi Ali was published just yesterday.  It was done literally on the day of the SPLC slime piece was published, so it does not talk about it, except for Sam as an epilogue in the last five minutes.  

As Sam says, their talk shows just what a thoughtful, empathetic, non-bigot of a person Ayaan is.  But the SPLC just doesn't care.  I guess they care about the fact they got lots of hits and clicks. 

Here's Sam's talk with Ayaan.

My email post to the SPLC (There are other responses to the SPLC on Jerry Coyne’s blog Why Evolution is True):

To Southern Poverty Law Center, 

I've seen your defenses of the now infamous "list" of allegedly "anti-Muslim extremists" and none of what's said in the various boilerplates makes any sense.

Is there anything that would change your mind, especially about Maajid Nawaz and Ayaan Hirsi Ali?  Anything?  

It's clear from what's in your OP and in subsequent email justifications, that you don't really know anything about Maajid and Ayaan.  So, shame on you for that. 

Perhaps you ought to spend some time to look at what they say. The latest for Maajid is to see the Why Evolution is True blog, their post of 2 November.  And for Ayaan, have a listen to Sam Harriss' talk with her, posted on 2 November, but recorded before all this kerfuffle.   

Mind you, that podcast is nearly an hour long, which may well be longer than your attentions span. (given what I've read of your so-called "reasons" for putting all these folk on a hit-list, reason characterised by lack of serious research, and third-person half-quoted obloquies). 

Forgive me for the ad hominem, but really.... you need to get a head screwed on to your body on this one, and shame on all of SPLC for this travesty. 

Peter Forsythe
Hong Kong