People

Maajid Nawaz, Co-Founder and Chairman of Quilliam and Founder of Khudi, was formerly on the UK national leadership for the global Islamist party Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT). Maajid was involved in HT for almost 14 years. He was a founding member of HT in Denmark and Pakistan and eventually served four years in an Egyptian prison as an Amnesty International ‘prisoner of conscience’. In prison, Maajid gradually began changing his views until finally renouncing the Islamist ideology while remaining Muslim.

Maajid now engages in counter-Islamist thought-generating, social-activism, writing, debating and media appearances. He encourages inclusive citizenship-based political participation of Muslims in the West, and aims to synergize a respect for human rights with the civic liberal imperative to defend those in danger of being stigmatized by extremists due to their beliefs and personal choices. Maajid has spoken at various fora internationally, ranging from universities across Pakistan to addressing the US Senate in Washington DC, and regularly comments on national and international news and newspapers.

Maajid holds a BA (Hons) from SOAS in Arabic and Law and an MSc in Political Theory from the London School of Economics (LSE), with modules in ‘Religion and Politics’ and ‘Conflict, Violence and Terrorism’. Maajid serves as an ambassador for the global Alliance of Youth Movements (AYM), is a member of the Liberal Democrat party, and a proud father to his young son.