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Fourest, Caroline
4 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
French extreme Left condones headscarf
In local elections slated for March the far-Left French New Anticapitalistic Party (NPA) is presenting a young woman who wears the headscarf. That's hardly toeing the party line, writes the daily Le Monde: "The paradox doesn't stem from the fact that a young 22-year-old woman sees no contradiction between covering her head for God and militating against sexism in a party of Trotskyist inspiration. After all, some members of the [far right] Front National are black or of Arab origin. Such is human nature. Conflicting affinities can coexist within a single breast. This is doubtless a cause for rejoicing. But what to make of the coherency of the political convictions of [NPA leader] Olivier Besancenot? On the one hand anti-sexist and a staunch adversary of Christian fundamentalist anti-abortionists, he is deeply moved by reactionary religion when it wears a headscarf."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » France
Caroline Fourest explains the particularities of Turkish Islam
French essayist Caroline Fourest explains why the Muslim AKP (Justice and Development Party) in power in Turkey cannot establish an Islamic state. "The difference between Islam in Turkey and elsewhere in the Arabic world is related to the diversity of Turkish society that extends even into Turkish Islam. Turkish spirituality isn't a Sunni bloc, but is crisscrossed with Sufist, Shiite, Christian and even Masonic influences. ... Let's hope that the Kemalistes [who are trying to ban the AKP] end up finding the sense to understand that these cultural and intellectual counter-balances are the best remedies to fundamentalism than their authoritarian and anti-democratic methods. But let's not be so naive as to think that the Turkish Islamists in power will be so inoffensive and moderate if this gamut of counterbalances didn't exist."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Religion, » Turkey
Caricatures of the prophet on trial and debate on Islam revived in France
On February 7the and 8th, the French satirical weekly, Charlie Hebdo, will be judged for republishing the caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed. Caroline Fourest, essayist and Professor at Sciences-Po in Paris, calls for the issues at stake in this trial to also be treated in the French presidential campaign. "[Different] questions - of secularism as well as freedom of expression; the action of the French Council of Muslim Worship; or the question of whether or not to finance places of worship - should of course be treated without saintliness or taboos, with a view to the presidential elections. Let us not avoid these subjects under the pretext that they offend. Let us rather debate them seriously. Let us stop systematically confusing criticism of the religion with racism, or the debate on secularism and good citizenship with a debate on immigration and security. At the risk of fuelling a clash of prejudices, security versus victimised, to the soul advantage of extremists."
» full article (external link, French)
More from the press review on the subject » Print media, » Religion, » Minorities, » Weltanschauung, » France
Twelve intellectuals opposed to 'Islamic totalitarianism'
The Danish daily at the origin of the controversy over the Prophet Muhammad cartoons has decided to reprint the "Manifesto against Islamic totalitarianism" published by the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in its March 1st issue. Prominent among the text's twelve signatories are Ayaan Hirsi Ali, Taslima Nasreen, Salman Rushdie and Bernard-Henri Lévy. "After having overcome fascism, Nazism, and Stalinism, the world now faces a new totalitarian global threat: Islamism. We, writers, journalists, intellectuals, call for resistance to religious totalitarianism and for the promotion of freedom, equal opportunity and secular values for all. The recent events, which occurred after the publication of drawings of Muhammed in European newspapers, have revealed the necessity of the struggle for these universal values. This struggle will not be won by arms, but in the ideological field."
» more information (external link, Danish)
More from the press review on the subject » Society, » Global
All available articles from » Ayaan Hirsi Ali, » Chahla Chafiq, » Bernard-Henri Levy, » Irshad Manji, » Mehdi Mozaffari, » Maryam Namazie, » Taslima Nasreen, » Salman Rushdie, » Antoine Sfeir, » Philippe Val, » Ibn Warraq
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