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The Enemy Within: A Tale of Muslim Britain
Britain has often found groups within its borders whom it does not trust, whom it feels have a belief, culture, practice or agenda which runs contrary to those of the majority. From Catholics to Jews, miners to trade unionists , Marxists to liberals and even homosexuals, all have at times been viewed, described and treated as 'the enemy within'. Muslims are the latest in a long line of 'others' to be given this label.
How did this state of affairs come to pass? What are the lessons and challenges for the future - and how will the tale of Muslim Britain develop? Sayeeda Warsi draws on her own unique position in British life, as the child of Pakistani immigrants, an outsider, who became an insider, the UK's first Muslim Cabinet minister, to explore questions of cultural difference, terrorism, surveillance, social justice, religious freedom, integration and the meaning of 'British values'.
Uncompromising and outspoken, filled with arguments, real-life experience, necessary truths and possible ways forward for Muslims, politicians and the rest of us, this is a timely and urgent book.
How did this state of affairs come to pass? What are the lessons and challenges for the future - and how will the tale of Muslim Britain develop? Sayeeda Warsi draws on her own unique position in British life, as the child of Pakistani immigrants, an outsider, who became an insider, the UK's first Muslim Cabinet minister, to explore questions of cultural difference, terrorism, surveillance, social justice, religious freedom, integration and the meaning of 'British values'.
Uncompromising and outspoken, filled with arguments, real-life experience, necessary truths and possible ways forward for Muslims, politicians and the rest of us, this is a timely and urgent book.
320 pages, Hardcover
Published May 23, 2017
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357 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
June 18, 2017
The author : Sayeeda Warsi, Baroness Warsi. Tory politician. Stood for parliament in 2005, failed to win. Co-opted into the Conservative government – to do this they had to make her a Life Peer so she is a Baroness. Pelted with eggs by a group of young Muslims in 2009. Resigned from government in 2014 over British foreign policy regarding Israel.
The title: it’s referring 1) to the Islamophobe’s idea that the Muslims are the enemy within, but 2) to the idea that the jihadis are the enemy within British Muslim society.
*
This is a feisty breathtakingly fearless book which has already been praised and hated. She takes the current toughest British domestic problem – Islamist terrorism – and gives a comprehensive analysis of how we got here and how we might get out of here to somewhere better. Most of what’s in here is a diagnosis of political and moral failures on all sides – by mainstream politicians and Muslims – and she sounds like an exasperated but trying-to-be-upbeat teacher with a class of real dimwits to deal with.
It turns out that everything is wrong.
All the politicians are cowardly or ignorant or covertly racist. All British Muslim leaders are venal, bigoted and blinkered. All news reports are Islamophobic. And the language we use to talk about this stuff is also wrong. Terms like “islamophobia”, or “Islamist” or “fundamentalist” – all inaccurate, misleading and almost useless.
It turns out that Sayeeda Warsi may be the only clear-sighted person in the entire UK! I’m very glad she has written this book then, with its to-do lists for every section of society.
I sound like I’m having a go at her now, and I don’t mean to. Probably there’s no way you can write about “the Muslim problem” in Britain without sounding knowing and a bit superior and like a brisk no-nonsense matron. But for instance I was impressed with her dismantling of the term “British values”.
These are the values Britain stands for and expects its citizens to adopt, whether new immigrants or established minorities. She points out how rapidly British values mutate.
In a nutshell as politicians and as a country we have been sectarian, racist, sexist and homophobic, and each time our behavior has been in our view consistent with our Britishness…. We speak about these so-called “British values” as if they have always existed in the way we define them today. The debate… is often only directed at British Muslims. I’ve yet to see a politician go to a synagogue, gurdwara, temple or church and talk British values.
*
Her book comes a little bit unstuck on the subject of terrorism. First because of timing. Publication date was 30 March 2017 so we assume the book was completed a couple of months before.
22 March – Westminster Bridge attack, 5 killed and 49 injured
22 May – Manchester Arena bombing, 22 killed, 120 injured
3 June – Borough Market attack, 8 killed and 48 injured
Her stats do not include those events. I’m sure she would now like to change some statements in this book indicating that the security authorities had developed an unnecessary paranoia about the Muslim communities.
In reality the majority of terrorism is not targeted at the West. After 9/11 only 0.5% of all terrorist deaths have occurred in Western countries.
And
We are more likely to be killed at the hands of a terrorist with a far-right, nationalist or supremacist ideology.
Really?? Not in this country, Baroness.
But she is quite correct to say that when we do have a far-right terrorist committing a terrorist murder – the assassination of Jo Cox in June 2016 – the British media do not call it an act of terrorism. Instead, they immediately label the perpetrator as mentally ill. It’s true, there is one rule for the Muslims and another for everyone else. But it’s also true that “Islamist” terrorists kill many many more people than any other type of terrorism in this and other countries. And – most importantly – she makes the point that “Islamist” terrorism kills way more Muslims than non-Muslims.
But of course some may well have the opinion that raining bombs down from drones and now and again hitting the wrong building or the occasional wedding party is state sponsored terrorism.
Context is vital for the understanding of these complex and fraught issues and context is sometimes - often - hard to get right.
It is true that Nelson Mandela was called a terrorist. It is true that terrorists become presidents of their liberated countries. It is also true that Isis cannot be equated with the ANC. The Baroness says that the term “terrorism” is so hard to define that the UN has been trying to establish a draft definition since 2000 and still has not done so.
*
So in the first part of The Enemy Within she dishes it out to the British political class, the media, the police, etc, and also dishes it out to the jihadis. In the second part she dishes it out to all the other Muslims she missed in the first part…. She says she realizes that this stuff might be used by Islamophobes but she thinks it has to be said so she doesn’t care. She is saying that British Muslim society is not helping itself and needs to get real. The elders of the communities are fiddling with their expenses while Rome burns. Sample quote:
No form of engagement with the British government did as much damage as the sectarian approach adopted by government from about 2005 and the sectarianism that British Muslim communities employed to become the government’s favoured “Muslims” and diminish the space for other sects. Sect squared against sect, Wahhabis against Barelwis, Sufis against Deobandis, and Tabliquis against Shias. … This allowed British Muslims to play out their own historic sectarianism against the backdrop of the war on terror with the added dimension of groups being paid through the public purse to further their version of the faith.
(Large swathes of this book are directed to British Muslims and I would think some of them will be buying more eggs in case she comes down their street soon. )
*
This book takes on so much, and often so contentiously (she is anti-burqa and now pro-gay rights) that we could be here all day. So I should stop now, even though there is so much more to say.
Highly recommended for anyone interested in what’s going on right now.
The title: it’s referring 1) to the Islamophobe’s idea that the Muslims are the enemy within, but 2) to the idea that the jihadis are the enemy within British Muslim society.
*
This is a feisty breathtakingly fearless book which has already been praised and hated. She takes the current toughest British domestic problem – Islamist terrorism – and gives a comprehensive analysis of how we got here and how we might get out of here to somewhere better. Most of what’s in here is a diagnosis of political and moral failures on all sides – by mainstream politicians and Muslims – and she sounds like an exasperated but trying-to-be-upbeat teacher with a class of real dimwits to deal with.
It turns out that everything is wrong.
All the politicians are cowardly or ignorant or covertly racist. All British Muslim leaders are venal, bigoted and blinkered. All news reports are Islamophobic. And the language we use to talk about this stuff is also wrong. Terms like “islamophobia”, or “Islamist” or “fundamentalist” – all inaccurate, misleading and almost useless.
It turns out that Sayeeda Warsi may be the only clear-sighted person in the entire UK! I’m very glad she has written this book then, with its to-do lists for every section of society.
I sound like I’m having a go at her now, and I don’t mean to. Probably there’s no way you can write about “the Muslim problem” in Britain without sounding knowing and a bit superior and like a brisk no-nonsense matron. But for instance I was impressed with her dismantling of the term “British values”.
These are the values Britain stands for and expects its citizens to adopt, whether new immigrants or established minorities. She points out how rapidly British values mutate.
In a nutshell as politicians and as a country we have been sectarian, racist, sexist and homophobic, and each time our behavior has been in our view consistent with our Britishness…. We speak about these so-called “British values” as if they have always existed in the way we define them today. The debate… is often only directed at British Muslims. I’ve yet to see a politician go to a synagogue, gurdwara, temple or church and talk British values.
*
Her book comes a little bit unstuck on the subject of terrorism. First because of timing. Publication date was 30 March 2017 so we assume the book was completed a couple of months before.
22 March – Westminster Bridge attack, 5 killed and 49 injured
22 May – Manchester Arena bombing, 22 killed, 120 injured
3 June – Borough Market attack, 8 killed and 48 injured
Her stats do not include those events. I’m sure she would now like to change some statements in this book indicating that the security authorities had developed an unnecessary paranoia about the Muslim communities.
In reality the majority of terrorism is not targeted at the West. After 9/11 only 0.5% of all terrorist deaths have occurred in Western countries.
And
We are more likely to be killed at the hands of a terrorist with a far-right, nationalist or supremacist ideology.
Really?? Not in this country, Baroness.
But she is quite correct to say that when we do have a far-right terrorist committing a terrorist murder – the assassination of Jo Cox in June 2016 – the British media do not call it an act of terrorism. Instead, they immediately label the perpetrator as mentally ill. It’s true, there is one rule for the Muslims and another for everyone else. But it’s also true that “Islamist” terrorists kill many many more people than any other type of terrorism in this and other countries. And – most importantly – she makes the point that “Islamist” terrorism kills way more Muslims than non-Muslims.
But of course some may well have the opinion that raining bombs down from drones and now and again hitting the wrong building or the occasional wedding party is state sponsored terrorism.
Context is vital for the understanding of these complex and fraught issues and context is sometimes - often - hard to get right.
It is true that Nelson Mandela was called a terrorist. It is true that terrorists become presidents of their liberated countries. It is also true that Isis cannot be equated with the ANC. The Baroness says that the term “terrorism” is so hard to define that the UN has been trying to establish a draft definition since 2000 and still has not done so.
*
So in the first part of The Enemy Within she dishes it out to the British political class, the media, the police, etc, and also dishes it out to the jihadis. In the second part she dishes it out to all the other Muslims she missed in the first part…. She says she realizes that this stuff might be used by Islamophobes but she thinks it has to be said so she doesn’t care. She is saying that British Muslim society is not helping itself and needs to get real. The elders of the communities are fiddling with their expenses while Rome burns. Sample quote:
No form of engagement with the British government did as much damage as the sectarian approach adopted by government from about 2005 and the sectarianism that British Muslim communities employed to become the government’s favoured “Muslims” and diminish the space for other sects. Sect squared against sect, Wahhabis against Barelwis, Sufis against Deobandis, and Tabliquis against Shias. … This allowed British Muslims to play out their own historic sectarianism against the backdrop of the war on terror with the added dimension of groups being paid through the public purse to further their version of the faith.
(Large swathes of this book are directed to British Muslims and I would think some of them will be buying more eggs in case she comes down their street soon. )
*
This book takes on so much, and often so contentiously (she is anti-burqa and now pro-gay rights) that we could be here all day. So I should stop now, even though there is so much more to say.
Highly recommended for anyone interested in what’s going on right now.
February 23, 2018
A political book, almost all of the conclusions of which I agree with. So why only 3 stars? Well for a start - my God was it hard work. It could have been 1/3 the length. And did she really have to write it like an extended party political speech? If for every sentence beginning with "We must", we had one Islamophobe converted to the cause of love peace and understanding, the country would be a better place. The chapter "The Rest of Us" is particularly repetitive and superfluous.
The best section is where she analyses, critiques and trashes Prevent, the government's flagship anti-extremism programme. With extensive evidence, she shows how this programme has alienated many British Muslims, and possibly missed the opportunity to pull some from the clutches of extremism. It has done this by focusing on the idea of an evil ideology that must be rooted out, rather than the root causes of discontent among Muslims. She spears the government's failure to call out and tackle right-wing extremism.
The second best section is where she analyses, critiques and trashes Michael Gove. Actually not so much a section as a leitmotif running through the book.
For someone who has never voted Conservative, there are some refreshingly honest statements:
"it could be argued that sometimes we, on the right of politics, can create the climate, the swamp, within which the racist feels comfortable. We have been the breeding ground for many an individual who eventually found his way to the soft far right such as UKIP or hard far right such as the BNP, indivduals who went on to run a campaign of 'othering' during the Brexit referendum, one that translted into attacks on our streets." (p265)
The appendices are much more concrete and useful, particularly the one on Muslim community organisations and how they have been sabotaged by government funding and the "our favourite Muslim organisation" approach, "the ones we talk to and the ones we don't".
Finally she doesn't convince with her message on Christianity. She says that Britain has to find its way back to a stronger Christian belief in order to feel more secure and confident in its national identity. Arguing that a falling away in Christian belief has contributed to Islamophobia, she seems to be putting forward a similar argument to the one that many homophobes are closet homosexuals tormented by a failure to accept themselves. I don't think this works. Strong Christian belief has not helped the US avoid the sirens of the extreme right. She assumes that if we are more Christian we will all be tolerant, non-dogmatic Anglicans, but also says - and she's not far off the mark - that today, the growing Christian communsities in the UK are less tolerant evangelists and Catholics from Eastern Europe and Africa.
Actually a useful book to read with many important points. But take my advice - skim it.
The best section is where she analyses, critiques and trashes Prevent, the government's flagship anti-extremism programme. With extensive evidence, she shows how this programme has alienated many British Muslims, and possibly missed the opportunity to pull some from the clutches of extremism. It has done this by focusing on the idea of an evil ideology that must be rooted out, rather than the root causes of discontent among Muslims. She spears the government's failure to call out and tackle right-wing extremism.
The second best section is where she analyses, critiques and trashes Michael Gove. Actually not so much a section as a leitmotif running through the book.
For someone who has never voted Conservative, there are some refreshingly honest statements:
"it could be argued that sometimes we, on the right of politics, can create the climate, the swamp, within which the racist feels comfortable. We have been the breeding ground for many an individual who eventually found his way to the soft far right such as UKIP or hard far right such as the BNP, indivduals who went on to run a campaign of 'othering' during the Brexit referendum, one that translted into attacks on our streets." (p265)
The appendices are much more concrete and useful, particularly the one on Muslim community organisations and how they have been sabotaged by government funding and the "our favourite Muslim organisation" approach, "the ones we talk to and the ones we don't".
Finally she doesn't convince with her message on Christianity. She says that Britain has to find its way back to a stronger Christian belief in order to feel more secure and confident in its national identity. Arguing that a falling away in Christian belief has contributed to Islamophobia, she seems to be putting forward a similar argument to the one that many homophobes are closet homosexuals tormented by a failure to accept themselves. I don't think this works. Strong Christian belief has not helped the US avoid the sirens of the extreme right. She assumes that if we are more Christian we will all be tolerant, non-dogmatic Anglicans, but also says - and she's not far off the mark - that today, the growing Christian communsities in the UK are less tolerant evangelists and Catholics from Eastern Europe and Africa.
Actually a useful book to read with many important points. But take my advice - skim it.
May 6, 2017
Considering my low expectations of most politicians I found this account of Baroness Sayeeda Warsi's reflections on Muslims in the U.K. to be refreshing and well thought through. I may not agree with every line, but her analysis is well thought and important for all communities to reflect on. Definitely a book I would recommend to others.
February 11, 2022
aaa tbh it's pretty impossible to rate this sort of non-fiction books but anyway;
One of my regrets from RG was not maximising the potential of that RPD dialogue session about CMIO by unpacking the different racial issues that our current policy making fails to address. I acknowledge that I do enjoy Chinese privilege, and I do know that we are not as racially homogenous as we hope to be. Therefore, I saw this as a book that would allow me some insight into what it's like being (a) a Muslim, (b) a minority, (c) how Britain, a country with a culture very much similar to ours, deals with these issues. If I gave this book more time and attention, I maybe would have benefited more, but I ultimately felt it was quite draggy and less concise as I would have liked it to be. Still a good starting point though! Anyway, here are some very VERY messy thoughts.
1. The extra effort that Muslim Minorities feel the need to compensate with
When a person from the majority makes a mistake, we blame the individual. When a person from a minority makes a mistake, we are quick to attribute it to their difference from the mainstream, and stereotype then. Not only do they feel that their mistakes are compounded by the mistakes of others, but they are also blamed for mistakes that they themselves may not have made. On the topic about Terrorism, Warsi writes: "If the prism through which individuals, society and policy-makers view British Muslims is set by a terrorist act, if we see our Muslims not as the diverse, complex and varied lot that they are, with the same concerns, anxieties and joys as the rest of us, if we see them as likely as the rest of us to be victims of them, then we are telling 3 million people that they are part of the problem...". It's difficult enough that most are brought up to feel that they have to overcompensate, but when it comes to having to do so to show that you are "not like those of your race", that itself perpetuates the hatred towards the race even amongst those of the same race. Why are we letting our differences speak louder than our similarities? Why are we using them as a weapon against each other?
When this grievance is then aired, we have to make sure that it is properly heard, discussed, and addressed. We shouldn't view it as a "challenge for officialdom", but recognise it as a collective call that "they feel like they don't belong". In this sense, Warsi argues for the need to bring "common British values" to the frontier, and to incorporate this concerns as part of our identity as a multiracial nation, rather than to brush it aside ("thErE's nO chInEsE prIvileGE").
Warsi's summary of the problems with perception towards the problems faced by Muslims:
1. Islamophobia doesn't exist
2. Hatred is 'from' Muslims (I don't hate Muslims, they hate us)
3. Islam is a uniquely violent religion (problem is not the ppl, but the religion itself)
4. Why is It that Muslims don't condemn terrorists and say 'not in my name' (Why must they feel obliged too? Is it any use? Is it not a given that no one would approve of these ppl? Why should I be held responsible for the actions of my so-called co-religionists?)
5. Muslims 'condone' terrorists
6. Based on the policy of controlled immigration, regarding population growth and its impact on local culture and environment --> agree, but controls should be based on skills, professions, need and not religion
7. We judge the Muslims by a higher standard than we would other fellow Brits
Lol a really messy summary but ya, this is for my reference only anyway so scuba doobadoooo
One of my regrets from RG was not maximising the potential of that RPD dialogue session about CMIO by unpacking the different racial issues that our current policy making fails to address. I acknowledge that I do enjoy Chinese privilege, and I do know that we are not as racially homogenous as we hope to be. Therefore, I saw this as a book that would allow me some insight into what it's like being (a) a Muslim, (b) a minority, (c) how Britain, a country with a culture very much similar to ours, deals with these issues. If I gave this book more time and attention, I maybe would have benefited more, but I ultimately felt it was quite draggy and less concise as I would have liked it to be. Still a good starting point though! Anyway, here are some very VERY messy thoughts.
1. The extra effort that Muslim Minorities feel the need to compensate with
When a person from the majority makes a mistake, we blame the individual. When a person from a minority makes a mistake, we are quick to attribute it to their difference from the mainstream, and stereotype then. Not only do they feel that their mistakes are compounded by the mistakes of others, but they are also blamed for mistakes that they themselves may not have made. On the topic about Terrorism, Warsi writes: "If the prism through which individuals, society and policy-makers view British Muslims is set by a terrorist act, if we see our Muslims not as the diverse, complex and varied lot that they are, with the same concerns, anxieties and joys as the rest of us, if we see them as likely as the rest of us to be victims of them, then we are telling 3 million people that they are part of the problem...". It's difficult enough that most are brought up to feel that they have to overcompensate, but when it comes to having to do so to show that you are "not like those of your race", that itself perpetuates the hatred towards the race even amongst those of the same race. Why are we letting our differences speak louder than our similarities? Why are we using them as a weapon against each other?
When this grievance is then aired, we have to make sure that it is properly heard, discussed, and addressed. We shouldn't view it as a "challenge for officialdom", but recognise it as a collective call that "they feel like they don't belong". In this sense, Warsi argues for the need to bring "common British values" to the frontier, and to incorporate this concerns as part of our identity as a multiracial nation, rather than to brush it aside ("thErE's nO chInEsE prIvileGE").
Warsi's summary of the problems with perception towards the problems faced by Muslims:
1. Islamophobia doesn't exist
2. Hatred is 'from' Muslims (I don't hate Muslims, they hate us)
3. Islam is a uniquely violent religion (problem is not the ppl, but the religion itself)
4. Why is It that Muslims don't condemn terrorists and say 'not in my name' (Why must they feel obliged too? Is it any use? Is it not a given that no one would approve of these ppl? Why should I be held responsible for the actions of my so-called co-religionists?)
5. Muslims 'condone' terrorists
6. Based on the policy of controlled immigration, regarding population growth and its impact on local culture and environment --> agree, but controls should be based on skills, professions, need and not religion
7. We judge the Muslims by a higher standard than we would other fellow Brits
Lol a really messy summary but ya, this is for my reference only anyway so scuba doobadoooo
April 28, 2017
Sayeeda is politicain and has produced an autobiographical take on British Muslims. But I do agree with her assessment of the current state of Islamophobia affecting the government and the people at large. She has very eloquently explained the seven types of rhetoric employed by the British to justify their own islamophobic trend. It's a pretty damning list which would even make me prejudiced even though I am a Muslim......
The seven sins.....
Sin number one: there is no problem, Islamophobia doesn’t exist.
Sin number two: I don’t hate Muslims. They hate us.
Sin number three: ‘I don’t hate Muslims per se, it’s when they follow Islam, a uniquely violent religion, that I object to them.’
Sin number four: I know not all terrorists are Muslims and I know that not all Muslims are terrorists and I know Islam is not uniquely violent, but why is it that Muslims don’t condemn terrorists and say ‘not in my name’?
Sin number five: if ‘the Muslims’ do not condemn the terrorists, then ‘the Muslims’ condone terrorists.
Sin number six:is one based on the policy of controlled immigration, keeping Muslims out not out of the country but making sure they don't progress to important positions in the government.
The Seventh sin: We judge ‘the Muslims’ by a higher standard than we would other fellow Brits.
Apart from a few chapters on Islamophobia the rest of the chapters are pretty ordinary. Sayeeda is unable to produce any effective suggestions to bring the Muslims in line with the British culture. And I suspect that this is the main reason why she lost favour with her Tory party as she was unable to bridge the gap choosing instead to rely on ineffective vanilla Muslim organizations.
The seven sins.....
Sin number one: there is no problem, Islamophobia doesn’t exist.
Sin number two: I don’t hate Muslims. They hate us.
Sin number three: ‘I don’t hate Muslims per se, it’s when they follow Islam, a uniquely violent religion, that I object to them.’
Sin number four: I know not all terrorists are Muslims and I know that not all Muslims are terrorists and I know Islam is not uniquely violent, but why is it that Muslims don’t condemn terrorists and say ‘not in my name’?
Sin number five: if ‘the Muslims’ do not condemn the terrorists, then ‘the Muslims’ condone terrorists.
Sin number six:is one based on the policy of controlled immigration, keeping Muslims out not out of the country but making sure they don't progress to important positions in the government.
The Seventh sin: We judge ‘the Muslims’ by a higher standard than we would other fellow Brits.
Apart from a few chapters on Islamophobia the rest of the chapters are pretty ordinary. Sayeeda is unable to produce any effective suggestions to bring the Muslims in line with the British culture. And I suspect that this is the main reason why she lost favour with her Tory party as she was unable to bridge the gap choosing instead to rely on ineffective vanilla Muslim organizations.
October 8, 2017
Bought this after going to Baroness Warsi's talk at Hay Festival where I found her engaging, thoughtful, thought-provoking, compassionate, funny. We all have our prejudices. Mine was that I could agree with so much that a former Chair of the Conservative Party said. My explanation, of course, is that she's in the wrong party.
The book doesn't quite capture the fun and liveliness of the author, but it's a useful alternative perspective on the prevailing narrative that the current UK terror threat is all about Islamic ideology: Islamism. Warsi's vision is of a Britain where Muslims are properly brought into the mainstream, not seen as 'the other.'
When considering politicians she quotes Samuel Levenson: "You must learn from the mistakes of others. You can't possibly live long enough to make them all yourself."
My standard criticism of most of what I'm reading at the moment holds: the book became repetitive at times and would have been stronger if a third shorter.
The book doesn't quite capture the fun and liveliness of the author, but it's a useful alternative perspective on the prevailing narrative that the current UK terror threat is all about Islamic ideology: Islamism. Warsi's vision is of a Britain where Muslims are properly brought into the mainstream, not seen as 'the other.'
When considering politicians she quotes Samuel Levenson: "You must learn from the mistakes of others. You can't possibly live long enough to make them all yourself."
My standard criticism of most of what I'm reading at the moment holds: the book became repetitive at times and would have been stronger if a third shorter.
August 28, 2017
In April this year I heard Sayeeda Warsi speak about her book at King's Hall Ilkley. Instead of buying the book in Bradford's public libraries and was surprised that it was not available. I complained about the absence of the book on Twitterand they apologised and they got some copies. I reserved the book and collected it from my local branch (Bolling Hall).
Sayeeda was Conservative candidate in her home town, Dewsbury, in the 2005 General Election. Racism in the local party contributed to her failure to defeat Labour's Shahid Malik and there was a significant increase in votes for the white supremacist BNP. She was appointed to the House of Lords by David Cameron and held various cabinet posts in the coalition government from 2010, resigning in 2014 over the Israel Gaza conflict (the government refused to criticise Israel for violations of human rights and international rather than applying the same standards to both sides).
It is my understanding that the main purpose of this book is: 1) provide an overview of the British muslim communities; 2) show that the government and media demand different standards of muslims compared with other religious or ethnic groups (if muslims cannot demonstrate that they give full equality to women and they don't discriminate against homosexuals they must be opposed to British values and sympathise with terrorists); 3) challenge the muslims to develop organisations which represent mainstream views and are willing to interact with the authorities.
Sayeeda Warsi is a committed and well informed muslim with a liberal and modernising attitude, and she understands the traditions and prejudices of different parts of the community. I would recommend it to muslims who want to look beyond their immediate community and to people of other religions who want to find out about muslims. (I still don't understand why Sayeeda joined the cConservative party, much of what she achieved in government required the assistance of the Liberal Democrats, and predict that she will resign from the party before 2022.)
Sayeeda was Conservative candidate in her home town, Dewsbury, in the 2005 General Election. Racism in the local party contributed to her failure to defeat Labour's Shahid Malik and there was a significant increase in votes for the white supremacist BNP. She was appointed to the House of Lords by David Cameron and held various cabinet posts in the coalition government from 2010, resigning in 2014 over the Israel Gaza conflict (the government refused to criticise Israel for violations of human rights and international rather than applying the same standards to both sides).
It is my understanding that the main purpose of this book is: 1) provide an overview of the British muslim communities; 2) show that the government and media demand different standards of muslims compared with other religious or ethnic groups (if muslims cannot demonstrate that they give full equality to women and they don't discriminate against homosexuals they must be opposed to British values and sympathise with terrorists); 3) challenge the muslims to develop organisations which represent mainstream views and are willing to interact with the authorities.
Sayeeda Warsi is a committed and well informed muslim with a liberal and modernising attitude, and she understands the traditions and prejudices of different parts of the community. I would recommend it to muslims who want to look beyond their immediate community and to people of other religions who want to find out about muslims. (I still don't understand why Sayeeda joined the cConservative party, much of what she achieved in government required the assistance of the Liberal Democrats, and predict that she will resign from the party before 2022.)
April 1, 2024
I think this would be a good place to start learning about Islamophobia but in general I did find it pretty basic. I think this does give a good perspective on a Muslim woman who was part of the Conservative Party but I did have some issues with some of the things stated. For Example:
“In a nutshell if you get a sentence of up to two years in prison for a crime, and trust me you've got to do something pretty bad for the courts to give you two years' custody these days” and “You've done the crime, served the time, and after a period are allowed to wipe the slate clean and move on. So you could steal a car, snatch a granny's handbag, even assault your partner and after a few years, providing you behaved yourself, move on with your life”.
I really don’t like the tone used to talk about offenders. It’s very demeaning and I’m not sure what Warsi was going for. Ultimately it doesn’t matter what crime someone has committed because once they are released from prison they do get to move on with their life because they’ve served their punishment and ‘justice’ has been served.
Also Warsi states she is grateful to David Cameron and I understand she has a personal history/connection with him but personally I do find it hard to understand the perspectives of politicians when we as the public tend to see the negative things they do and Cameron in my opinion is not a nice guy.
“In a nutshell if you get a sentence of up to two years in prison for a crime, and trust me you've got to do something pretty bad for the courts to give you two years' custody these days” and “You've done the crime, served the time, and after a period are allowed to wipe the slate clean and move on. So you could steal a car, snatch a granny's handbag, even assault your partner and after a few years, providing you behaved yourself, move on with your life”.
I really don’t like the tone used to talk about offenders. It’s very demeaning and I’m not sure what Warsi was going for. Ultimately it doesn’t matter what crime someone has committed because once they are released from prison they do get to move on with their life because they’ve served their punishment and ‘justice’ has been served.
Also Warsi states she is grateful to David Cameron and I understand she has a personal history/connection with him but personally I do find it hard to understand the perspectives of politicians when we as the public tend to see the negative things they do and Cameron in my opinion is not a nice guy.
August 8, 2025
Baroness Warsi explores the challenges faced by British Muslims, drawing on her experiences as Britain's first Muslim Cabinet Minister. The book critiques government policies on extremism and multiculturalism, arguing for greater understanding and engagement with Muslim communities while addressing issues like Islamophobia and social justice. I learnt a lot about the history of Islam in the UK, as well as on counter-terrorism policies like Prevent.
Whilst I agree with much of what she argues, the writing style is a little bit rambly at times; nonetheless, it is a challenging, timely, and insightful read. We need more thinkers like Warsi, who are willing to take on the thorniest topics of modern Britain.
Whilst I agree with much of what she argues, the writing style is a little bit rambly at times; nonetheless, it is a challenging, timely, and insightful read. We need more thinkers like Warsi, who are willing to take on the thorniest topics of modern Britain.
December 5, 2017
Warsi provides a very thorough analysis of her subject matter that is balanced and well reasoned. I learnt much from the book, had a good deal of 'fuzzy' knowledge clarified and, sadly, had confirmed many of my worst fears about the direction that the UK is going. I can see that there could be much benefit in discussion of a condensed version of this book forming a compulsory element in secondary school social studies curriculum, with the aim of achieving some mutual understanding and empathy that might erode the prejudices that are causing such division.
November 22, 2023
This may be the first book I’ve read by a former Conservative cabinet minister!
It is quite a stodgy read in some ways, but I valued the facts and evidence laid out. It’s quite shocking to read of how the British Westminster government has consistently sidelined efforts to deal with anti-Muslim racism in the UK.
It is quite a stodgy read in some ways, but I valued the facts and evidence laid out. It’s quite shocking to read of how the British Westminster government has consistently sidelined efforts to deal with anti-Muslim racism in the UK.
May 20, 2017
A necessary read.
October 30, 2017
Great ideas. Appalling editing made it almost unreadable. For such an educated writer, one would expect a knowledge of commas etc...
January 3, 2018
I interviewed Sayeeda Warsi about her fascinating book:
https://www.instituteforgovernment.or...
https://www.instituteforgovernment.or...
May 19, 2024
Heavy reading, but very good.
August 20, 2023
My favourite Tory! (I probably hate the rest!) wish I’d read this nearer the time it was written (or that she had an updated version for now- what would she make of Humza Yousaf for example?) but nevertheless I enjoyed her insights and much of her reflections chimed with me as a Muslim growing up in Britain all be it in Scotland and maybe a decade later…
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