Obtain Infidel: The Story Of My Enlightenment Rendered By Ayaan Hirsi Ali Displayed In Version

Hirsi Ali is an extremely polarising figure, She has been hailed as an icon of women's emancipation and derided as a selfhating Islamophobe, Ayaan is an outright critic of Islam: not its manifestations across the world, but the religious philosophy itself.
According to her, Islam is a medieval religion built on violence and misogyny and has no place in the modern world, and it is high time Muslims accepted it.


This book is her autobiography from her birth to the point of time when she had to relocate from the Netherlands to the US following the hullabaloo her film, Submission, created and judging by her life experiences, it is small wonder that she turned against the religion she grew up in.
Growing up in Somalia as the daughter of a largely absent father and an abusive mother who took her frustration out on her children, and brought up under strict Somali tribal rules and restrictions by a matriarchal grandmother, Ayaan's childhood was a prison only those from the third world will know the same kind of prison faced by many women even today under patriarchal societies.


Ayaan's mother had divorced her first husband, in Kuwait, and had moved back to Somalia where she met Ayaan's father Hirsi Magan.
Very soon after their third child, Haweya, was born, Magan was jailed for going against the communist dictator of Somalia, Siad Barre and the family entered a sort of twilight existence.
Shunted from country to country Somalia to Saudi Arabia to Kenya all the while living in fear, instilled by their grandmother's fearsome admonitions and their mother's disciplining which bordered on child abuse, the nightmare that childhood was to the girls could only be imagined.
This was compounded by the bloody and painful genital mutilation that the girls were forced to undergo,

According to the religion followed by Ayaan's family, the world was a sinful place, Our existence here was only the threshold to the abode of Allah, Two angels were at our two shoulders, recording sins and good deeds if the sins outweighed the other, the person was sent to Hell, a fearsome place of everlasting fire, to be roasted for eternity.
So the only hope was to live by Allah's diktat as set forth in the Quran, even if it made life miserable a glorious life in the hereafter awaited.


Initially a pious follower, Ayaan began to question the tenets of her faith as she grew up and became more independent especially as she saw the Muslim Brotherhood radicalising more and more of the youth and she was punished for it at every stage.
Still, she tried to be a dutiful Muslim and a daughter until the straw that broke the camel's back arrived in the form of an arranged marriage.
Her beloved father married her off to a total stranger located in Canada, Her objections fell on deaf ears, She was not even present during her own wedding, as per orthodox Islamic customs! En route to Canada, she escaped to Holland and claimed refugee status there, lying about her name and status something which would come back to haunt her.


Doggedly pursuing an academic career despite many setbacks, Ayaan got into the Leiden University to study political science.
In the meantime, there were many entreaties by her family and husband for her to return which were stubbornly resisted.
Working as a Somali to Dutch translator parttime, she became aware of the plight of so many women in Holland, who had migrated from Islamic countries, but who still lived under the iron thumb of their husbands.
After the twin towers of the World Trade Center was brought down by Osama Bin Laden, Ayaan became a severe critic of Islam, and ultimately, an atheist.
Seeing a video by Osama bin Laden, she became convinced that global terror emanated from the teachings of Islam itself.
Ayaan joined the CentristRight Liberal party and became a member of the Dutch parliament,

Fed up with the liberal tolerance of Islam as a religion, Ayaan started speaking out openly against it.
According to her, the religion itself, and the Quran, which it is based on, are the real problems not its interpretation as claimed by many.
In, in collaboration with Theo Van Gogh, she made a provocative short film, Submission, squarely placing the Muslim religion in the dock for violence against women.
Understandably, anger flared up among conservative Muslims and the security which protected her around the clock was beefed up.
She became a virtual prisoner, But Van Gogh, who

had no such privileges, was murdered in broad daylight,

As the Dutch government shuttled her around from place to place in the US, vigorous debates about Ayaan started up in a Holland which had become divided on religious lines as never before.
Her citizenship was briefly revoked based on the fact that she had lied during the time of applying for refugee statusbut then reinstated but by that time, Ayaan had decided that she had had enough.
She relocated to the US, and joined the Right Wing think tank American Enterprise Institute, She remains there to this day, as vocal a critic of Islam as ever,



As an autobiography, this book is a compelling read, I have read many similar tales from Africa, a continent which has been ravished and then left to die by the erstwhile colonial powers a continent which is being bled dry even now by capitalists and their cronies in government.
Ayaan was doubly unfortunate in belonging to one of the most volatile countries and to one of the most regressive societies, and I salute her courage and perseverance in managing to come out of it.
I don't judge her based on the subtle falsehoods and stratagems she was forced to employ from time to time.


I have no illusions about Islam or any religion for that matter, Ayaan's progression from a devout believer to an atheist, I could appreciate since I had travelled that route myself.
I also agree that to exonerate religion in toto for atrocities committed in its name may be politically correct, but morally untenable.
In the modern world, religion has to be put in the dock for its misdeeds,

But I find Ayaan's blanket condemnation of Islam as the source of violence a bit problematic.
It is true that one has to go deep into its teachings and call out every instance of injustice, bigotry, violence and misogyny.
Writers and artists being targeted for doing so is perfectly unacceptable we do need more of Theo Van Goghs and Charlie Hebdos.
However, by latching on to one religion as the source of all that's vile and the "enlightened" West as a panacea to all ills, Ayaan is selling a simplistic solution which will be gleefully lapped up by conservatives who are continuously peddling the "clash of civilisations" narrative.


If we look at history, the countries ravaged by despotism and conservative religion have all been under centuries of colonial rule, who actively encouraged the local rulers in keeping the people penurious and illiterate.
Colonialism was a looting machine, which funded the prosperous West that Ayaan so much admires, Even today, the economic superpowers take great pains to keep their crony despots happy, while intervening in countries which refuse to toe their line.
This is called "making the world safe for democracy",

So, to reduce global terrorism to just the teachings of the Quran is dangerous simplification, in my opinion.
I agree one hundred percent that there should be reform movements to cleanse all religions of inhuman practices, however "holy" their adherents consider them to be.
This has to be done through dialogue, and severe criticism is also required violence in the name of hurt religious sentiments is never acceptable.
But labelling a religion as regressive in totality especially when all religions come in many flavours is likely to be counterproductive.
Last week, I heard a colleague ranting about Islam and women's rights, He was reading this book and espousing Hirsi Ali's views, The next day, I lent him my copy of the Quran so that he'd have some background on the basic text of the religion he was trashing.
I tend to find that all of the major religious tomes are ridiculous, hopelessly outdated, and that it's not a flaw in religion but a fault of those interpreting fundamental texts in fundamentalist ways when religion becomes less a spiritual undertaking of peace and worthy living and more a set of doctrines used against those who disagree and/or were raised differently.
For the record, I think religion is a load of garbage, but I recognize its many compelling characteristics, the difficulty of coolly analyzing the components of one's upbringing, and the charisma of leaders who believe strongly in something.


In any case, the day after my friend grumblingly accepted my Quran, saying he was just sick of the whole thing, he handed me this book.
Anyone on this site can see that I have a lot to read, and my list is carefully weeded.
Having already read Desert Flower some years ago, I was actually slightly annoyed to be put in the position of either a readingpages, probably a rehash, that I didn't have time for or b not reading it and therefore admitting, in essence, that I am one of those people who likes to tell others what to read but feels insulted by the impertinence of anyone who might suggest I look into something I've not already considered reading and determined unworthy of my precious and currently very limited reading time.


So the five I've given the book, along with the fact that I read it in less thanhours, probably obviate the need for me to continue with what I am saying, so I will stop here.
I don't know that I agree with all of Hirsi Ali's actions or arguments, That's not the point, for me, I applaud her courage and her articulate, thoughtful, hardheaded nature, An extraordinary woman. Her criticism of Islam and of sociocultural practice in Islamic countries is for the most part measured and reasonable, though only her most extreme utterances get airtime.
She clearly states that female genital mutilation FGM is not an Islamic practice but a north African cultural one.


The extreme patriarchy, honour killings etc, she criticises are similarly not Islamic per se, though they are often justified and perpetuated in the name of Islam.
The rosy spectacle religionofpeaceandlove stuff is all well and good but frequently not a reflection of realexisting Islam as seen on the ground.


Her message is essentially that in trying desperately not to tar everyone with the same brush, we pass over spots that definitely need to be tarred.
Cultural relativism cannot be used to excuse or ignore practices such as FGM, forced marriage, spousal abuse and rape and honour killings.
That's not hysterical ultraconservatism or racist neocolonialism, that's a defense of fundamental human rights, A powerful and thought provoking memoir, Infidel by Ayaan Hirsi Ali, is a book that anyone studying religion and Middle Eastern politics should read.
It begins with a murder and ends with a murder, Born in Somalia and raised primarily by her mother and grandmother, Ali experiences her growing up years in Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya and Saudia Arabia.
Even though her father is mostly absent, he casts a long shadow, and Ali frequently seeks his approval.
The prayers that Ali remembers from childhood have the singular focus of begging Allah to secure her fathers release from prison.
A member of the SSDF Somali Savation Democratic Front, her father is sent to jail for his role in trying to oust the authoritarian president, Siad Barre.


During the first few chapters, Ali establishes the importance of the Muslim religion and the importance of bloodlines in her family.
Children are taught their lineage through rote memorization, Women are taught as part of the Muslim religion to be baarri, which means they are honorable, pious, and devoted to their husbands.
They have no voice of their own, but are completely subjugated to the husband, and to the men of the clan.
If she is beaten or the husband takes another wife, to complain would be understood as being not baarri, and wrong in the eyes of the clan.
If a woman does not behave in a pleasing manner, she can lose the protection of her husband.
Without his protection and the backing of the clan, she is exposed to censure, and may be taken advantage of by other men she may even be left to die.
All are taught that to be cut off from the clan is fearful and dangerous, a magnificent method of mind control.


At the same time that Alis brother Mahad, age six, is circumcised, Ali, age five, and her sister Haweya, age four, experience female excision.


“In Somalia, like many countries across Africa and the Middle East, little girls are made “pure” by having their genitals cut out.
There is no other way to describe this procedure, which typically occurs around the age of five, After the childs clitoris and labia are carved out, scraped off, or, in more compassionate areas, merely cut or pricked, the whole area is often sewn up, so that a thick band of tissue forms a chastity belt made of the girls own scarred flesh.
A small hole is carefully situated to permit a thin flow of pee, Only great force can tear the scar tissue wider, for sex, ”

Ali writes, “in Somalia, where virtually every girl is excised, the practice is always justified in the name of Islam.
” There are many injustices perpetrated against women and children that Ali will relate, They will make you angry that such cruelty exists in the world,

When Alis father escapes from prison, the family resettles in Saudi Arabia, There, she will learn of the Muslim Brotherhood, who espouse a return to pure Islam, Executions, floggings, and stonings are regularly held in the public square, Books become Alis salvation, fanning a spark of independence and free will, She begins to question her religion,

When Ali comes of age and flees her arranged marriage, Ali's questions grow as she embraces her new country.
Away from her home country and clanspeople, she will experience freedom, unlike anything she has ever know, She perseveres against great odds to obtain a degree in political science, Eventually becoming a Dutch citizen, she will be elected to Parliament in Holland and begin to voice strong opinions with laserlike clarity and focus.
She will be opposed to government funding of Muslim schools, on the basis of the religions foundational cruelty to women and children.
Her arguments are persuasive and controversial, Having deported a greater percentage of Jews than any other Western European country during World War II, the Dutch are now committed to tolerance, perhaps because of guilt about previous actions.
Ali will begin to form her political identity around the fact that Hollands approach to multiculturalism isnt effective.
Alis political stance will be called Islamophobia by some, but she is very much about changing the reality for the women and children that have not previously had choices or even a voice.
She thinks that the division of church and state in the West provides much more effective governance than the intertwining of Muslim religion and politics.
What I appreciate most about this book is Alis clarity and persuasive arguments, Dutch politics were more interesting than I would ever have guessed, but in the end, they devolved to games and bickering, much like our own politics.
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