The scholar, author and activist Ayaan Hirsi Ali grew up in a conservative Muslim family in Somalia, Saudi Arabia, Ethiopia and Kenya, and as a teenager, she was a devout Muslim. But she eventually sought political asylum in the Netherlands to avoid a forced marriage, and was later elected to the Dutch Parliament. She is now a U.S. citizen, and has penned a best-selling memoir, titled Infidel, in which she describes herself as an atheist and criticizes radical Islam and its suppression of women. Her latest book, Heretic, calls for major reforms of Islam. She set up the AHA Foundation as an organization whose stated mission is "to support and protect people critical of Islam, and promote the free exchange of ideas." A fellow with The Future of Democracy program at the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs at Harvard, she is also listed as an extremist on the Hatewatch Blog of the Southern Poverty Law Center. Ahead of her lecture at an upcoming Baltimore Speakers Series event* sponsored by Stevenson University, WYPR colleague and Speakers Series host SheilahKast spoke by phone with Ali about her journey of faith, and her response to the public uproar caused by her views on Islam.
* The Baltimore Speakers Series lecture by Ayaan Hirsi Ali originally scheduled for Tuesday, January 26th at the Meyerhoff Symphony Hall has been postponed due to the extremely heavy snowfall over the weekend. The Ali lecture has been rescheduled to Monday, February 29th at 8pm, and tickets issued for the original event will be honored. No new tickets will be issued for the new date.
