Roots of Religious Right (Video)
Eqbal Ahmed is one of the biggest names this country has produced. He was an internationalist in real sense of the word. He was very critical of the bondage of nationalism and religious fanaticism. He worked as an anti-war activist for years and also collaborated with left-wing activists like Noam Chomsky, Edward Said and Howard Zinn.
Edward Said says about Eqbal Ahmed:
perhaps the shrewdest and most original anti-imperialist analyst of the post-war world, especially in the dynamics between the West and the post-colonial states of Asia and Africa
Its an irony that Pakistanis have started worshiping fake heroes while they give an intriguing look when asked about Eqbal. To counter the gibberish spread by conspiracy theorists and give an alternative and sane view point, Eqbal Ahmed must be introduced to the youth. For those, who still consider books NOT a Zionost propaganda, “The Selected writings of Eqbal Ahmed” translated by Mashal books into “اقبال احمد کے منتخب مضامین” is available for a free download on Mashal’s website. Its a must read.
Books don’t generate interest for the youth which has been fed emotional taka-tak of religion, nationalism, chauvinism and false history. Since YouTube (or forwarded emails) is the only place where Pakistanis go “researching” and finding “academic material”, videos become inevitable as a tool to counter the gibberish. Following is a video based on one of the essays of Eqbal.
Video Credits: Awais Masood, Khurram Naseer, Ale Natiq
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Alternative Links for Video
The video is alternatively available at other video sharing web sites like this, this and this.
Essay: Roots of Religious Right
The essay is available for free reading on Google books here. It can be alternatively read on the Secular Pakistan blog.
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