Abdul Haqq Baker (born 1966) is an academic and religious leader. He supports the

Salafi The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a fundamentalist revival movement within Sunni Islam, originating in the late 19th century and influential in the Islamic world to this day. The name "''Salafiyya''" is a self-designation, claiming a retu ...

branch of

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

that is popular in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf, sometimes called the Arabian Gulf, is a Mediterranean seas, mediterranean sea in West Asia. The body of water is an extension of the Arabian Sea and the larger Indian Ocean located between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula.Un ...

. He is known for his work de-radicalizing young

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

s influenced by extremist groups like

al-Qaeda , image = Flag of Jihad.svg , caption = Jihadist flag, Flag used by various al-Qaeda factions , founder = Osama bin Laden{{Assassinated, Killing of Osama bin Laden , leaders = {{Plainlist, * Osama bin Lad ...

Early life and education

Baker was born in 1966. His mother and father are from

Guyana Guyana, officially the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern coast of South America, part of the historic British West Indies. entry "Guyana" Georgetown, Guyana, Georgetown is the capital of Guyana and is also the co ...

and

Nigeria Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...

respectively. Baker was raised Roman Catholic and attended a Christian school, where he first became interested in religion. In his youth, Baker got involved in local gangs, until he converted from

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

to Islam in 1990. Baker's given name was Anthony Baker, but he adopted his current Muslim name after converting. Specifically, Baker joined the

Salafi movement The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a fundamentalist revival movement within Sunni Islam, originating in the late 19th century and influential in the Islamic world to this day. The name "''Salafiyya''" is a self-designation, claiming a retu ...

, a fundamentalist branch of

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam is the largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any Succession to Muhammad, successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr ...

. Baker later earned a Master's degree in Business Administration and a PhD in Political Studies from the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...

Career

Baker worked as a lawyer for ten years, before becoming the Chairman of The Brixton Mosque and Islamic Cultural Centre in 1994, a position he held for 15 years. While there, he persuaded radical

Abdullah el-Faisal Abdullah el-Faisal (born Trevor William Forrest, also known as Abdullah al-Faisal, Sheikh Faisal, Sheik Faisal, and Imam Al-Jamaikee, born 10 September 1963) is a Jamaican Muslim cleric who preached in the United Kingdom until he was convicted ...

and his followers to leave the mosque after an armed standoff. In 2007, Baker created a controversial initiative called Strategy to Reach, Empower and Educate Teenagers (STREET). Most of STREET's activities were typical of anti-gang youth initiatives, but its de-radicalization program was unusual. It was praised by experts and security professionals for its effectiveness, but criticized by more liberal religious groups and Western countries for supporting the same literal interpretation of the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

that radicalizes many terrorists. Baker argued it was these very shared religious beliefs STREET had with at-risk Muslim youth that made it approachable. The British government cut funding of £300,000 per annum to STREET in May 2010 after an election caused a change in political leadership. Baker had resigned as Chairman of Brixton, but remained a trustee, in order to focus on the STREET program. According to his website, Baker now does research, lectures, and public speaking events on violence among religious extremists. Baker developed the "Convert's Cognitive Development Framework," which describes the stages of a Muslim's conversion to and from violent radicalism. It has four stages: (1) Founding Phase onversion(2) Youthful Phase ormative(3) Adult Phase oundational(4) Mature Phase eflective Baker encourages institutions to move criminals and radicals to the self-reflective stage, whereby the citizen reflects on the world based on their own personal experiences, rather than emotions and propaganda.

Bibliography

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Abdul Haqq Terrorism articles needing expert attention Islamic fundamentalism Living people 1966 births Alumni of the University of Exeter