Muhammad Abdul Bari (; born October 1953), is a
Bangladesh
Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...
i-born
British
British may refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies.
* British national identity, the characteristics of British people and culture ...
physicist
A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate cau ...
, writer, teacher, and
community leader. He is a former secretary of
Muslim Aid, a former chairman of the
East London Mosque, and a former secretary general of the
Muslim Council of Britain. He also served as the president of the
Islamic Forum of Europe (IFE) in its early years when it was formed to organize Bangladeshi diaspora professionals in Europe. In addition to consultancy work, he has written for publications including ''
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
'' and
Al Jazeera, and has authored numerous books.
He has been described as one of the most powerful Asian Muslims in Western Europe. In 2006,
''Time Out'' put him at #7 on its list of movers and shakers in London.
He has also been listed as a community leader in ''
The 500 Most Influential Muslims''.
Early life and education
Abdul Bari joined the
Bangladesh Air Force in 1978, after studying at
Chittagong University. He married in 1981 and left the Air Force the following year. After moving to the United Kingdom, he earned a doctorate in physics from
King's College London
King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public university, public research university in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of George IV of the United Kingdom, King George IV ...
in 1986 and joined
Royal Holloway, University of London
Royal Holloway, University of London (RH), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public university, public research university and a constituent college, member institution of the federal University of London. It ...
, as a
postdoctoral research
A postdoctoral fellow, postdoctoral researcher, or simply postdoc, is a person professionally conducting research after the completion of their doctoral studies (typically a PhD). Postdocs most commonly, but not always, have a temporary acade ...
er. There, he became involved in community work.
He began teaching after completing a
Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) at King's College London in 1991. He spent five years teaching science at a secondary school in
Haringey, London,
and joined the Tower Hamlets Education Authority as a special educational needs specialist in 1997.
Career
TELCO is now a branch of
Citizens UK (CUK), an alliance of local community organizing groups in London,
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
,
Cardiff
Cardiff (; ) is the capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of Wales. Cardiff had a population of in and forms a Principal areas of Wales, principal area officially known as the City and County of Ca ...
,
Milton Keynes
Milton Keynes ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in Buckinghamshire, England, about north-west of London. At the 2021 Census, the population of Milton Keynes urban area, its urban area was 264,349. The River Great Ouse forms t ...
, and
Nottingham
Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...
. Abdul Bari is a member of CUK's National Council and advised CUK's Commission on Islam, Participation, and Public Life, which was created in September 2015 to confront rising
Islamophobia
Islamophobia is the irrational fear of, hostility towards, or hatred against the religion of Islam or Muslims in general. Islamophobia is primarily a form of religious or cultural bigotry; and people who harbour such sentiments often stereot ...
since the
7 July 2005 London bombings
The 7 July 2005 London bombings, also referred to as 7/7, were a series of four co-ordinated suicide attacks carried out by Islamist terrorists that targeted commuters travelling on Transport in London, London's public transport during the ...
.
He served on the
London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Board (LOCOG), which was responsible for preparing for and staging the
2012 Summer Olympics
The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...
.
In 2014, he created the website ''Head2heart'' as a sociopolitical commenting platform, in addition to his business website ''AmanaParenting'', which provides parenting support and consultancy work.
He created a bilingual (Bengali and English) YouTube channel under the same ''AmanaParenting'' banner, in 2015 to advise on parenting in a pluralist society. In 2018, Dr Abdul Bari consolidated his two previous websites and now presents his thought leadership on various social, political and community topics as well as parenting services through his personal blog ''DrAbdulBari .''
Awards and recognition
In the
2003 New Year Honours, Abdul Bari was appointed a member of the
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...
.
In 2005, he was made a fellow of the
Royal Society of Arts
The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce, commonly known as the Royal Society of Arts (RSA), is a learned society that champions innovation and progress across a multitude of sectors by fostering creativity, s ...
. In July 2008, he was made an honorary fellow of
Queen Mary University of London
Queen Mary University of London (QMUL, or informally QM, and formerly Queen Mary and Westfield College) is a public university, public research university in Mile End, East London, England. It is a member institution of the federal University ...
.
The ''
London Evening Standard
The ''London Standard'', formerly the ''Evening Standard'' (1904–2024) and originally ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), is a long-established regional newspaper published weekly and distributed free of charge in London, England. It is print ...
'' listed him as one of London's 1,000 most influential people in 2009. He was also recognised for outstanding achievement in Islamic affairs and community relations by ''British Bangladeshi Who's Who''. In 2013, he was included in the
British Bangladeshi Power 100.
The
University of East London
University of East London (UEL) is a public university located in the London Borough of Newham, London, England, based at three campuses in Stratford, London, Stratford and London Docklands, Docklands, following the opening of University Squar ...
granted him an honorary doctorate in education in November 2012 "for his work as Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain from 2006 to 2010 and for his contribution to the cultural life of east London". In the 11th Muslim Awards Ceremony of ''
The Muslim News'' in March 2013, he received the ''Iman wa Amal'' (Faith and Action) Special Award.
Abdul Bari was appointed deputy lieutenant of the Greater London Lieutenancy in July 2016.
Views
Abdul Bari has appeared in the British media to speak about Muslims in Britain, integration, and efforts to control the rise of fundamentalism among and against Muslims since the
11 September 2001 and 7 July 2005 attacks. In an interview with ''
The Daily Telegraph
''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a British daily broadsheet conservative newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed in the United Kingdom and internationally. It was found ...
'', he linked the rise of Islamophobia to elements of the media and to some politicians. "Some police officers and sections of the media are demonising Muslims, treating them as if they're all terrorists — and that encourages other people to do the same", he said.
He contrasted the one-dimensional portrayal of the Muslim population with the treatment of
Catholics in Britain in the 20th century: "We shouldn't say Muslim terrorists; it stigmatises the whole community. We never called the IRA Catholic terrorists."
He argued that the British government's response to
violent extremism
Violent extremism is a form of extremism that condones and enacts violence with Ideology, ideological or deliberate intent, such as Religious violence, religious or political violence. Violent extremist views often conflate with Religious violen ...
had created tensions both within the Muslim population and between it and the rest of society, and warned of the consequences of poisoning people's minds against an entire community, as happened in
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...
in the 1930s.
Abdul Bari often writes about family and parenting, as well as social, political, and global issues, in ''
The Huffington Post
''HuffPost'' (''The Huffington Post'' until 2017, itself often abbreviated as ''HPo'') is an American progressive news website, with localized and international editions. The site offers news, satire, blogs, and original content, and covers p ...
'' and ''
Al Jazeera English
Al Jazeera English (AJE; , ) is a 24-hour English-language News broadcasting, news channel operating under Al Jazeera Media Network, which is funded by the government of Qatar. Al Jazeera introduced an English-language division in 2006. It is ...
''. On parenting, he urges the involvement of both mothers and fathers, calling them the "grass-root leaders for every generation of newcomers on earth".
In April 2016, the propaganda magazine of ISIS (Daesh) published a hit list of Muslim leaders in the West calling to "Kill the Imams of Kufr (the infidels) in the West". His name was among five in the UK.
Personal life
Abdul Bari's interests include reading and travelling.
He speaks
Bengali and English fluently and is married with four children.
Books
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eBooks
* —— (2022). ''Saving Our Planet: How citizens can thwart a climate calamity''. Amazon. ASIN B0BQZ96ZNM.
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See also
*
British Bangladeshi
*
List of British Bangladeshis
References
External links
* Harrison, David
Media 'contributing to rise of Islamophobia' ''
The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...
''. 10 September 2006
'British should try arranged marriages' ''
The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...
''. 10 June 2006
'Trust at risk' after terror raid ''
The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...
''. 6 June 2006
* Sylvester, Rachel; Thomson, Alice
Dr Bari: Government stoking Muslim tension''
The Telegraph
''The Telegraph'', ''Daily Telegraph'', ''Sunday Telegraph'' and other variant names are often names for newspapers. Newspapers with these titles include:
Australia
* The Telegraph (Adelaide), ''The Telegraph'' (Adelaide), a newspaper in Adelaid ...
''. 10 November 2007
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abdul Bari, Muhammad
1953 births
Living people
Bangladeshi Muslims
British Muslims
Bangladeshi emigrants to England
British people of Bangladeshi descent
Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom
Bangladesh Air Force personnel
Schoolteachers from London
British religious writers
British columnists
British Asian writers
Writers from London
People from Tangail District
People from Tooting
Alumni of Royal Holloway, University of London
Alumni of King's College London
Alumni of the Open University
Bangladeshi Members of the Order of the British Empire
Deputy lieutenants of Greater London
Islamic scholars in the United Kingdom