The greatest and most consequential innovations in human history have never resulted from an abundance of religious piety. The progress that improves lives comes as a result of scientific inquiry and a spirit of rationality.
Thousand-year-old religious texts cannot provide meaningful insight into the material nature of our world, nor does orthodoxy tend to respect free inquiry. Today in the Islamic world, many states enforce anti-science laws as a direct result of their non-secular nature. Meanwhile, distrust for naturalistic explanations of the world is a problem that runs through religious communities of all stripes.
Scientific facts nearly always begin as heresies. It is only by recognizing this that we can hope to understand ourselves and the world we live in.
Welcome Back
This week, we’re tracking a global tug-of-war over the hijab—one that’s testing the boundaries of religious freedom, secularism, and state power. In Iran, the regime is cornered, pressured by both defiant citizens and outraged hardliners. In France, new legislation threatens to sideline Muslim women in the name of laïcité. And in the UK, Mubarak Bala calls on lawmakers to practice what they preach by ending their own blasphemy laws.
Unbelief Brief
Welcome Back, Dissenter
In a surprising development, court proceedings in Pakistan involving fabricated blasphemy accusations are being streamed online, signaling a shift in public awareness and concern over the misuse of these laws. Meanwhile, a recent television drama, inspired by the tragic case of Mashal Khan, sheds light on the issue. On a different note, an assault on a hijab-clad woman in Ontario has raised questions about the motivations behind hate crimes. EXMNA Insights takes a closer look at what fasting during Ramadan is really about.
Unbelief Brief
Blasphemy Laws, Global Injustice, and the Fight for Free Expression
Blasphemy laws are as predictable as they are destructive—whether it’s Malaysia’s police pursuing an online post, the Taliban facing international charges, or a Catholic group in Indonesia using the same laws to silence criticism. This week, The Unbelief Brief examines these cases and what they reveal about the unrelenting grip of religious authority in legal systems worldwide. Plus, in EXMNA Insights, we explore the hidden toll of Ramadan on women, where societal pressures override religious exemptions, forcing impossible choices between faith, health, and survival.
Unbelief Brief
Another week, another battle for freedom
From Iran’s hijab crackdown to creative Ramadan rule-bending, this week’s Dissent Dispatch covers resistance in all its forms. The Unbelief Brief details how Iranian President Mahmoud Pezeshkian’s refusal to enforce the new hijab law signals potential change—but women still face brutal repression for defying the dress code. Meanwhile, as International Women’s Day approaches, the regime’s hypocrisy is on full display, with artists like Mehdi Yarrahi facing lashings for daring to speak out.
This Week’s Latest
This week, The Unbelief Brief examines the brutal persistence of honor killings and the Taliban’s escalating repression in Afghanistan. EXMNA Insights explores the irony of the Nation of Islam rejecting slave names only to adopt others with similar implications.
This Week: Blasphemy, Power & Secrecy
From journalists to judges, The Unbelief Brief explores how no one is safe from Pakistan’s blasphemy vigilantes. But a new court order might be the first step toward dismantling these extremist networks. Meanwhile, in honor of Black History Month, EXMNA Insights takes a closer look at the Nation of Islam—its origins, its controversial teachings, and its place within the broader Islamic world.
The Unbelief Brief
Welcome to This Edition of the Unbelief Brief
This week, in The Unbelief Brief, we examine a heartbreaking case of honor violence. In the UK, a man has been convicted under a law that increasingly resembles a de-facto blasphemy law, raising concerns about free speech. In EXMNA Insights we dive into a critical yet often overlooked discussion: the deep historical ties between Islam and the transatlantic slave trade.
The Unbelief Brief
Your Weekly Dispatch Has Arrived
Welcome back! This week’s Unbelief Brief takes us to the unusual suspects of Sweden, Quebec, and New York. We share our thoughts about Miraj in EXMNA Insights and share a recent case from Pakistan in The Persecution Tracker.
The Unbelief Brief
Welcome Back to This Week’s Insights
This week’s Unbelief Brief takes us from Bangladesh’s unsettling proposal to remove secularism as a guiding principle of the state, to Spain’s encouraging steps toward repealing its outdated blasphemy law, and finally to the murky complexities of a Sri Lankan monk’s imprisonment over incendiary anti-Muslim rhetoric. Finally, in EXMNA Insights we explore what Religious Freedom Day means to us.
