#7 Human Rights, Islam, Secularism & Sudan w/Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na’im

Anthropology on Air

This episode is the second of two podcasts focusing on the longstanding partnership between Bergen and Khartoum.

In the episode you will meet, Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na’im, who visited Bergen in October 2023 to give the keynote lecture at a 3-day symposium that marked the 60-year anniversary of this collaboration. An-Na’im is Charles Howard Candler Professor of Law at Emory Law, associated professor in the Emory College of Arts and Sciences, and senior fellow of the Center for the Study of Law and Religion of Emory University. He is the author of several pioneering books within human rights and Islamic law, including Decolonizing Human Rights(2021); What is an American Muslim (2014); Muslims and Global Justice (2011); and Islam and the Secular State (2008).

In the podcast, professor emeritus at the Department of Social Anthropology at Bergen University, Leif Manger, interviews An-Na’im about his background and main work. An-Na’im begins by describing his defining relationship with Mahmoud Mohammed Taha and Taha’s teachings about “The Second Message of Islam”. Taking us through some of his major academic contributions, An-Na’im then reflects on his previous engagements with human rights in a cross-cultural perspective and his commitment to advocating the agency of people to protect their own rights. Finally, Leif asks for An-Na’im’s thoughts on the question that he himself posed in the title of his keynote lecture, namely: ‘Sudan’s tragedy – a repeated failure or a learning adaptation process?’

Read more about Abdullahi Ahmed An-Na’im’s work on his research page and on his professional website evolutionofsharia.org