Imrul Islam works for the Bridge Initiative, a research project on Islamophobia in Washington, D.C. He is a M.A candidate for Conflict Resolution at Georgetown University.

Posts By This Author

'Hum Dekhenge': Power and Pain in Modi’s India

by Imrul Islam 12-23-2019

People shout slogans during a protest, organised by West Bengal State Jamiat-e-Ulama, an Islamic organisation, against a new citizenship law, in Kolkata, India, Dec. 22, 2019. REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri

The recent protests might have been precipitated by the Citizenship Amendment Act, but they are the culmination of long-held grievances. 

An Unholy Alliance: Statecraft and Islamophobia in South Asia

by Imrul Islam 08-15-2019

Kashmiri women shout pro-freedom slogans before offering the Eid-al-Adha prayers at a mosque during restrictions after the scrapping of the special constitutional status for Kashmir by the Indian government, in Srinagar, Aug. 12, 2019. REUTERS/Danish Siddiqui

In Narendra Modi’s India, an ominous new project is in progress. The recently instituted National Registry for Citizens (NRC) in Assam excludes almost 4 million from citizenship – effectively creating one of the largest groups of stateless people anywhere in the world. A majority of them are Muslims, and while those of other faiths can apply for reconsideration, Muslims cannot. Reports indicate plans to implement NRCs in other borderlands.

Rape Is the Most Despicable War Crime. It’s Also the Hardest to Prove

by Imrul Islam 07-26-2019

Image via Mohammad Rakibul Hasan 

Interestingly, the ambit of 'flashbulb memory' provides insight into cases where courts have failed to prosecute crimes of sexual violence — those hearings took place years after the actual event. In those years, memories we thought to be foolproof had deteriorated as survivors battled trauma, tragedy, and time. As testimonies were vetted for reliability, misconceptions around memory articulated through each step of the legal processn and increased the probability of a miscarriage of justice.