Islam and Human Rights: Tradition and Politics - Softcover

"In this fifth edition of what has become a classic book, Mayer provides an early look at the human rights implications of the Arab Spring, and by substantially expanding coverage of new movements (particularly among women) and the newly emerging issues of gender and sexual orientation, offers considerably more than a simple update. Islam and Human Rights belongs in the library of any scholar seriously interested in its important topics. Highly recommended." -Choice "A unique contribution to the discourse and practice of human rights." -Reza Afshari, Pace University "A winning reference for any discussion on Islam and human rights issues." -The Midwest Book Review Praise for Prior Editions: "Highly recommended to all scholars and students of human rights in the Muslim world...Particularly useful for its incisive deconstructions of government-sponsored 'alternative' human rights frameworks, and the political calculations at their heart." -Anthony Chase, Occidental College

Islam and Human Rights is a probing examination of how the Islamic tradition has been exploited for political ends by regimes and institutions seeking to legitimize policies inimical to human rights. Ann Elizabeth Mayer critically appraises Islamic human rights schemes that dilute the human rights afforded by international law, comparing them with the complex Islamic legal heritage and international human rights law. Challenging stereotypes about a supposedly monolithic Islam inherently incompatible with human rights, Mayer dissects the political motives behind the selective deployment of elements of the Islamic tradition by conservative forces seeking to delegitimize demands for democracy and human rights.

The fifth edition provides an updated consideration of government policies on Islam and human rights activism and how they are affecting developments in several Middle Eastern countries, and features a new chapter on the resistance of human rights for sexual minorities by the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) project to co-opt international human rights law to criminalize 'defamation of Islam' occurring in the West. The new edition also analyzes the other most recent and important issues of the region, including: The burgeoning pressures in the Middle East for human rights leading up to the Arab Spring; The ambitious campaign of the (OIC) to influence the UN human rights system by forging alliances with non-Muslim states hostile to human rights; The concerted efforts by this cross-cultural alliance to subvert international human rights law under pretenses of supporting human rights; The intensifying controversies over issues of sexual orientation and gender identity in the Middle East; The Danish Cartoons controversy and the OIC project to co-opt international human rights law to criminalize 'defamation of Islam' occurring in the West.