Maajid Usman Nawaz is a British activist and former radio presenter. He was the founding chairman of the think tank Quilliam. Until January 2022, he was the host of an LBC radio show on Saturdays and Sundays. Born in Southend-on-Sea, Essex, to a British Pakistani family, Nawaz is a former member of the Islamist group Hizb ut-Tahrir. His membership led to his December 2001 arrest in Egypt, where he remained imprisoned until 2006. While there, he read books about human rights and made contact with Amnesty International who adopted him as a prisoner of conscience. He left Hizb-ut-Tahrir in 2007, renounced his Islamist past, and called for a secular Islam. Later, Nawaz co-founded Quilliam with former Islamists, including Ed Husain.
Nawaz in October 2018
Nawaz (left) with other candidates of the Hampstead and Kilburn constituency
Radical: My Journey out of Islamist Extremism
Radical: My Journey out of Islamist Extremism is a 2012 memoir by the British activist Maajid Nawaz, who is also a former Islamist. First published in the United Kingdom, the book describes Nawaz's journey "from Muslim extremist to taking tea at Number 10". The United States edition contains a preface for American readers and a new, updated epilogue.
First edition book cover