Islam in the Public Space: The Case of Morocco

Dr. El Ahmadi will examine how Moroccan laws (including the Constitution, Civil Code, and Penal Code) and government policies still maintain a legal system and cultural foundation that undercuts religious freedom. He will discuss the impact of laws dealing with the freedoms of expression and assembly and the public practice of common rites — critical to the manifestation of religious freedom in the public sphere. He will address recent cases concerning the conversion of Muslim youths to Christianity and the arrest of individuals who publicly broke Ramadan fasting rules as a protest.

Dr. Mohsine El Ahmadi is a Professor of sociology at the Cadi Ayyad University in Marrekech, Morocco, and currently a Visiting Scholar at Georgetown University’s Prince Alwaleed bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, where he leads research on Islam and power in the Maghreb (Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia). He has published several books and articles on Islamist movements and religious freedom in Morocco. He is currently working on a study of Quranic schools and traditional education.

This lecture is part of the Center for Religious Freedom’s fall series on "Lifting the Theocratic Iron Curtain: Examining the Application of Muslim Blasphemy and Apostasy Rules in the Contemporary World"