A 2012 survey by the Pew Research Center found that 71 percent of people in Turkey and 67 percent in Egypt prefer a democratic form of government. And yet when it came time to vote, people used the ballot box to favor authoritarian leaders – Abdel Fattah el-Sissi in Egypt and Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Turkey. Democracy is not just the will of the majority, it is...

Growing up in India, I had taken India’s secularism for granted. Not just secularism of the state but also pluralism in society. It was not unusual for my Hindu friends to visit my home during Eids and I looked forward to visiting their homes during Pujas. Several of my family members married Hindus and although it did create moments of awkwardness, in general,...

A version of this was published in the Florida Times Union on April 10, 2017 How do you solve a problem like Syria? First, by being honest. This maybe the greatest humanitarian tragedy of our lifetime. Earlier this month, the number of Syrian refugee crossed 5 million with half of those being children. A conflict that began in March 2011 with ordinary Syrians...

Patheos, April 6, 2017 I serve on the board of Atlantic Institute of Jacksonville, whose mission is to promote diversity and inclusion through engagement and dialogue. Atlantic Institute was founded by members of the Hizmet (Service) movement led by Fethullah Gulen, who lives a reclusive life in Pennsylvania. Turkey wants Gulen extradited because of his alleged but...

Huffington Post, March 1, 2017 Moments after Donald Trump’s first speech to Congress, Senate Majority leader Mitch McConnell, a Republican, and CNN commentator Van Jones, a Democrat, both declared the speech as “presidential.” If the dictionary definition of presidential as “having a bearing or demeanor befitting a president; dignified and confident” is...