EDIP YUKSEL, J.D.

Edip Yüksel in front of his home in Tucson, Arizona 4 November 2015

EDIP YUKSEL. J.D. (1957) American-Turkish-Kurdish author, philosopher, inventor and progressive activist, spent over four years in prisons in 1980s for promoting a Sunni revolution in Turkey. In 1986, experienced a paradigm change, leading him to reject his Sunni religion. Through the second volume of his book, Interesting Questions, he publicly rejected his best-selling books which promoted Sunni Theocracy. He was rejected by his father, a prominent Sunni scholar, and was excommunicated. He immigrated to the USA in 1989 to escape from religious and political oppression. He parted ways from his comrades, including Tayyip Erdogan and Ahmed Davudoglu, who have been leading Turkish politics for over a decade. Multiple fatwas declared him heretic and apostate, making him target for assassination. In 1989, he was sponsored for immigration to the USA by Rashad Khalifa and worked together in Masjid Tucson until his mentor’s assassination in 1990.

Edip Yuksel is the author of over thirty books and hundreds of articles on religion, politics, philosophy and law in Turkish and English. His English books include:

Quran: a Reformist Translation,
Manifesto for Islamic Reform,
Peacemaker’s Guide to Warmongers,
NINETEEN: God’s Signature in Nature and Scripture,
Critical Thinkers for Islamic Reform,
19 Questions for Muslims,
19 Questions for Christians,
10 Questions for Atheists,

Edip Yuksel is the author of over thirty books and hundreds of articles on religion, politics, philosophy and law in Turkish and English. His English books include Quran: a Reformist Translation, Manifesto for Islamic Reform, Peacemaker’s Guide to Warmongers, NINETEEN: God’s Signature in Nature and Scripture, 19 Questions for Christians, 10 Questions for Atheists. Edip organizes international Critical Thinkers for Reform conferences, so far in Atlanta, Oxford, Los Angeles, Almaty, and Istanbul. He is the co-editor of the anthology carrying the same name.

Edip Yuksel has given lectures at various universities, including University of Arizona, Emory Law, UT Dortmund, Oxford University, Middle East Technical University, Princeton University, European Parliament and British Parliament. After receiving his bachelor’s degrees from the University of Arizona in Philosophy and Near Eastern Studies, Edip received his law degree from the same university. Besides activism, writing and lecturing, Edip works as an Adjunct Philosophy professor at Pima Community College. Edip is fluent in Turkish, English and Classic Arabic, proficient in Persian, and barely conversant in Kurdish, his mother tongue.

Here is a sample of my ENGLISH interviews, lectures and debates:

1-minute trailer:

Peacemaker’s Constitution at Princeton University

With Prof. Noam Chomsky on Politics

Debate with Dr. David Silverman, the president of American Atheist Organization

Speech at European Parliament (most of it)

Speech at British Parliament (without question-answer session) (27 November 2017)

ISIS follows Sunni Religion, an interview by RUDAW TV

Interviewing Lesley Hazleton on Prophet Muhammad

With Prof. Abdullahi An-Naim

Peace Activist Cole Harrison

1-minute clip from my talk at European Parliament (7 June 2012)

5-minute Recent #FreeYuksel campaign

2-minute Kurdish rights campaign

Debate with Shamsi Ali, the imam of the biggest mosque in New York
(Starting with a big smile on his face, he ends up getting angry and escaping from the discussion; in his own mosque)

1-minute clip made by one of my fans from my videos

Ruby Amatulla of MPJP

Islamic Reform – Freedom of Expression

Challenge at Ground Zero

Charlie Hebdo Exposes the Hypocricy of East and West

I have too many Turkish public debate on TV programs and conferences. Here are just a few. They are watched by millions of Turkish people:

Live debate on Islamic Reform with the Turkish President of the Association of Muslim Theologians.

(Mustafa Yazıcı keeps losing the theological arguments, and at one point, he attacks me and grabs the Quran from my hand, yanks it forcefully from my hands)

Edip Yüksel (T) Ceviz Kabuğu 17 Ocak 2014

A memorable live debate with the former Chief of Turkish Religious Affairs, Dr. Süleyman Ateş. (Losing the theological arguments, he escaped from the studio twice, each time brought back by the host promising him that Edip will be softer on him)

Edip Yüksel (T) Süleyman Ateş ile Tartıştma 1/2

Meeting with some popular Turkish academics who are close to our Islamic Reform movement

A theological debate on Hadith with the leader of religious order. After exposing his contradictions, the “peaceful” Sheikh, at one point, tells me that he will “chop off my neck” if I do not revert back to Sunni religion.