Photo of Kenan Malik
Kenan Malik

Columnist

Kenan Malik is a writer, lecturer and broadcaster. He has presented Nightwaves on Radio 3, Analysis on Radio 4 and was, for his sins, a panelist on the Moral Maze. His books include Not So Black and White, a history of the idea of race, The Quest for a Moral Compass, a global history of ethics, and From Fatwa to Jihad, on the Rushdie affair and its legacy. He is currently writing a book questioning both liberalism and its critics.

Photo of Kenan Malik

Kenan Malik

Columnist

Kenan Malik is a writer, lecturer and broadcaster. He has presented Nightwaves on Radio 3, Analysis on Radio 4 and was, for his sins, a panelist on the Moral Maze. His books include Not So Black and White, a history of the idea of race, The Quest for a Moral Compass, a global history of ethics, and From Fatwa to Jihad, on the Rushdie affair and its legacy. He is currently writing a book questioning both liberalism and its critics.

  • Kenan Malik
    The real threat isn’t a ‘woke right’ – it’s conservatism’s old demons

    Current tensions within the Maga movement have in fact been brewing for a long time

    Sun, 16 Nov 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Violent crime is at a low, yet people’s experiences tell a different story

    In a Britain that feels politically voiceless, it’s no surprise that lawbreaking takes on an exaggerated aspect

    Sun, 9 Nov 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    ‘Privatisation has made a Dad’s Army of the state’

    The market-oriented approach has left services hollowed out while generating huge profits for private companies

    Sun, 2 Nov 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Expelling legal migrants is an Idi Amin move

    Katie Lam’s plan for expulsions opens the door to curtailing the rights of us all

    Sat, 25 Oct 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Without a two-state solution, what hope is there?

    Both sides in the conflict are entrenched in their unwillingness to cede ground to the other

    Sun, 19 Oct 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Art isn’t too complex for the working class – that’s elitism

    The myth that culture has not been for the masses is debunked in a new book

    Sun, 12 Oct 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Illiberalism won’t help the working class

    If we fail to uphold equality and democracy, where will our society be?

    Sun, 5 Oct 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Reframing criticism of Israel as antisemitism fails Jews

    The sense of what defines anti-Jewish bigotry has changed radically since the 70s

    Sun, 28 Sept 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    The working-class despair fuelling the rise of the far right

    Under the racist chants at last week’s rally lies a deep sense of political betrayal

    Sun, 21 Sept 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Charlie Kirk killing puts America to the test over the freedom to disagree

    There’s a risk that political violence becomes a weapon in the culture wars

    Sun, 14 Sept 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    British identity isn’t neatly tied in red, white and blue

    The current debate over flying the national flag is not as important as the common values we want to ascribe to it

    Sun, 7 Sept 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    If Farage starts deporting ‘illegals’, ‘legals’ better watch out

    In a climate of fear, everyone is at risk of mistreatment – just look at the States

    Sun, 31 Aug 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Lucy Connolly is no hero, but her words shouldn’t be a crime

    Lionising a woman who stirred up racial hatred is a moral failure of the right

    Sun, 24 Aug 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Our shameful past has a vital message about immigration

    Deplorable attitudes to refugees failed to stop solidarity across the divides

    Sun, 17 Aug 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Our social fabric is torn but it’s just easier to blame immigration

    The real causes of serious problems are ignored and those responsible are let off the hook

    Sun, 10 Aug 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    AI thrives where education has been devalued

    A culture that views knowledge as a means to an end invites the misuse of new technology

    Sat, 2 Aug 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    What would Frantz Fanon say about Gaza?

    The postcolonial thinker's ideas were more nuanced than his myth suggests

    Sun, 27 Jul 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Kenan Malik: ‘Controlling the narrative’ always fails

    A catastrophic data breach put thousands at risk. But the attempt to bury the story may have done even greater damage

    Sat, 19 Jul 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Modern racism has become loud and proud

    The response to a photo of a class in London shows how ethnic notions of national identity have seeped into mainstream conservatism

    Sun, 13 Jul 2025

  • Kenan Malik
    Free speech for all! Except for Bob Vylan

    The outrage over the band's chants shows how the meaning of incitement has been expanded

    Sat, 5 Jul 2025

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