As in my earlier post on Israel and competing myths of exclusive origin, Kashmir serves as a good example of national myths and territorial claims. But unlike Israel, Kashmir has a special place for us. It's the place from where our forebears originated, before we became a settled community in the UK. Like Israel it is a contested piece...

You must have heard the claim that modern-day Israel is a country with another people’s language and religion?  If you haven’t, antisemitism has become so common these days (I’m speaking of hatred against Jews, and not criticism against Israel), that you’ve probably come across multiple versions of the claim without even realising it. The idea is a simple one; our...

If you buy into far-right rhetoric, the children of immigrants, two, three and even four generations removed are not really British. Outside this nativism - something that is at stark odds with mainstream beliefs, Britain does have a problem with race - just speak to Black professional footballers. This is not a controversial point although it can be emotive...

I can dance, I can sing I only do my thing I can run, I can hide I take myself with pride Because I only have one life Sometimes I’m organised, sometimes I’m just a mess, and I know I will always try my very best Shout out your opinions to me Cuz I don’t cry easily I’m not afraid to share my thoughts, because I’m a person who can talk!!! Hannah...

It’s okay to maim my name for I am an inconsequential thing You can place me on the shelves of Primark and Aldi Mine is a ‘budget identity’, made on the cheap - no frills! But a long time ago, in the era of benign Kings and Queens My people’s fortunes and graces were celebrated afar On distant plains, if...

Steven Garner, author of "Racism, an Introduction" said, "'Race' is a fiction that we turn into a social reality every day of our lives. It lies at the heart of the complex, historical and multifaceted sets of social relationships to which we attach the label 'racism'. This is a historical process, a set of ideas and a set of outcomes...

This is how the Economist explains the "Kashmir" conflict using the colonial label of 'Hindus' and 'Muslims' - these are 'constructed labels' however common-sense they seem to us today! There is a huge scholarly body of knowledge that demonstrates that before the emergence of the British Indian Empire, the ethnically diverse peoples of India did not self-ascribe on the...

I've included the following account to give an idea of how skewed international representations of the Princely State of Jammu & Kashmir's are, not least because they almost all entirely rely on a small pool of 'native' actors committed to extolling the history and political priorities - as they imagine them - of a small area in the Princely State of Jammu...

Vali Nasr, author of ''Forces of Fortune - the rise of the new Muslim Middle Class and what it will mean for our our world" said, "The truth is that that the West's best ally against fundamentalism and extremism in Pakistan is not, and never was, that country's incorrigibly double-dealing military and intelligence establishment, but rather civil society and pro-democracy forces that Musharraf...

The needle has struck, the hour has come, and the open road unwinds. With a heavy heart,  I place my soul’s keeping  into nature’s lair for the journey ahead. Of human depredation, her foibles, her impatience, I know her misspent youth. And so I pocket my worldly things,  and hit the road...