Abdul Haqq Baker (born 1966) is an academic and religious leader. He supports the

Salafi The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generat ...

branch of

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

that is popular in the

Persian Gulf The Persian Gulf ( fa, خلیج فارس, translit=xalij-e fârs, lit=Gulf of Persis, Fars, ), sometimes called the ( ar, اَلْخَلِيْجُ ٱلْعَرَبِيُّ, Al-Khalīj al-ˁArabī), is a Mediterranean sea (oceanography), me ...

. He is known for his work de-radicalizing young

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

s influenced by extremist groups like

al-Qaeda Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...

Early life and education

Baker was born in 1966. His mother and father are from

Guyana Guyana ( or ), officially the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, is a country on the northern mainland of South America. Guyana is an indigenous word which means "Land of Many Waters". The capital city is Georgetown. Guyana is bordered by the ...

and

Nigeria Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...

respectively. Baker was raised Roman Catholic and attended a Christian school, where he first became interested in religion. In his youth, Baker got involved in local gangs, until he converted from

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...

to Islam in 1990. Baker's given name was Anthony Baker, but he adopted his current Muslim name after converting. Specifically, Baker joined the

Salafi movement The Salafi movement or Salafism () is a reform branch movement within Sunni Islam that originated during the nineteenth century. The name refers to advocacy of a return to the traditions of the "pious predecessors" (), the first three generati ...

, a fundamentalist branch of

Sunni Islam Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagre ...

. Baker later earned a Master's degree in Business Administration and a PhD in Political Studies from the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a public university , public research university in Exeter, Devon, England, United Kingdom. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of Min ...

Career

Baker worked as a lawyer for ten years, before becoming the Chairman of The Brixton Mosque and Islamic Cultural Centre in 1994, a position he held for 15 years. While there, he persuaded radical

Abdullah el-Faisal Abdullah el-Faisal (born Trevor William Forrest, also known as Abdullah al-Faisal, Sheikh Faisal, Sheik Faisal, and Imam Al-Jamaikee, born 10 September 1963) is a Jamaican Muslim cleric who preached in the United Kingdom until he was convicted ...

and his followers to leave the mosque after an armed standoff. In 2007, Baker created a controversial initiative called Strategy to Reach, Empower and Educate Teenagers (STREET). Most of STREET's activities were typical of anti-gang youth initiatives, but its de-radicalization program was unusual. It was praised by experts and security professionals for its effectiveness, but criticized by more liberal religious groups and Western countries for supporting the same literal interpretation of the

Quran The Quran (, ; Standard Arabic: , Classical Arabic, Quranic Arabic: , , 'the recitation'), also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation in Islam, revelation from God in Islam, ...

that radicalizes many terrorists. Baker argued it was these very shared religious beliefs STREET had with at-risk Muslim youth that made it approachable. The British government cut funding of 300,000 pounds per annum to STREET in May 2010 after an election caused a change in political leadership. Baker had resigned as Chairman of Brixton, but remained a trustee, in order to focus on the STREET program. According to his website, Baker now does research, lectures, and public speaking events on violence among religious extremists. Baker developed the "Convert's Cognitive Development Framework," which describes the stages of a Muslim's conversion to and from violent radicalism. It has four stages: (1) Founding Phase onversion(2) Youthful Phase ormative(3) Adult Phase oundational(4) Mature Phase eflective Baker encourages institutions to move criminals and radicals to the self-reflective stage, whereby the citizen reflects on the world based on their own personal experiences, rather than emotions and propaganda.

Bibliography

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baker, Abdul Haqq Terrorism articles needing expert attention Islamic fundamentalism Living people 1966 births