Shada Islam

Brussels

EU Analyst and Commentator at Freelance

Columnist at EUobserver

Articles

Why are EU-Africa relations are still performative?

1 month ago | euobserver.com | Shada Islam

European policymakers once hailed Africa as a “sister continent”. Fast forward to 2025 and for most African states, the EU appears to be — at best — a distant relative.
Some depressing home truths on International Womens' Day

1 month ago | euobserver.com | Shada Islam

The alarming rise in violence against women is a major global emergency. World leaders should recognise and treat it as such. Sexually violent crimes against women, including rape and torture, are proliferating in conflict zones like Ukraine, Gaza, Congo, and Sudan. There is gender apartheid in Afghanistan, and institutional discrimination against women in Iran. Women refugees face rape and detention as they try and enter Fortress Europe.
'Brussels So White' - but what role play journalists?

1 month ago | euobserver.com | Shada Islam

Writing about structural racism in the EU is not for the faint-hearted. It requires persistence, resilience and a (very) thick skin. Additional assets? An ability to separate fact from fiction and differentiate myth from reality. Perhaps also a touch of kindness and empathy, a minimal understanding of societal power asymmetries, and yes, a dogged determi...
Trump and Vance have smashed the old order – how should Europe respond?

2 months ago | msn.com | Nathalie Tocci |Yanis Varoufakis |Rokhaya Diallo |Shada Islam |John Kampfner |Lorenzo Marsili

Microsoft Cares About Your PrivacyMicrosoft and our third-party vendors use cookies to store and access information such as unique IDs to deliver, maintain and improve our services and ads. If you agree, MSN and Microsoft Bing will personalise the content and ads that you see. You can select ‘I Accept’ to consent to these uses or click on ‘Manage preferences’ to review your options and exercise your right to object to Legitimate Interest where used.
Trump and Vance have smashed the old order – how should Europe respond? | Nathalie Tocci, Yanis Varoufakis and others

2 months ago | theguardian.com | Nathalie Tocci |Yanis Varoufakis |Shada Islam |John Kampfner |Lorenzo Marsili

This assault on democracy has left Europe reeling – and aloneNathalie TocciGuardian Europe columnistFor years, many of us assumed that with the decline of the US-led liberal international order, the split between democracies and autocracies would be what shaped the contemporary world. Liberal democracies in America, Europe and Asia would stick together, while China, Russia, Iran and North Korea would increasingly cooperate.
To salvage EU’s shattered global reputation, Kallas must not ignore Gaza

2 months ago | euobserver.com | Shada Islam

Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign and security policy chief, is living up to her reputation for steely resolve in the face of Russia’s war in Ukraine. She must take a similarly strong stance against Israel’s genocide in Gaza
¿Integrarnos? Los musulmanes europeos estamos condenados tanto si lo hacemos como si no

Jan 2, 2025 | eldiario.es | Shada Islam

Informar sobre el aumento de la hostilidad contra los musulmanes en Europa significa escuchar repetidamente las mismas generalizaciones sobre los 25 millones de musulmanes europeos.
Integrate? Europe’s Muslims are damned if we do and damned if we don’t | Shada Islam

Jan 1, 2025 | theguardian.com | Shada Islam

Reporting on the rise of anti-Muslim hostility across Europe means repeatedly hearing generalisations about Europe’s 25 million Muslims. We are – all of us – too religious, easily drawn to extremism and terrorism, we live in parallel societies and Muslim women, especially those who wear the hijab, are victims of fanatical patriarchal oppression or foot soldiers in a drive to replace indigenous white Europeans.
Going into 2025, Europe is sitting atop a 'volcano' of racism

Nov 25, 2024 | euobserver.com | Shada Islam

It’s been an agonising year and 2025 is unlikely to be any better. Gaza’s besieged population, or what’s left of it after more than a year of devastating Israeli strikes, now faces a full-blown, man-made
Inclusion is out, hate is in - the EU's ugly 'new normal'

Oct 21, 2024 | euobserver.com | Shada Islam

Opinionby Shada Islam, Brussels, October 22, 2024, 10:53:59 AMEurope’s far-right politicians are on a roll. Wooed, courted and normalised, the once-pariah peddlars of hate and discrimination now sit at the main table in the EU and many national governments, deftly reaching into the deep inner recesses of European decision-making. Get EU news that mattersBack our independent journalism by becoming a supporting memberAlready a member?