Mehdi Noorbakhsh
Born
Mehdi Noorbakhsh-Dehkordi[1]

1954 (age 69–70)
Iran
NationalityIranian
SpouseSarah Noorbakhsh (née Yazdi)
RelativesEbrahim Yazdi (father-in-law)
Academic background
Alma mater
ThesisFrom Opposition to Revolution: The Dynamics of Change in Iran and Afghanistan (1996)
Academic work
DisciplineInternational relations
School or traditionReligious intellectualism
Institutions

Mehdi Noorbakhsh (Persian: مهدی نوربخش) is an Iranian academic and political activist affiliated with the Freedom Movement of Iran.[2]

He is a professor of international affairs & business at Harrisburg University of Science and Technology,[2] having previously taught at the Center for International Studies at the University of St. Thomas in Houston[3] and worked at Harvard University's Center for Middle Eastern Studies as a postdoctoral fellow. Noorbakhsh is vice president of World Affairs Councils of America's chapter in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

He is not able to return to Iran for his political activities, as well as public comments.[4]

Early life and education

Noorbakhsh was born in Iran and immigrated to the United States sometime in the 1970s.[4] He is married to Sarah, a physician and daughter of Ebrahim Yazdi.[5] He obtained a government and international affairs PhD from University of Texas at Austin in 1996.[1]

Views

A The Patriot-News editorial published in 2010 described him as "Muslim moderate".[5] Noorbakhsh assumes that by seeking rationality within Islam, it can be practiced as a "progressive" faith,[6] while a religious regime of despotic nature would exploit individual spirituality in that society.[7] He had criticized Jyllands-Posten for 2005 cartoons depicting Muhammad due to "selective targeting" of "the very sanctity of the Muslim faith",[8] and alleged that American policymakers should avoid confrontation with the Muslim world.[9]

Published works

  • Al-Suwaidi, Jamal S., ed. (1997), "Religion, Politics, and Ideological Trends in Contemporary Iran", Iran and the Gulf: A Search for Stability, I. B. Tauris, ISBN 978-1860641435
  • Noorbaksh, Mehdi (September 1993), "The Middle East, Islam And The United States: The Special Case Of Iran", Middle East Policy, 2 (3): 78–97, doi:10.1111/j.1475-4967.1993.tb00087.x
  • Noorbaksh, Mehdi (Summer 2008), "Shiism and Ethnic Politics in Iraq" (PDF), Middle East Policy, 15 (2): 53–65, doi:10.1111/j.1475-4967.2008.00349.x
  • "Reviewed Work: Political Science: An Islamic Perspective by Abdul Rashid Moten", International Journal of Middle East Studies, 30 (1): 117–119, February 1998, doi:10.1017/S0020743800065594, JSTOR 164207, S2CID 155044540
  • "Reviewed Work: Musaddiq's Memoirs: The End of the British Empire in Iran by Muhammad Musaddiq, Homa Katouzian", Iranian Studies, 23 (1/4): 142–145, 1990, JSTOR 4310745
  • "Reviewed Work: Parliamentary Politics in Revolutionary Iran: The Institutionalization of Factional Politics by Bahman Baktiari", International Journal of Middle East Studies, 31 (1): 149–152, February 1999, doi:10.1017/S0020743800053216, JSTOR 176355, S2CID 144891752

References

  1. 1 2 "Recent (1996) Doctoral Degrees in Middle East Studies", Middle East Studies Association Bulletin, Middle East Studies Association of North America (MESA), 31 (1): 124–139, July 1997, doi:10.1017/S0026318400035549, JSTOR 23062287, S2CID 251232921
  2. 1 2 Nasaw, Daniel (18 June 2009), "Iranian activist Yazdi returns to hospital following cancer complications", The Guardian, retrieved 13 February 2020
  3. ↑ Opening the taps on democracy in the Middle East, The Daily Star, 29 July 2003, archived from the original on 14 April 2021, retrieved 13 February 2020
  4. 1 2 Peterson, Alex (7 January 2020), "Midstate professor born in Iran offers insight into escalating tensions", WHTM-TV, retrieved 13 February 2020
  5. 1 2 Davis, Joyce (24 November 2010), "There is a way to help Muslim moderates fight for freedom in Iran", The Patriot-News, retrieved 13 February 2020
  6. ↑ Ali, Lubna Abid (2008), Post-revolutionary Iran: Foreign Policy, Research Society of Pakistan, p. 9, ISBN 9789694251004, The existence of an underlying rationality in the interpretation of fundamentals of Islam distinguishes reformist Islam from orthodox school. Mehdi Noorbaksh has further explained this idea with his emphasis on democracy and democratization, being the ideals of reformist Islam. Muslims are, therefore, able to participate in rational discourse and Islam is deemed to play the role of a progressive faith, which no longer opposes modernity.
  7. ↑ Nassr, Qolamreza (2018). A Study of Shi'i Islam and Democracy: The Political Stance of Ideologues and Iranian Revolution of 1979 (PDF) (PhD). Hiroshima University. pp. 74–75.
  8. ↑ Perazzo, John (2008), The Muslim Students Association and the Jihad Network (PDF), David Horowitz Freedom Center, pp. 25–26, ISBN 978-1-886442-66-5
  9. ↑ Khashan, Hilal (May 1997), "The New World Order and the Tempo of Militant Islam", British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies, 24 (1): 22, doi:10.1080/13530199708705636, JSTOR 195666, Before him [Jahangir Amuzega], Mehdi Noorbaksh sent an unsuccessful warning to American policy makers to avoid a confrontation with the Muslim world. In a call for understanding and restraint, he urged the United States to...
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