Biography
Dr Haroon Bashir is the Head of Research & Associate Professor of Contemporary Islam at the Markfield Institute of Higher Education. His research explores contemporary Islamic thought, Quranic hermeneutics, and the ethical engagement of Muslim scholars with issues such as abolition, justice, and social reform.
His recent monograph, Slavery, Abolition and Islam: Debating Freedom in the Islamic Tradition (Oxford University Press, 2025), examines the evolution of abolitionist discourse within Islamic scholarship. The book traces the transformation of Islamic discourses on slavery from acceptance to abolitionism, highlighting how Muslim scholars have navigated the ethical complexities of slavery and how these debates have shaped modern Islamic thought. The book demonstrates Dr. Bashir's approach to understanding Islam's evolving relationship with modernity.
Dr. Bashir regularly contributes to public and academic fora on contemporary Islam, engaging with debates on social justice, reform, and the role of Islam in modern society.
Education
B.A Arabic. & Islamic Studies (I)
M.St Study of Religion (Dist.) (University of Oxford)
Ph.D in Islamic Studies (University of Leeds)
Research interests
- Contemporary Islamic Thought
- Islamic Approaches to Social Justice/Liberation Theology
- Historical and Modern Reform Movements in Muslim Societies
- Ethics, Justice, and Social Responsibility in Islam
- Islamic Theories of Knowledge and Epistemology
Publications
Books
Bashir, Haroon. Slavery, Abolition and Islam: Debating Freedom in the Islamic Tradition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2025)
Bashir, Haroon & Mathee, Shahid (eds.) Madrasas in the Modern World: Developments, Challenges and Opportunities (Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg Press) (Forthcoming: 2026)
Articles & Chapters
Bashir, Haroon (2019) Black Excellence and the Curse of Ham: Debating Race and Slavery in the Islamic Tradition. ReOrient: Journal of Critical Muslim Studies. 5 (1),92-116.
Bashir, Haroon (2021) Reading the Past, Writing the Future: Scholarship as Worldmaking. MWBR. 42 (1), 6-17.
Bashir, Haroon (2023) Islam and the Emancipatory Ethic: Islamic Law, Liberation Theology and Prison Abolition. Religions. 14(9) 1083.
Bashir, Haroon (2025) ‘Virtues of the Habasha: Exploring Blackness in Islamicate Texts’ in Routledge Handbook on Islam and Race, ed by. Zain Abdullah (London: Routledge)
Bashir, Haroon (Forthcoming) ‘The Horizons of Madrassa Education: Rethinking 'Islamic Knowledge' in the Modern World’ in Madrassas in the Modern World: Developments, Challenges and Oppurtunities, edited by Haroon Bashir and Shahid Mathee. Johannesburg: University of Johannesburg Press.
Conferences & Public Lectures
Bashir, Haroon (2025) 'Slavery, Abolition and Islam', University of Oxford, St Antony's College.
Bashir, Haroon (2024) 'Introduction to Islamic Liberation Theology', Workshop on Islamic Liberation Theology, University of Edinburgh; MIHE.
Bashir, Haroon (2023) 'Constructing 'Islamic Slavery': Uses and Abuses of a Discourse, Islam and the Study of Slavery: Exploring Methodological Problems and Solutions, University of Leicester; MIHE.
Bashir, Haroon (2023) 'Islam and Prison Abolition: Deploying the Emancipatory Ethic', 2nd International Critical Muslim Studies Conference, University of Leeds.
Bashir, Haroon (2022) 'The Forgotten Ummah: Towards a New Cartography of the Muslim World', 1st International Critical Muslim Studies Conference, University of Leeds.
Bashir, Haroon (2022) ‘Towards a Zakat of Liberation? The Horizons of Islamic Liberation Theology’, Islamic-Theological Studies Between Systematic and Practical Research, University of Fribourg.
Bashir, Haroon (2022) ‘Recovering Narratives of Resistance’, Challenging Islamophobia: Strategies for Change, MIHE; University of Leeds; De Montfort University.
Bashir, Haroon (2021) ‘Black Excellence and the Curse of Ham’, Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations Seminars, University of Edinburgh.
Bashir, Haroon & Aijazi, Omer (2021) ‘Navigating Islam in the Academy’, “War on Terror”: Complexity, Reflexivity and Decolonising Methodologies, University of Edinburgh.
Bashir, Haroon (2020) ‘Reading Race in the Islamicate Past’ al-Mahdi Research Papers, al-Mahdi Institute.
Bashir, Haroon (2020) ‘Reading Criticality Critically’, International Series on Islamic Education, Markfield Institute.
Bashir, Haroon (2020) ‘Islam and the Emancipatory Ethic’, Markfield Public Lecture Series, Markfield Institute.
Publication Material
