NEWS

July 2: Fighting Machetes with Pens – The Voltaire Lecture 2015 (partner event)
On 26 February this year, Bonya Ahmed and her husband Avijit Roy, both humanist bloggers, were visiting the national book fair of Bangladesh. Just outside Dhaka University, they were attacked with machetes by Islamic fundamentalists. Ahmed was severely wounded and Roy himself was killed. In the British Humanist Association’s 2015 Voltaire Lecture, Ahmed will make her first public appearance since […]
31 May 15

Voltaire Lecture

On 26 February this year, Bonya Ahmed and her husband Avijit Roy, both humanist bloggers, were visiting the national book fair of Bangladesh. Just outside Dhaka University, they were attacked with machetes by Islamic fundamentalists. Ahmed was severely wounded and Roy himself was killed.

In the British Humanist Association’s 2015 Voltaire Lecture, Ahmed will make her first public appearance since her husband’s murder to speak about her life with Roy and their struggle for humanism and secularism in Bangladesh and elsewhere.

Although shaken, Ahmed has sworn to continue the struggle against censorship and violence. She recognises her husband’s murder as “a crime not only against a person, but against freedom of speech and humanity”, and she is determined that those behind the attack do not succeed.

Hosted by BHA President Jim Al-Khalili.

When: Thursday 2nd July, 7:30pm (doors 7:00pm)
Where: Hilton London Metropole Hotel, W2 1JU (nearest tube Edgware Rd)
Tickets: £9 (Index supporters eligible for BHA member rate). Book here.

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At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.

But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.

If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.

Make a £20 monthly donation

At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.

But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.

If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.

Make a £10 one-off donation

At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.

But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.

If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.

Make a £20 one-off donation

At Index on Censorship, we believe everyone deserves the right to speak freely, challenge power and share ideas without fear. In a world where governments tighten control and algorithms distort the truth, defending those rights is more urgent than ever.

But free speech is not free. Instead we rely on readers like you to keep our journalism independent, our advocacy sharp and our support for writers, artists and dissidents strong.

If you believe in a future where voices aren’t silenced, help us protect it.

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