Omar Sadr
Academic and Author
Academic and Author
I was brought up in Kabul in a Persian surrounding, but the twelve years of my precious childhood were lost in a tough time when Afghanistan was experiencing consistent devastating crises from state fragmentation to civil war, to the dark age of Taliban totalitarian rule, to resistance. Our house was destroyed, we were displaced, our family was scattered, and we lost many of our dear ones.
I spent my twenties in Delhi where I earned a doctorate and became the first PhD holder of the Social Science Faculty in the South Asian University, (SAU), a university established by the SAARC nations; I was also the first Afghanistan citizen who was awarded a doctorate in SAU.
When I started writing as an academic, I was drawn to theorizing the challenges of peaceful coexistence in a plural society and how cultural diversity was suppressed in Afghanistan. This was inspired by my experiences in Afghanistan and its problematic history. The focus of my writings has mostly been on exploring political reform, constitutionalism, democracy, multiculturalism and pluralism. My first book Negotiating Cultural Diversity in Afghanistan published in 2020 addresses these.
In 2021, I, once again, lost my house, my family and my homeland when the Taliban occupied Kabul for the second time.
Currently, I am a scholar in exile at the University of Pittsburgh in the US.
‘In Search of Peace: Letters of Najibullah and Hasan Kakar’, in Zarin Anzur and Khalilullah Afzali (eds.)
Efforts of Afghans for Peace for Afghanistan. Kabul: Amiri, 2021. ASIN: B09328FD57 Read More
‘Mahmud Tarzi: Intellectual and Reformist’, in Dev N Pathak and Sanjeev Kumar H.M. (eds.)
Modern South Asian Thinkers. Delhi: Sage, 2018. ISBN: 9352806778; Read More
‘Afghanistan: the Vulnerabilities of Minorities’, in Sajjad Hassan (ed.)
South Asia State of Minorities Report- 2016: Mapping the Terrain Delhi: Books for Change, 2016. ISBN: 978-81-926907-3-5; Read More
‘Rethinking Stability for Afghanistan: Socializing Great Powers in a Multilateral Order’, in Rajen Harshe and Dhananjay Tripathi (eds.)
Afghanistan Post-2014: Power Configurations and Evaluating Trajectories London and New Delhi: Routledge, 2015. DOI: 10.4324/9781315665474. ISBN: 9781315665474; Read More
‘Afghanistan Islamic Movement and its Impact on Political Stability of the Country’, Research Articles of Manfred Worner Award Winner 2010
Kabul: National Centre for Policy Research (NCPR), 2012 Read More
‘Role of Civil Society in the Peace Process of Afghanistan’,
Essay Collection: Kabul: National Centre for Policy Research (NCPR), 2011 Read More
‘Conflict Sensitive Journalism’ (Trans.),
Essay Collection: Media: Liberty and Responsibility, Kabul: National Centre for Policy Research (NCPR), 2011 Read More
‘Human Rights of Addicted Person’,
Essay Collection: Drug Addiction, Kabul: National Centre for Policy Research (NCPR), 2010 Read More
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گفتوگوی ویژه با عمر صدر، نویسنده و پژوهشگر سیاست Aug 3, 2022 Watch
Noah Coburn in Conversation with Omar Sadr on Politics and Pluralism
May 13, 2022 Watch
Negotiating Rights Under Religio-Chauvinist Rule of the Taliban -Dr. Omar Sadr with Mara Kolesas
Feb 18, 2022 Watch
Frank Islam speaks with Omar Sadr
Jan 23, 2022 Watch
By Omar Sadr
Negotiating Ideas is a Podcast about liberty, democracy, and pluralism in Afghanistan and around the world.
I am Omar Sadr, a scholar in exile, forced to flee my homeland overnight due to the Taliban’s brutality. In this podcast, as in my research, I explore how totalitarianism threatens democracy and the ways in which societies reinstitute freedom, democracy, and pluralism.
My goal is to create a space for those who value pluralism, democracy, and liberty to find each other to develop solidarity and clarity.
Commentary
View AllMay 22, 2022
Central Asia Should Move Towards Regionalism to Avoid Great Power Competition The National InterestApril 11, 2022
Is Nonviolent Resistance Against the Taliban Possible? The National InterestMarch 23, 2022
Afghanistan’s Public Intellectuals Fail to Denounce the Taliban Fair ObserverJanuary 6, 2022
Afghan Human Rights Protests are Political Resistance Against the Taliban The National Interest