James McDougall

October 2025 Arab Barometer Palestinian opinion survey finds “widespread frustration with existing leadership. Fatah’s support has eroded sharply, Hamas has largely maintained its base, and political alienation has become the dominant stance.”

www.arabbarometer.org/media-news/p...

🫣☺️🙏

#466 - A Global History of Islam: A Dialogue with James McDougall Listen now | In this episode, Xavier Bonilla has a dialogue with James McDougall about a global history of Islam.

I am very pleased to share the conversation I had with @jamesrmcd.bsky.social about a global history of Islam. Hope everyone enjoys! open.substack.com/pub/convergi...

😂

Had a great chat to @xavierbonilla.bsky.social about Islam in global history and you can hear it now!

What a nice thing to say. (New book out today.)

UK drops target for international student recruitment Government to encourage education providers to open campuses overseas as it focuses on reducing migration

In any other context, requiring a high-productivity sector to offshore the production of its highest value-added exports would be seen as the economic illiteracy it so obviously is...

www.ft.com/content/a23c...

Worlds of Islam A sweeping global history of Islam, tracing the 1,400-year evolution of a diverse community of faith and its place in the modern world “Anyone who wants to...

Hey Bluesky ppl in the US! The nice folks at @basicbooksgroup.bsky.social are offering 20% off my new book : use code WORLDS20 valid through 26 Feb. www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/james...

Extract from Rob Reiner's Wikipedia Filmography 1986 - Stand By zme 1987 - The Princess Bride 1989 - When Harry Met Sally 1990 - Misery 1992 - A Few Good Men

Rob Reiner: I'm going to make a coming of age drama, a fantasy adventure story, a romantic comedy, a psychological horror and then a courtroom drama.

Us: Across your entire career?

Reiner: In a 6 year period.

Us: That sounds-

Reiner: -Each one will be arguably the best movie in that genre.

Literally everybody take note. 👇

Vacancies

I can confirm that this is an extremely wonderful job, #MiddleEast #historians please do apply 😁 www.trinity.ox.ac.uk/vacancies

Islam is part of European history Historians’ dismissal of the continent’s Muslim legacy is helping to feed contemporary divisions

Today, the popular view prevails that Muslims have never been part of European history. It is an environment in which populist right-wing polemics critical of Muslim migration can reach a receptive a mass audience. By David Motadel
www.newstatesman.com/culture/book...

YouTube video by CAREP Paris Colloque : la Palestine et l'Europe, poids du passé et dynamiques contemporaines

Le colloque censuré, et maintenu, visible en ligne.
Prise de parole d'Henry Laurens à l'instant.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sSU...

Very much noticed. It’s all part of the same tiny Tufton St circle, a few grumpy retired right wing Brexiters banging on about Rhodes & what a good thing the empire was, but with money and amplification. See also Legatum Inst., Scruton/Pharos lectures, etc etc

Normal Times in Dire Times Fascism does not break normal life, it feeds on it.

"History has already shown us how this story unfolds. Fascism is not built only in the camps and cells. It is built in the shrug, the silence, the insistence that life can go on as if nothing has changed"
Frederick Joseph"A Thought on Normalcy in Fascism" frederickjoseph.substack.com/p/normal-tim...

We must act now: without a written constitution, Reform UK will have carte blanche to toxify our nation | Goerge Monbiot It means breaking with hundreds of years of tradition, but it can’t wait. As hard-right figures spread division and laud autocrats, a fail-safe is vital, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot

Exactly this. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Whatever you do, please don’t stop reading.

Read for joy. Read for education. Read for resistance. Read banned books. Read books by marginalized authors. Read about experiences that differ from your own.

Just. Keep. Reading.

Still waiting for it to trickle down...

Am of the opinion we should just respond to the current flag epidemic by flying a wider range of random national flags from lamp posts, roundabouts etc until the situation gets ridiculous and they give up.

the other half of this that I've never really gotten over: this all but explicitly amounts to valorizing being "asleep". people are really out here wielding "I have no idea what's going on, historically speaking" as a credential

Fantastic piece, I hope it’s widely read

The wounded knee thing is really Trumpism distilled to its essence. It’s not enough to be able crush people who can’t fully defend themselves, it’s not enough to actually crush them, you also have to love and admire those who do the crushing otherwise the Trumpists’ delicate feelings are injured

Only an administration intent on committing war crimes in the present and future would stoop to calling Wounded Knee a "battle" rather than what it truly was: a massacre of over 250 Lakotas, mainly women, children, and the elderly. 1/

This. 👇

Is Trump’s new Palestine plan a breakthrough or diplomatic mirage? Washington’s roadmap aligns surprisingly closely with a UN-backed plan – but key differences could prove unworkable

Your occasional reminder that it was imperially minded British politicians trying to influence America & ignoring Palestinians’ political rights that started this whole thing off in the 1st place.

Speaking of voices under attack…can we be just as loud about Black journalists and comedians who are silenced, even by our so-called liberal outlets.

• Joy Reid
• Don Lemon
• Melissa Harris-Perry
• Tiffany Cross
• Jemele Hill
• Marc Lamont Hill
• Karen Attiah
• Amber Ruffin

This isn’t getting as much attention as it should. Orgs like Medical Aid for Palestinians running essential, life-saving clinical services in Gaza face having to suspend their work. Deliberate, cynical move by Isr govt, pls listen to the Israeli historians of medicine who are calling it out.

Image of 'Trust me, I'm a Historian' badges and text: 'Postgraduate Membership of the Royal Historical Society. Applications invited for next closing dates of 13 October and 15 December 2025'.

If you're starting a postgraduate course in History this autumn, please do consider joining the Royal Historical Society bit.ly/41mTuck

Postgraduate Membership brings access to research funding, events, publications and networks. You'll join an international community of more than 6500 historians.

Lecturer in the History of Early Modern Europe and the World at King's College London Discover an exciting academic career path as a Lecturer in the History of Early Modern Europe and the World at jobs.ac.uk. Don't miss out on this job opportunity - apply today!

AN #EARLYMODERN POST!! They still exist! And a lovely one at that, for five years and with the brilliant people at KCL who have turned that place in quite the hub of exciting early modern research.

Run, don’t walk.

Civilians made up 15 of every 16 people killed by Israel in Gaza since March, data suggests Report from independent conflict tracker Acled indicates one of the highest civilian death rates since start of war

In other words, 94% of those killed in Gaza since March 25 were civilians - up from 83% in the first 1.5 years of this genocidal war.
Another symptom of stage 2 of the Gaza Genocide under Trump: fewer casualties so far, but targeting almost entirely civilians.
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/s...