Rabia Kazan

Turkish journalist

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Rabia Kazan

Born|

Rabia Kazan

(1976-06-25) 25 June 1976 (age 48)

Malatya, Turkey

Nationality| Turkish
Occupation(s)| President of Middle Eastern Women’s Coalition, best-selling author, activist against child marriages
Years active| 1996–present
Website| middleeasternwomenscoalition.com

Rabia Kazan (born 25 June 1976) is a Turkish author and women's rights activist. She is the president of the Middle Eastern Women's Coalition (MEWC) and was formerly on the board of directors of the National Diversity Coalition for Trump (NDC TRUMP). Kazan is a former Muslim[1] and a critic of Islam, known for her bestselling book The Angels of Tehran about the legal prostitution system in Iran.

## Career

[edit]

Kazan started her journalism career in 1996 as a correspondent working for the Istanbul Documentary show on Flash TV, a Turkish television channel.[2] She then became a columnist for the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) affiliated with the Turkish newspaper Ortadoğu, where she worked for six years and conducted an interview with Mehmet Ali Ağca that rose her to fame. She also founded the news magazine Haber Revizyon in Istanbul.

In 2007, Kazan went to Iran undercover, where she interviewed around 200 women[3] and witnessed child marriages, human trafficking, and wedleases.[2] Upon her return to Turkey, Kazan published her book Tahran Melekleri (The Angels of Tehran), which was about Nikah mut'ah, a temporary Muslim marriage.[4][5] Her book became a bestseller in Turkey. After her work and publication of her books, she received multiple death threats.

She visited many Middle Eastern countries in dedication to her work to save women across the Middle Eastern from Sharia law by recording information taken from the women she met and work with.

She actively promoted Secularism in Islam to prevent of child marriages and the human trafficking of women on various media platforms in Italy.

Kazan moved to the United States in 2010[3] and worked for World Federation of United Nations Associations at the United Nations for two years.

She has worked for the International Civil Liberties Alliance (ICLA).[6]

Kazan launched a global campaign in 2014 named This Is Not My Allah[7] against Islamic Terrorism with French political analyst Alain Wagner in New York City.[8][5] The aim of the campaign is to encourage Muslims to speak out against Islamic extremism.[9]

## Political involvement

[edit]

In 2015, Kazan endorsed Donald Trump because of his statements about radical Islam. In 2016, she joined the National Diversity Coalition for Trump (NDC TRUMP) as an executive.[3] In 2016, Kazan gave an interview to CNN News in which she approved of Trump's approach to Islamic extremism and encouraged moderate Muslims to stand up against radical Islam. In 2018 she became a president of the Middle Eastern Women's Coalition, a pro-Trump group Kazan formed.[3][10] Kazan also donated to Trump's campaign, which, as a foreign national, was illegal for her to do.[3]

Kazan later denounced many of her pro-Trump colleagues, believing they used her as a token minority to make Trump's comments on Islam less incendiary.[3] She said that she herself had been "brainwashed".[3] Commenting on the overlap between political lobbying and Donald Trump's business interests at the Trump International Hotel in Washington, DC—formerly the Old Post Office building on Pennsylvania Avenue—Kazan described Trump as being "like a cult leader, and people go to the hotel to show their loyalty and love for him."[11]

She expressed disillusionment with Trump, stating that she believed he would support causes like fighting radical Islam and ISIS but ultimately felt betrayed by her experiences with his orbit of operatives.[3]

## Personal life

[edit]

In 2008, Kazan became engaged to Giacinto Licursi, an Italian lawyer and politician, in order to conduct an interview in prison and briefly moved to Italy to remove her headscarf.[12] According to the Washington Post, Kazan was in a short-lived relationship with lobbyist and retired US Marine Robert F. Hyde, who was previously implicated in the Trump-Ukraine scandal.[11]

She made a decision to remove her hijab in 2012, which she had been forced to wear from age seven.[13]

Kazan married Clayton Saunders, owner of Saunders & Associates and prolific investor and philanthropist in October 2022 at the Turkish Embassy in Washington, DC. [14]

Kazan has converted to Christianity.[3]

## See also

[edit]

* List of Donald Trump presidential campaign endorsements, 2016
* List of women's rights activists

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Jamieson, Roger Sollenberger, Kathleen O'Neill, Amber. "She Shunned Islam And Was Embraced By Trump World. Now, She's Turned Against Them". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 9 May 2023.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
2. ^ a b Sharif, Solmaz (3 March 2012). "Turkish Writer Discusses Her About-Face in Iran". Women's eNews. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
3. ^ a b c d e f g h i Sollenberger, Roger; O'Neill, Kathleen; Jamieson, Amber (5 February 2020). "She Shunned Islam And Was Embraced By Trump World. Now, She's Turned Against Them". BuzzFeed News. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
4. ^ "Tahran Melekleri". www.kitapyurdu.com (in Turkish). Retrieved 12 January 2023.
5. ^ a b "Modern Hanukkah Heroines". HuffPost. 31 December 2014. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
6. ^ Lipman, Steve (21 October 2014). "Standing Up To Islamic Extremism". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Archived from the original on 4 December 2022. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
7. ^ LLC, Religion News (8 October 2014). "Harvard Club in New York Cancels "This is Not My Allah" ICLA Press Conference with Rabia Kazan on October 15th New Venue: The Hilton Times Square". Religion News Service. Retrieved 9 May 2023.
8. ^ "Turkish journalist Rabia Kazan launches "This is not my Allah" global campaign against extremism". Liberties Alliance. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
9. ^ One People One World under G'od (15 April 2024). Rabia Kazan Saunders discusses her time in Iran. Retrieved 29 July 2024 - via YouTube.
10. ^ Collman, Ashley. "Rudy Giuliani's personal communications director is a 20-year-old minor Instagram personality still getting her communications degree". Business Insider. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
11. ^ a b Fahrenthold, David; Dawsey, Josh; O'Connell, Jonathan (28 February 2020). "'It was like a breeding ground': Trump hotel's mix of GOP insiders and hangers-on helped give rise to impeachment episodes". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved 13 May 2023.
12. ^ Haber, Super (25 August 2023). "MR&MRS Saunders çifti çok konuşulacak! ABD Eski Başkanı Donald Trump'ın ekibinden ayrılan yazar Rabia Kazan, 'Saunders' ailesine gelin oldu". superhaber.com (in Turkish). Retrieved 29 July 2024.
13. ^ Goren, Biranit (21 October 2014). "Standing Up To Islamic Extremism". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved 12 January 2023.
14. ^ Haber, Super (25 August 2023). "MR&MRS Saunders çifti çok konuşulacak! ABD Eski Başkanı Donald Trump'ın ekibinden ayrılan yazar Rabia Kazan, 'Saunders' ailesine gelin oldu". superhaber.com (in Turkish). Retrieved 29 July 2024.

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