Salman Rushdie: ‘My closest brush with the law? During the 1990s, when I needed police protection...

Cat Stevens, now Yusuf Islam, thought it was totally okay for Rushdie to be killed for writing this book.

“In 1989 following an address by Islam to students at London's Kingston Polytechnic (now Kingston University), where he was asked about the fatwa calling for the killing of Salman Rushdie, author of the novel The Satanic Verses, Islam made a series of comments that appeared to show support for the fatwa. He stated ‘He (Rushdie) must be killed. The Qur'an makes it clear – if someone defames the prophet, then he must die.’ He released a statement the following day denying that he supported vigilantism and claiming that he had merely recounted the legal Islamic punishment for blasphemy. Subsequently he commented in a 1989 interview on Australian television that Rushdie should be killed and stated he would rather burn Rushdie instead of an effigy. In a statement in the FAQ section of one of his websites, Islam asserted that while he regretted the comments, he was joking and that the show was improperly edited. In the years since these comments he has repeatedly denied ever calling for the death of Rushdie or supporting the fatwa, a position contradicted by his contemporary public statements in 1989.”

He may continue to deny he said these things, but they were recorded, so denials and rationales are fruitless and disingenuous. This is what I think of when I hear his music. If I control the music source, I’ll change the channel or turn off the source. I don’t want to hear his music.