Douglas Murray (author) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Douglas Murray
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Murray in 2019
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| Born | Douglas Kear Murray 16 July 1979 London, England |
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| Education | St Benedict's School Eton College (6th form) |
| Alma mater | Magdalen College, Oxford |
| Period | 2000–present |
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Douglas Murray (born 16 July 1979) is a British writer, journalist, and political commentator. He is known for sharing his opinions on politics and culture.
He works as an editor for The Spectator, a British magazine. He has also written for many other newspapers and websites, including The Times, The Daily Telegraph, and New York Post.
Some of his well-known books are The Strange Death of Europe: Immigration, Identity, Islam (2017) and The Madness of Crowds: Gender, Race and Identity (2019). From 2011 to 2018, Murray worked for the Henry Jackson Society, a group that studies political ideas.
Murray often shares strong views on topics like immigration and the religion of Islam. He became more widely known after speaking about Israel following the attacks in October 2023.
His ideas have led to both praise from some people, especially conservatives, and criticism from others. Some academic articles have linked his views to certain controversial theories.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Douglas Murray was born in Hammersmith, London. His mother was an English school teacher, and his father was Scottish and spoke Scottish Gaelic. His father worked for the government.
Murray has an older brother. He shared in an interview that his parents encouraged discussions at home, but they were not very political themselves.
He went to local public schools for his early education. Later, he received scholarships to attend St Benedict's School, Ealing, and then Eton College. After teaching briefly, he studied English at Magdalen College, Oxford.
Career and Journalism
In 2007, Douglas Murray started an organization called the Centre for Social Cohesion. This group later became part of the Henry Jackson Society, where he worked as an associate director until 2018.
Media Work
Murray is an associate editor for The Spectator magazine.
In 2019, Murray worked to get the original recording of an interview between a journalist and Roger Scruton. Murray believed the published interview was unfair. He eventually got the recording, which showed that Scruton's comments had been misunderstood. The newspaper later apologized for the mistake.
In October 2023, Murray traveled to Israel and reported from there for six months after the October 7 attacks. He visited places that were attacked and interviewed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Political Views
Douglas Murray is known for his conservative political views. He often shares his opinions on topics such as Immigration and Islam.
Views on Islam
Murray often discusses Islam. He has said that he believes there is a "malignant fundamentalism" within the religion.
In 2008, Murray pointed out cases where writers and artists received threats because they criticized Islam. He argued that people should be able to discuss their religion without fear.
Murray has called the term "Islamophobia" (fear or dislike of Islam) a "nonsense term." He believes it is reasonable to be concerned about certain parts of Islam, especially its extreme forms.
In 2009, a debate Murray was supposed to lead at the London School of Economics was canceled due to security worries. This happened after student protests about events in Gaza.
Later in 2009, Murray planned a debate about Sharia law with Anjem Choudary. The debate was canceled when security guards tried to separate men and women at the entrance. Murray later published a study linking some terrorism cases in the UK to Choudary's group.
Murray has also supported Muslim reformers in his writings. He has criticized those who celebrate when groups working for Islamic reform face difficulties.
Views on Brexit
Murray supported the UK leaving the European Union in the 2016 EU referendum. He was concerned about the Eurozone, immigration, and the idea of the EU becoming too unified.
He stated that he voted to leave because he felt the direction the EU was taking was not right for the UK. After the vote, Murray said that the result should be celebrated by anyone who believes in democracy.
Views on Immigration
Murray is a strong critic of immigration. In 2013, he claimed that London felt like a foreign country because "white Britons" had become a minority in many parts of the city.
In his book The Strange Death of Europe, Murray writes that Europe's values are disappearing due to large-scale immigration. He suggests stopping Muslim immigration. In the book, he also discusses crimes committed by immigrants in Europe.
In 2016, Murray supported Donald Trump's idea of building a wall on the US-Mexico border. In 2017, he defended a US policy that temporarily banned entry from seven Muslim-majority countries. In 2022, he supported Florida Governor Ron DeSantis sending migrants to Martha's Vineyard.
Views on Foreign Policy
In his book Neoconservatism: Why We Need It, Murray argues that a strong foreign policy is needed to fight against dictatorships and human rights abuses. He has called for continuing efforts against countries like Iran and Syria if they support terrorism.
Murray supported the Iraq War. He wrote in 2004 that success in Iraq would mean freedom for a nation that had suffered under harsh rule.
In 2013, Murray wrote an article against the US getting involved in the Syrian civil war. In 2021, he criticized the US withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan.
In 2013, Murray criticized a reporter for wrongly saying that Israel had killed a child in a military strike. During a visit to Israel in 2019, Murray praised Israeli society. He said Israel has a "healthier attitude towards nationalism than Europe."
In 2020, Murray criticized people who called the COVID-19 lab leak theory a conspiracy theory. This theory suggests COVID-19 came from a lab in Wuhan, China. Murray has also criticized TikTok, calling it "malware from China."
Views on Donald Trump
In 2016, Murray questioned why US Democrats called Trump sexist or racist, as they had used similar labels for other politicians before. He also said that Trump's foreign policy plans were less likely to cause problems than Hillary Clinton's.
Before the 2020 United States presidential election, Murray argued that Trump's re-election would be better for the UK's foreign policy. He praised Trump for helping to create peace agreements between Israel and other countries.
In 2021, Murray criticized the January 6 United States Capitol attack by Trump supporters. He said that Trump was responsible for causing the riot.
In 2022, Murray repeated his criticism of Trump's actions after the Capitol riot. However, he also argued that some Democratic politicians were inconsistent in their condemnation of violence. He also said that the Trump government had strong policies on immigration, Iran, and China.
Views on Viktor Orbán
Murray is known for his connection with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. In 2018, Orbán posted a photo of himself reading Murray's book The Strange Death of Europe.
Murray has disagreed with claims that Hungary is becoming less democratic under Orbán. In May 2018, Murray met with Orbán in Budapest at a conference.
Other Activities
Murray is part of the international advisory board for NGO Monitor. This group, based in Jerusalem, focuses on non-governmental organizations.
As of 2022, he was also a director of the Free Speech Union. This group was started in 2020 and supports freedom of speech. It also criticizes "cancel culture," where people are criticized or boycotted for their views.
Awards and Recognition
- Manhattan Institute – 2024 Alexander Hamilton Award.
- Special recognition from President Isaac Herzog of Israel in 2024.
Personal Life
Douglas Murray is gay. He had a partner for 10 years until 2018. As of 2023, he lives in New York.
In the past, Murray described himself as a "cultural Christian" and a "Christian atheist." He was an Anglican until his twenties. In a 2024 interview, he said he now identifies as agnostic.
Images for kids
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Murray in 2019
See also
In Spanish: Douglas Murray para niños
