Kat Stevens There is no interest in discussing his previous comments about novelist Salman Rushdie.
singer Controversy occurred in 1989 when he appeared criticizing Author Salman Rushdie For the portrayal of Islam in the novel,Satanic versesStevens converted to Islam in 1977 and officially changed its name to Joseph to Islam after a year. He first adopted Islamic belief after escaping tuberculosis in 1969, and almost drowned in Malibu in 1976.
Stevens were asked if he would participate in an effigy burning of Rushdie during an interview with a British TV program in 1989, and he replied: “I was hopeful that it would be the real thing, but not in fact, if it is just a mannequin, I don’t think I would go to go there.”
Stevens were asked about those comments during an interview CBS News’ Sunday morning As he promoted his new memoir, Pussy on the street for search,
“I mean, I have found a British feeling,” said Stevens. “I took it in a little humor direction. It was not a good thing to do, because there was no laughter.
“So, you know, I made a mistake thinking that people could get a joke,” they continued. “But this was a serious issue, so I should not really have done so.”
When CBS News interviewer Seth two asked him to clarify what he meant by “joke”, Stevens cut him and said: “Whatever it is, whatever it is.”
After this, both brought the headlines that were written in the past about Stevens’ comments towards Rushdie. However, the singer closed the subject.
Stevens said, “Let’s shut down the subject, please,” Pussy on the street for searchMention of Rushdie.
“No, this is only a small part of the book,” Stevens replied.
Both said: “But it seems that with this book, you wanted to partially set the record directly from your perspective.” Stevens agreed and replied saying that he had already done so.
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In the new memoir, Stevens writes about Rushdie’s book, Satanic verses, Saying that he found some parts of it “incredibly rude and aggressive”. Stevens explains that he contacted the publisher of the book to draw it from vogue.
During a public talks at the University of Kingston in London in 1989, Stevens was also told that Rushdie should have been killed for his book. But the composer said that he was founded by an undercover tabloid journalist, and to see that he had supported the fatwa that was placed on Rushdie.
Rushdie was placed under a fatwa, which was a religious ruling for his death, by the former Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Khomeini after writing Satanic verses.
Stevens Write in their memoir A public forgiveness issued to Rushdi was largely ignored by the press, and was depicted as “Ayatollah and an unrestricted supporter of his fatwa”.
He also says that as a result of this incident, “there was nothing and there was nothing like I never experienced”. He describes the examination as a “blistering asteroid” on his career, leading to “shadow ban” by some journalists and inspired more dedication to his faith.
When Khomeini called for the execution of Rushdie in 1989, the author was forced to spend years to hide. In 1998, the Iranian government said it emerged from hiding in 1995, before it would no longer support the fatwa.
The attack has been threatened since Rushdie’s publication Satanic versesWhich triggered a wave of dispute for the portrayal of Prophet Muhammad.
In 2022, Rushdie was stabbed about 12 times at the Chautaukwa Institute in New York, this incident left him blind in one eye. Hadi Matar, 27, was sentenced to 25 years last month for the attack on Rushdie.
In June, the novelist made his most high-profile, in-person appearance in three years, Speaking in 2025 O Mahotsav in Britain. During the incident, Rushdie also said that it was a “important moment” for him when he and his wife Eliza “went back to the scene” where he could “show himself” I could stand where I fell down. ,
He said, “It would be good to talk about imagination again because since the attack, the only thing that wanted to talk about someone is attack, but I am above it,” he said.