Luther faculty Todd Green to present latest book on Sept. 20

Luther College’s Todd Green to present latest book Sept. 20

Asking Muslims to condemn terrorist acts can lead to racist scapegoating, an act which prevents majority populations in the West from coming to terms with their own violent past and their ongoing complicity in a violent world order, according to Todd Green, Luther College associate professor of religion.

Green will present “Presumed Guilty: Why We Shouldn’t Ask Muslims to Condemn Terrorism” at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 20, in Luther’s Franklin W. Olin Building, Room 102.

The lecture, based on Green’s most recent book of the same name, is open to the public with no charge for admission. A book signing will follow the lecture.

The first Religion Forum of the academic year, “Presumed Guilty” explores Green’s theory of what he explains as the false connection between terrorism and the Muslim religion.

Green argues that blaming Muslims for terrorist attacks wrongly assumes that Islam is the cause of terrorism.

Green contends that people who practice Islam already condemn terrorism and that “asking Muslims to condemn terrorist attacks is a distraction that prevents majority populations in the U.S. and Europe both from facing their own violent histories and from asking critical questions about how their countries’ national security initiatives and foreign policies contribute to a violent world order.”

He will also discuss building an “interfaith framework” between religions based on friendship instead of avoidance due to fear.

A regular contributor to the Huffington Post, Green has also been featured on a variety of media outlets, including CNN, National Public Radio, Al Jazeera, France 24, Reuters and The Intercept.

An engaging speaker, Green is regularly invited to give conference presentations and guest lectures across the U.S.

The author of three books and an edited volume, Green also has had several peer-reviewed articles and book reviews published.

Prior to his time at Luther, he served as an instructor at Vanderbilt Divinity School and teaching fellow at Vanderbilt Divinity School and Vanderbilt University.

Green holds a Ph.D. from Vanderbilt University, a Master of Divinity from Columbia Theological Seminary and a bachelor’s degree from Birmingham-Southern College.

A national liberal arts college with an enrollment of 2,050, Luther offers an academic curriculum that leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree in more than 60 majors and pre-professional programs. For more information about Luther visit the college’s website: http://www.luther.edu.