Extremism in our home

I write this article from experience, but also from a concern that goes far beyond Afghanistan. Too often we talk about extremism as if it were a distant problem, specific to other countries, cultures, or religions. But extremism doesn't have a single face or a single flag. Wherever the balance is lost, it appears.

For years, in Afghanistan, and under the seemingly neutral name of "Islamic culture," universities have taught content that doesn't foster critical thinking or dialogue, but rather a rigid, exclusionary, and dehumanizing worldview. A worldview that rejects democracy, freedom of expression, human rights, and diversity of thought, and that turns religion into a tool of political and social control.

However, it would be a mistake to think that this phenomenon is exclusive to Afghanistan or Islam. Today, in Europe and around the world, we see how different ideologies—religious, political, and even ideas presented as "defense of values"—are also drifting toward forms of indoctrination. The discourses and symbols change, but the mechanism is the same: to impose a single truth, discredit those who think differently, and divide society into "good" and "bad."

Extremism doesn't begin with violence. It begins when education stops teaching how to think and starts telling people what to think. When nuances disappear. When the ability to listen is lost. When identity becomes a trench and not a space for encounter.

In Afghanistan, this indoctrination has had devastating consequences, especially for women. They have been denied the right to study, to work, and to decide about their own lives, portrayed as inferior beings and incapable by nature. However, the underlying problem is not only the oppression of women: it is the denial of the other's humanity. And this denial can occur in any context. Even in societies that consider themselves democratic. Even when, in the name of certain values, hatred, exclusion, and the dehumanization of entire groups are justified. When human rights are used without humanity, or when religion is used without compassion, both lose their profound meaning.

History has taught us that going to extremes has never brought peace. Peace is born from balance, from the recognition of human dignity. From an education that does not indoctrinate, but rather forms free, responsible individuals capable of living with difference. Education should serve to bring us closer together, not to separate us. To improve living conditions, not to create mental walls. To sow empathy, solidarity, and social justice, not fear or hatred. It is not about choosing between religion and human rights, between tradition and modernity. It is about finding a point of equilibrium where faith, culture, values, and reason walk together in service to humanity.

As a peace activist, I firmly believe that any ideology that loses its boundaries and balance ends up harming people and destroying coexistence. And I also believe that we have a collective responsibility: to defend an education based on human values because only in this way can we build more just, freer, and truly peaceful societies.