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Salman Rushdie on the 27 Seconds that nearly ended his life

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Salman Rushdie on the 27 Seconds that nearly ended his life

Interview by Matt Galloway

CBC News,

5 min read
4 take-aways
Audio & text

What's inside?

Salman Rushdie survived a deadly assault in 2022, but remains outspoken in favor of free speech.

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Editorial Rating

9

Qualities

  • Eye Opening
  • Eloquent
  • Engaging

Recommendation

In this engaging interview on Canada’s CBC network, esteemed author Salman Rushdie recounts the event in August 2022 that almost ended his life and inspired his second memoir, Knife: Meditations on an Attempted Murder. Having endured decades under the fatwa that put his life at risk from Islamic extremists, this latest attack reminded Rushdie that he remains a controversial figure. With his usual candor and wit, Rushdie defends the right to freedom of speech in literature, the arts, and civic life. As the survivor of a deadly assault, Salman Rushdie understands that a second chance “gives you an instruction not to waste your time.”

Summary

The 2022 attack that almost killed Salman Rushdie stemmed from Ayatollah Khomeini’s fatwa which condemned him to death in 1989.

In August 2022, during his speech in upstate New York about protecting writers, Salman Rushdie suffered a savage physical attack. A young man jumped onstage and severely wounded Rushdie with a knife. The young man, Rushdie says, had spent too much time on social media. 

In 1989, Iran’s Ayatollah Khomeini issued a fatwa against the author in condemnation of Rushdie’s fifth book, The Satanic Verses. For years, Rushdie lived a fugitive existence, hiding under police protection.

Rushdie found writing Knife difficult because the opening chapter describes the attack. He wasn’t sure he wanted to draw attention to his personal life. He feared it might risk obscuring his literary accomplishments. 

Rushdie dedicated his most recent book, Knife: Meditations After an Attempted Murder, to the people who saved his life.

Rushdie recalls coming...

About the Podcast

The Current is a public affairs radio program on Canada's CBC. Host Matt Galloway interviews the people who shape politics, the arts, and civic life.

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