Gartenstein-Ross, Daveed 1976-

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Gartenstein-Ross, Daveed 1976-

PERSONAL:

Born 1976, in Ashland, OR. Education: Wake Forest University, B.A.; New York University, J.D.

ADDRESSES:

CAREER:

Foundation for Defense of Democracies, director of the Project on Religion, Politics, and Radicalism and senior fellow. Worked previously for the U.S. office of the Al Haramain Islamic Foundation, as a law clerk at the United States Court of Appeals, and as a commercial litigator at Boies, Schiller & Flexner. Consultant on issues of terrorism and Islamic extremism.

WRITINGS:

My Year inside Radical Islam: A Memoir, Jeremy P. Tarcher (New York, NY), 2007.

Contributor to periodicals, including Reader's Digest, Commentary, Wall Street Journal Europe, Weekly Standard, Washington Times, Dallas Morning News, Middle East Quarterly, New York University Law Review, New York University Journal of International Law and Politics, and the Denver Journal of International Law and Policy.

SIDELIGHTS:

Born to a Jewish family, Daveed Gartenstein-Ross became intrigued by the Islamic faith as a college student at Wake Forest University, when discussions with a Shiite Muslim friend seemed to address many of his theological questions. After graduating from college, he turned to more radical philosophies and was eventually recruited to work for an Islamic foundation in his native Oregon that was later charged with financing al-Qaeda. Time spent in New York as a law student as well as the events surrounding the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the city gave him a fresh perspective, and he ultimately converted to Christianity. Gartenstein-Ross wrote of his experiences with fundamentalism in My Year inside Radical Islam: A Memoir. The narrative includes anecdotes of his work as an informer for the Federal Bureau of Investigation and as a fellow for the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Booklist reviewer Bryce Christensen remarked: "For readers trying to understand Muslims on both sides of the radical-moderate divide, Gartenstein-Ross' story will be an eye-opener." Elizabeth R. Hayford described the book in a Library Journal review as "a clearly written personal story on a timely subject" that will "be of interest to many general readers."