Salman Rushdie at the launch of his new book: In a second term, Trump will be unbridled and vindictive

Salman Rushdie has warned young people not to forget the value of free speech, commenting on the “very large and negative” impact of a possible second Trump presidency in a rare public appearance after he was the victim of a knife attack.

The Indian-born British-American author of books including The Satanic Verses and Midnight’s Children also spoke about the 2022 attack that left him blind in one eye. The incident happened during an event of the English PEN-Club at Southbank Centre, reminds BGNES.

“I have a very old-fashioned view (of freedom of speech),” said Rushdie, who joined by video link from his home in New York at the launch of his new memoir, “Knife: Reflections on an Assassination Attempt.”

“The protection of free speech starts the moment someone says something you don’t like,” Rushdie said.

“It’s a very simple thing, but it’s forgotten. That’s what’s written in the first amendment (of the US Constitution – n.b.)… In the US, it feels like there’s a young generation that seems to forget the value of that. More often than not for reasons they think are virtuous, they’re willing to suppress speech they don’t like. It’s a slippery slope, because the person sliding down that slope could be you.” he warned.

Rushdie stated that academia in America was “in serious trouble … due to colossal political divisions.” “And everyone is so angry that it seems very difficult to find a common language,” the writer stated.

The Booker Prize winner, whose books have been translated into more than 40 languages, discussed the prospect of a second Trump presidency with writer and critic Erica Wagner, encouraging young people in the US “not to make the mistake of not voting”.

“The impact will be very big and negative. The second time would be worse because it would be rampant and vengeful. All he talks about is revenge. And it’s a bad political platform that you want to be president to take revenge on In New York, people knew the point of Donald Trump long before he ran for office. And unfortunately, America had to find out the hard way just so they don’t get caught on his hook again.” Salman Rushdie also said.

On August 12, 2022, Rushdie was preparing to give a lecture at the Chautauqua Institute in New York State when a man stormed the stage and stabbed him about 10 times with a knife. “I saw the man in black running towards me on the right side of the seats,” he recalls in his new book. The writer remained in hospital for six weeks.

On 21 April, he stated that for six months he had been unable to think about writing, but then it occurred to him that it would be “ridiculous” to write about anything else.

He spoke of the difficulty of writing the first chapter, in which he had to detail the exact nature of the attack. “It was very difficult to do,” shared the writer.

The Knife is the only book I’ve written with the help of a therapist. He gave me back control of the narrative. Instead of being a person lying on a stage in a pool of blood, I am a person writing a book about a person living on a stage in a pool of blood. I felt good,” says Rushdie.

He also spoke about the postponement of the trial against his attacker, Hadi Matar. The writer stated that Matar’s not guilty plea was absurd and that he would testify at any future trial: “I don’t mind being in the courtroom with him. That should bother him.”