Waleed Aly (born 15 August 1978) is an Australian lawyer, academic and rock musician. He has been a member of the executive committee of the Islamic Council of Victoria and has served as the council's head of public affairs. He is a frequent commentator on Australian Muslim affairs. In 2008 he was selected to participate in the Australia 2020 Summit. He was born in Melbourne and supports the Richmond Football Club.
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Aly completed the International Baccalaureate at Wesley College, Melbourne (Glen Waverley Campus) in 1996, where he was a music prefect and an Alexander Wawn scholar before studying engineering and law at the University of Melbourne. His IB extended essay was on the topic of 'Queen: Bohemian Rhapsody'. He is currently a candidate for a Doctor of Philosophy degree at the School of Political and Social Inquiry in the Arts Faculty at Monash University.[1]
Waleed is currently a lecturer at the Global Terrorism Research Centre at Monash University.
He worked as a solicitor in Melbourne for Maddocks Lawyers until 2007.
Aly's social and political commentary appears regularly in newspapers such as The Guardian, The Australian, The Australian Financial Review, The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age. His first book, 'People Like Us: How Arrogance is Dividing Islam and the West' (Picador, 2007), was shortlisted for the best newcomer award in the Australian Book Industry Awards and the Queensland Premier's Literary Awards in 2008.
As a spokesman for the Islamic Council of Victoria, Aly is regularly interviewed on current affairs and news programs and also writes commentaries for both The Australian and Fairfax newspapers.
Aly is the host of ABC TV's Big Ideas (Australia) program on ABC1 and ABC News 24. [2] He is a regular guest co-host of The Conversation Hour with Jon Faine on 774 ABC Melbourne and The Project on Channel 10 and also was a regular panel member and producer on Salaam Cafe, a weekly program presented by young members of Melbourne's Muslim community on community TV station Channel 31 and later on national broadcaster SBS.
He has appeared as a panellist on ABC TV's Q&A program and is an occasional co-host on ABC News Breakfast.
Aly was commended in the 2005 Walkley Awards in the category of Commentary, Analysis, Opinion and Critique.[3] Also in 2005 he was made the White Ribbon Day ambassador for the United Nations' international day for the elimination of violence against women and was named one of The Bulletin magazine's 'Smart 100' in 2007. In 2008 he was also an invited participant to the prime minister's 2020 Summit.
His first book, People Like Us, was published in 2007.[4]
Aly is the guitarist and a key songwriter in the Melbourne rock, funk and jazz band Robot Child.[5] Aly participated in the 2009 production of 'Pink Floyds: The Wall' at Wesley College, Glen Waverley, in which he performed the part of lead guitarist in the band.