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Samirah Majumdar

Research Associate

Expertise:Religion and Public Life

Samirah Majumdar is a research associate at Pew Research Center, where she focuses on global restrictions on religion. Samirah holds a master’s degree from Georgetown University and a bachelor’s degree from Barnard College. She is an author of Pew Research Center reports including “Government Restrictions on Religion Stayed at Peak Levels Globally in 2022,” “How COVID-19 Restrictions Affected Religious Groups Around the World in 2020” and “A Closer Look at How Religious Restrictions Have Risen Around the World.”

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short readsNov 10, 2020

Government restrictions on religion around the world reached new record in 2018

Government restrictions in 2018 were at their highest level since 2007, when Pew Research Center began tracking these trends.
reportNov 10, 2020

In 2018, Government Restrictions on Religion Reach Highest Level Globally in More Than a Decade

In 2018, the global median level of government restrictions on religion – that is, laws, policies and actions by officials that impinge on religious beliefs and practices – continued to climb, reaching an all-time high since Pew Research Center began tracking these trends in 2007.
short readsJul 16, 2019

How religious restrictions around the world have changed over a decade

The Center’s tenth report on religious restrictions around the world focuses on trends in restrictions from 2007 to 2017.
short readsNov 7, 2018

In 2016, emergency laws restricted religious freedoms of Muslims more than other groups

In 2016, seven nations – Turkey, Brunei, Ethiopia, France, Hungary, Niger and Tunisia – directly used emergency laws to restrict religion, according to Pew Research Center’s latest annual religious restrictions study. While a number of different religious groups were targeted, these laws imposed restrictions on Muslims more than any other group.
short readsOct 11, 2018

Recent Chinese dealings with faith groups reflect a pattern of government restrictions on religion

While the Chinese government asserts that it protects religious freedom, a series of annual Pew Research Center reports on religious restrictions around the globe have detailed government efforts aimed at maintaining strict control over religious beliefs and practices in the country. Two recent events have brought this into focus: China’s agreement with the Vatican on […]
short readsJun 29, 2018

5 facts about religion in India

India is home to 1.4 billion people – almost one-sixth of the world’s population – who belong to a variety of ethnicities and religions. While 94% of the world’s Hindus live in India, there also are substantial populations of Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and adherents of folk religions. Here are five facts about religion in India.
short readsApr 28, 2017

Sub-Saharan Africa experienced largest increase in religious restrictions in 2015

While sub-Saharan Africa had fewer religious restrictions than many other parts of the world in 2015, it experienced a larger increase than any other region.
reportApr 11, 2017

Global Restrictions on Religion Rise Modestly in 2015, Reversing Downward Trend

Government restrictions on religion and social hostilities involving religion increased in 2015 for the first time in three years. Government harassment and use of force surged in Europe, as did social hostilities against Muslims.