On Tuesday, we blogged on the forthcoming tour of British Universities and Mosques by the Zimbabwean hate preacher, Ismail Menk.
Shortly thereafter, the tour was covered by Pink News.
The East London Mosque was one of the venues at which Menk was due to speak. They did what they always do: shuffled the meeting into it de facto annex, The Waterlily: which hosts the worst hate preachers when the spotlight is on that institution.
Thereafter, the entire tour was cancelled.
The Indie reports:
The Independent contacted all of the universities listed on the tour and each one said it had not officially invited Mr Menk to speak. Leeds, Cardiff and Glasgow University had already said they would not be hosting him on campus.
Mr Menk was believed to have been invited by the universities’ Muslim students’ associations, many of whom were still advertising the event on their Facebook pages this afternoon. Glasgow University Muslim Association described the event as a “wonderful opportunity” on social media.
Cardiff University Islamic Society changed its Facebook photo to a picture of Mr Menk. University of Leicester’s Islamic Society described him as “entertaining, yet very pious” on its social media page. Leeds University Union Islamic Society withdrew its invitation two days ago after realising his views.
The National Union of Students said Mr Menk’s “reported comments are very concerning”. Ruth Hunt of Stonewall said: “Universities should always remain mindful that they have a duty to protect all of their students and to ensure balance in university discourse.”
The Tayyibun Institute, which was organising the tour, issued a statement saying: “It is our duty to promote peace, tolerance, equality and justice, acknowledging the presence of the diverse faiths and inclinations in our midst.”
The last line is hilarious.
The Federation of Student Islamic Societies (FOSIS) is furious:
Mufti Menk is currently at risk of being banned from the campuses of some of our major universities, despite being a world renowned scholar, known for his moderate and tolerant approach. He has attended many ISoc and FOSIS events to deliver inspiring lectures. Use the following hashtag to let everyone know why we #lovemuftimenk and why he deserves to be given a platform to speak to Muslim students in the UK. #lovemuftimenk
FOSIS is an organisation which tours hate preachers around British universities. Statements like this from FOSIS are very helpful. It assists us in making the case that FOSIS is an extremist outfit, which peddles hatred to students, and that no mainstream organisation should have anything to do with them.
So, thanks for this, FOSIS!
