Heckling of gay Muslim speaker at school prompts Government to … – The Telegraph

The Government has sent investigators to a school after a gay Muslim speaker was shouted down by students and later received death threats. 

The Telegraph can disclose that the Department for Education has sent in investigators to work alongside local officials after the incident involving Khakan Qureshi, during which a teacher made comments referencing 9/11.

Mr Qureshi was giving a talk about equality at Wood Green Academy in Wednesbury, near Birmingham, when the lesson descended into chaos. The sixth form pupils asked him if he agreed that “being gay and Muslim is wrong” and he was asked to “prove” he was really a follower of the religion.

In an audio clip of the November incident, one student is heard saying “you allowed a gay Muslim to tell lies” while another says: “There is only one Koran, what the f— is this guy on”.

Parents were infuriated when the teacher made a reference to 9/11 as he attempted to explain that Britain was a diverse and tolerant country. 

“We are tolerant of different religions,” the teacher said. “Twenty-one years ago a group of Muslims smashed aeroplanes into buildings to kill thousands of people.” At that point people stood up and said, “No, we must not condemn Muslims for what a few have done.”

A video of the incident was uploaded online. Police were later called in after Mr Qureshi received death threats online, which prompted him to consider moving house.

The same week more than 40 students boycotted classes. Parents have since formed an “action group” as the school received more than 800 complaints.

Investigators speaking to parents

Investigators assisting the Department for Education met with parents two weeks ago. They include Prof Deorah Youdell, head of the school of education at the University of Birmingham, and Razia Butt MBE, an independent adviser in safeguarding and the implementation of the Prevent counter-extremism programme. 

Sandwell Council is also investigating and it is understood the Government wants to ensure support is in place for the safety and wellbeing of pupils and staff.

Experts said they were concerned the row could be exploited by extremist groups and The Telegraph has learnt that some linked to the action group have directed parents to controversial organisations for “support”.

An update shared with some parents said “further support will be given to the students by both CAGE and Prevent Watch along with UMO (Union of masjid) MEND, IRU and wider community.”

Asim Qureshi, Cage’s research director, infamously described Jihadi John, the Islamic State terrorist, as a “beautiful young man” and he and Cage later apologised for the comments. 

Prevent Watch works closely with the founder of a campaign group which says the teaching of same-sex relationships is “zina”, an Islamic term for unlawful sex and brands sex education “state intrusion”. 

Mend has been branded divisive by conservative politicians and think tanks but denies this and says it encourages Muslims to take part in British democracy.

‘Hate, abuse and death threats’

Mr Qureshi said he had been invited to talk about overcoming discrimination but “faced some hostility from some of the pupils” and the presentation was recorded without his knowledge. 

“It went viral and I received online hate, written abuse and death threats,” he said. “It had a very negative impact on my mental health and affected my partner, who already lives with anxiety issues. I’ve not received any aftercare from the school and the police won’t act on it unless I’m physically attacked or threatened.”

The Henry Jackson Society, a national security think tank, has compiled a dossier of the threats, one of which told Mr Quereshi to “burn in hell” and “go slit your wrists and drown in a pool of acid”. In another he was told to “throw yourself off the highest building available”. 

Charlotte Littlewood, from the think tank, said the incident had echoes of the protests outside Birmingham schools in 2019 over inclusive teaching. 

“Birmingham has seen an organised and pernicious opposition to schools fulfilling their legal duty to teach on equality and diversity,” she said. “What the incident at Wood Green Academy showed is the potential for students to be involved in the growing debate over how to teach sex education and equality.”

She added that Cage being recommended as a support service amid false allegations made locally that students had been referred to the Prevent counter-extremism programme pointed “towards young people being used as a part of a wider Islamist political agenda”. 

“It is now for the DfE to support the school by providing a more public and outspoken response to where British values in schools are being challenged; tolerance of the LGBT community is not up for debate,” she said.

The school said it aimed to prepare students for life in modern Britain and it wanted to “promote equality of opportunity and diversity effectively” and it had initiated internal and external investigations. 

“We apologise for any upset or distress that has been caused by this incident. We are doing all we can to ensure that students feel safe and supported, and are working closely with the local community,” it added. 

The Department for Education said it could not comment on individual cases.