A petition has been launched to protest against Warwick University’s decision to disallow secular activist Maryam Namazie from speaking about secularism at the Student Union on October 28, amidst fears that she might incite hatred towards Muslims.
The petition defends Namazie, who is the head of the council of Ex-Muslims of Britain, saying, “Maryam often describes the true facts concerning her own experiences and those of people she works with in relation to radical forms of Islam – not all forms of Islam, just those pernicious radical strands of the religion – things that most peaceful Muslims would also condemn.”
Benjamin David, president of Warwick Atheists, Secularists and Humanists (WASH), the group that had invited Namazie to speak at the university, recently launched the petition, saying banning free thought and peaceful speeches is the most dangerous of all subversions.
“The infringement of free-speech is becoming insidiously ubiquitous, and many universities, including Warwick, are circumventing the freedom of speech in pursuit of inoffensive, sanitary narratives,” wrote David.
Warwick University’s Student Union had earlier informed David that they could not allow Namazie to speak on campus, as her articles prove that she is highly inflammatory and thus, likely to incite hatred against Muslim students.
“After researching both [Ms Namazie] and her organisation, a number of flags have been raised. We have a duty of care to conduct a risk assessment for each speaker who wishes to come to campus,” said the Union.
Upon being asked, Namazie, who fled Iran’s repressive regime along with her family in 1980, said she was likely to have spoken about issues such as blasphemy, apostasy and nudity in the Age of Islamic State.
After being informed of the Union’s decision, Namazie told the media, “They’re basically labelling me a racist and an extremist for speaking out against Islam and Islamism. If people like me who fled an Islamist regime can’t speak out about my opposition to the far-right Islamic movement, if I can’t criticize Islam… that leaves very [few] options for me as a dissenter because the only thing I have is my freedom of expression. If anyone is inciting hatred, it’s the Islamists who are threatening people like me just for deciding we want to be atheist, just because we don’t want to toe the line. To try to censor me, does a double disservice to those people who are dissenting by denying people like me the only opportunity we have to speak.”
WASH said it had filed an appeal with the Union.
Isaac Leigh, president of the Union, clarified, “Contrary to what has been communicated in the public domain, no final decision has been taken. The initial decision was made for the right of Muslim students not to feel intimidated or discriminated against on their university campus … rather than in the interest of suppressing free speech. A final decision on this issue will be reached by the most senior members of the Student Union in coming days.”
Warwick University’s decision has also been criticized by National Secular Society, which promised to write to the concerned authorities, reminding them of their legal obligations to protect and promote free speech.
“Unfortunately it is part of a worrying wave of censorship that we’re seeing across British universities under the guise of ‘safe spaces’… it’s utterly disheartening,” said Stephen Evans, the society’s campaigns manager. “The concept of safe spaces has had a chilling effect on free speech.”
Namazie said she hopes that the university would reconsider its decision.
Photo Credits: Patheos
