Anti-gay preacher to speak at Westminster Uni before Student Pride

An anti-gay preacher is scheduled to speak at Westminster University later this month (February).

Sheikh Haitham Al Haddad, an advisor of the Islamic Sharia Council, has been invited to speak at the University on February 26, just one day before Student Pride is set to commence on February 27.

Haddad – who has been invited to speak by the University’s Islamic Society – has previously argued that homosexuality is a “criminal act,” defended men who physically abuse their wives and insisted that female circumcision is “proper”.

Shortly after news of Haddad’s visit broke, Westminster University’s LGBTI society created a petition calling on the University to cancel his appearance, saying that it’s “not possible to create a safe space for thousands of LGBT students if an Anti-gay preacher is allowed on campus a day before”.

The petition, which you can sign here, has already received more than 750 signatures.

In a statement provided to Attitude, a Westminster University spokesperson said:

“The University of Westminster is committed to maintaining freedom of speech and a range of views as set out in the Education Act 1986. As a diverse community of local and international students of many faiths, respect and tolerance is our foremost concern and we will be monitoring the event carefully and any student concerns.

“The University has a strict speaker policy which means that all speakers are required to give their agreement to abide by a code of practice. Speakers who do not comply with this policy while on campus will not be permitted to speak at the University in the future.”

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