Chris Keates disputes ‘Trojan Horse’ inquiry findings

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Chris KeatesThe general secretary of teaching union NASUWT has claimed there has been no radicalisation or religious extremism in Birmingham’s Trojan Horse schools.

Chris Keates, general secretary of the Rednal-based union, has dismissed the findings of two independent reports and has written to the Education Secretary Nicky Morgan to complain about one penned by former anti-terror chief Peter Clarke.

Mr Clarke, who led a Government-ordered probe into the Trojan Horse plot after five Birmingham schools were placed in special measures following snap Ofsted inspections, found “compelling evidence” of an attempt to “gain control” of some school governing bodies.

He claimed his discoveries were the “tip of the iceberg” and the Government was “nowhere near” getting to the bottom of the issues. He also criticised both NASUWT and Birmingham City Council’s response to the scandal.

But Mrs Keates criticised Mr Clarke, claiming he did not go “far enough” when carrying out his investigation.

She said: “I thought he came with an agenda from government to find radicalisation and extremism and when I read the report I was certain he did. I asked to see him and when I did he did not ask me any questions. My concern was that the only people he spoke to were people with axes to grind. Yes, there were particular members of a community behaving in the wrong way but I don’t believe it was radicalisation or extremism.”

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ISIS videos leave North East Muslims targeted and blamed, say Tyneside campaigners

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Muslims are being “targeted and blamed” because of brutal actions from extreme terror group ISIS, say Tyneside campaigners.

They are now calling for a better understanding between Muslims and the non-Muslim community after noticing increased levels of tension in the aftermath of videos released by the terrorist organisation.

New figures show racial hate crime in the North East has rocketed.

Elswick councillor Dipu Ahad said the images of Isis that have emerged over the last two months has caused more suspicion and negative views of the Muslim community.

He said: “Any time something happens the whole of the Muslim community is targeted and blamed. It was the same during the murder of Lee Rigby. I’m not saying it’s everyone but they are feeling that people are targeting them, they do feel it.”

He said tensions have risen despite widespread condemnation of Isis within the Muslim community. “Muslims don’t behead innocent people – they don’t do things the way Isis do. The Muslim people here condemn ISIS. They see they’re not even Muslim,” he said.

His comments come after messages about Isis were spray-painted in the locations across the West End of Newcastle. The graffiti, which read ‘Turkish Isis supporters’ was condemned by local businessmen and campaigners as an anti-Muslim action and was swiftly removed by Newcastle City Council.

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Mayor to boycott speech by Jerry Boykin

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Jerry Boykin FRCThe mayor of Vancouver, Wash., is boycotting a prayer breakfast speech by a retired U.S. Army General who has called Islam a “totalitarian way of life,” called for a ban on mosques in American and said that Muslims should not enjoy free speech protection under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

Retired Lt. Gen. William G. “Jerry” Boykin, a regular on the conservative speaking circuit, is slated to keynote Friday’s Clark County Mayors’ and Civic Leaders’ Prayer Breakfast. The selection of Boykin has shrouded in civic controversy what is normally a solemn and unifying civic event that draws more than 900 people.

Vancouver Mayor Tim Leavitt, while appreciating Boykin’s 36-year military career, said the general’s views are at cross-purposes with the purpose of the breakfast.

“The vision of the breakfast is ‘inspiring Clark County residents to honor, encourage and support each other,’” Leavitt said in a statement. “But it is apparent to me that the values of the keynote speaker are not consistent with the original vision of the event. In fact, I’m certain that Lt. General Boykin’s position on a number of social, political and religious issues does not at all reflect the values of acceptance, tolerance and compassion our community strives for.”

Boykin began to make news after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States. He characterized the war on terrorism as a Christian war with Satan the enemy. The stand was quickly repudiated by President George W. Bush.

In retirement, Boykin has been more outspoken. Islam is “a totalitarian way of life,” he has stated, its followers “under an obligation to destroy our Constitution.” Therefore, in Boykin’s words, “It should not be protected under the First Amendment.”

Boykin has warned that God will deliver upon America a Civil War-like reckoning because of abortion and pornography. At a recent conference, he stated: “Americans need to have more babies and populate this country with red-blooded patriotic Americans” to counter Muslim influence.

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Religious hate crimes up almost 50% In London

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Religious hate crimes have shot up almost 50% in London in the wake of Lee Rigby’s murder.

Figures from the Office of National Statistics show that there were 918 religious hate crimes in 2013/14, compared to just 634 the previous year. Nationally, there were 2,273 reported cases of a religious hate crime, up 700 on the previous year.

Statisticians believe the rise is driven by higher levels of hate crime in the wake of the murder of soldier Lee Rigby.

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EDL Birmingham: Three members convicted of violent disorder in city while fourth cleared by jury

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Williams, McKenzie, Wilkie and Edge
From left, Shane Williams, Paul McKenzie, Thomas Wilkie and Andrew Edge

Three members of the English Defence League have been found guilty of violent disorder during a demonstration which saw police pelted with missiles.

Thomas Wilkie, aged 22, of Kent Road, Wednesbury, was found guilty by a jury for his part in the violence on July 20 last year. Andrew Edge, 44, of Wellington Road, South Stockport and Shane Williams, 26, of Dragon Lane, Leicester, were also convicted. Paul McKenzie, aged 48, of Braemar Road, Billingham, was cleared of the offence.

Edge, who asked to be remanded into custody, chanted “EDL, EDL” as he was led away by dock officers. His Honour Judge Richard Bond told the jury: “Well there you go, resounding confirmation the verdict you returned was the correct one.”

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Racist teenager jailed for assault on young boys walking home from mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A racist teenager has been jailed for throwing a pot noodle at two Asian boys walking home from Mosque.

Blackburn magistrates heard Luke Croft had a previous conviction for throwing a stone at Asian boys leaving school and had posted racist abuse on his Facebook page. And after a previous court appearance he put on Facebook an abusive message about one of the magistrates.

Croft, 18, of Wood Street, Darwen, pleaded guilty to racially aggravated assault. He was jailed for 20 weeks.

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Sweden: Muslim minister accused of ‘hidden agenda’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Mehmet Kaplan and Nalin PekgulA former Swedish MP has slammed Sweden’s new Housing Minister Mehmet Kaplan, saying that the Muslim politician has a hidden agenda.

Social Democrat politician Nalin Pekgul went on the attack against Mehmet Kaplan from the Green Party (Miljöpartiet) in a debate article in one of Sweden’s leading broadsheets.

Her piece in the Dagens Industri newspaper was prompted by a statement Kaplan made to the Turkish media, in which he claimed that the reason young Muslims are joining the terror group Isis is because of widespread Islamophobia in Europe.

Kaplan, who is Sweden’s new Housing Minister, argued that the government should give more money to Europe’s mosques in an effort to tackle the recruitment. But Pekgul suggested that young people were signing up because they felt lost or rootless and that Islamist extremists were taking advantage of their vulnerability.

“It’s unforgivably naive to think that giving money to these kinds of [Muslim] organizations and mosques will work against segregation and will reach out to these youths who are being radicalized,” she wrote. “It’s exactly this kind of naivety that people like Mehmet Kaplan are counting on, and it’s time for everyone who wants to oppose the radicalization to realize the damage Mehmet Kaplan and others like him can accomplish.”

Kaplan, a 43-year-old born in Turkey, is a former spokesperson for the Muslim Council of Sweden. He has been a member of the Green Party since 2003.

“For fear of being labelled as an Islamophobe, no one dares question Mehmet Kaplan and his hidden agenda,” added Pekgul.

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Muslims urged to report religious hate crimes

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Mark Warrender at Jamia MosqueMuslim communities across Newport are being urged to report hate crimes, with a focus on incidents targeting religion and faith.

Gwent’s Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner Paul Harris and Gwent Police Superintendent Mark Warrender met Muslim community leaders yesterday during hate crime awareness week.

A recent hate crime survey in Wales found 15 per cent of religious hate victims had attempted to conceal their religion to reduce the risk of victimisation.

And Superintendent Warrender, the force’s lead officer for hate crime, said of 250 hate crime incidents reported in Gwent every year, just a handful are linked to religion and faith. “The numbers don’t reflect what is going on. We are trying to get more people to come forward and there are lots of different reasons why they don’t,” he said.

“Victims can think the things happening to them do not seem that important and the police have better things to do. Some don’t think the police will do anything, or they are scared to report it. But crimes like these can have a disproportionate effect on victims, and Gwent Police absolutely will not tolerate hate crime.”

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CAIR launches website exposing America’s ‘Islamophobia network’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

CAIR Islamophobia Monitor

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today launched Islamophobia.org, the latest element in the Muslim civil rights organization’s work to monitor and challenge the growing anti-Muslim bigotry in American society.

CAIR’s Islamophobia.org site presents detailed profiles of a number of individuals and institutions involved in the American Islamophobia network.

“Islamophobia.org is a reflection of CAIR’s philosophy of educating people and empowering them toward positive action,” said CAIR Department to Monitor and Combat Islamophobia Director Corey Saylor.

“Since CAIR included the first Islamophobe profiles in its 2013 report ‘Legislating Fear,’ local communities have used them to begin positive conversations leading to the rejection of bigotry in all its forms,” said Saylor. “We intend to continue this community partnership by further empowering local advocates with a centralized resource that provides detailed information about the haters who tour the nation spreading misinformation and religious division.”

The searchable collection of profiles includes well-known hate entities such as Frank Gaffney’s Center for Security Policy and Robert Spencer’s Jihad Watch. Additionally, the site features information on key, but less visible members of the network, such as a number of local ACT! for America leadership.  The site also lays the groundwork for a forthcoming CAIR initiative to counter all types of prejudice in the United States.

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