Oxford Union has postponed a debate with Tommy Robinson after faith leaders in Oxfordshire condemned the decision to invite him.
The debate was due to be held on 28 May and would have debated the motion, “This house believes the West is right to be suspicious of Islam.” Reports suggested that other potential speakers included Laurence Fox and Calvin Robinson.
It has been postponed “to allow time for planning”, Oxford Union said.
In a joint letter the Bishop of Oxford, Steven Croft and Imam Monawar Hussain, writing in their capacity as co-Chairs of the Oxfordshire Faith and Civic Leaders Forum, said they were “disturbed and saddened” to hear that Robinson had been invited to speak, suggesting it placed citizens in “physical danger”.
They described Robinson’s recent Unite the Kingdom Rally as an example of rising community tensions, although Robinson himself said the purpose of the rally was to promote national unity.
“As faith and civic leaders across Oxfordshire and the Thames Valley we stand together against hatred, racism and those who would divide our communities," they said in their letter.
"In order to build a strong, stable and safe society, we need all our institutions to do all they can at this time to work for peace and understanding and to resist division and racism.”
They added, “We understand the need to protect freedom of speech and the right to protest. But these rights sit alongside the rights of every citizen and their children to go about their daily lives free of hatred and physical danger.”
Robinson first spoke at the Oxford Union in 2014. During his speech, Robinson explained his upbringing in Luton where he said he had witnessed first hand outrages and abuses by members of the Muslim community, including alleged sexual grooming of his cousin, verbal abuse of British soldiers at homecoming parades, and gang violence.
He claimed all of this was ignored by the authorities, leading him to pose the question, “What would you have done?”
While no new date has yet been set for the debate, the Oxford Union has said it will take place “later this term”.
Evangelical apologist David Robertson has cautioned against attempts to restrict the free speech of Robinson and described the faith leaders' criticism of the far-Right leader as “hypocritical”.
"The condemnation of Robinson is easy. It’s low hanging fruit. But it is also hypocritical," he said.
"Did the bishop and the imam condemn the Oxford Union when they had Miko Peled speak and describe the October 7 massacres as ‘acts of heroism’? Have the Church of Scotland and other religious leaders, who are so quick to speak about the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ march condemned the pro-Palestinian rallies where calls for death to the IDF, and for the destruction of the Jewish state, have been loud and proud? If not, why not? Are some forms of hatred acceptable?
"The bishop and the imam seem to see no contradiction in saying that they are against hatred and division, while at the same time expressing hatred towards Robinson and his followers, and seeking to divide the University from people like Robinson."
