Islamists have ignited anger in East London by flyposting homophobic stickers over the weekend.

The stickers were professionally produced and stated, “Arise and Warn. Gay free zone. Verily Allah is severe in punishment.” The poster included the “Gay free zone” slogan written in a diagonal bar across a rainbow flag. They were distributed around Whitechapel, Shoreditch and Poplar, some specifically targeting schools and pubs.

Equality campaigner Peter Tatchell condemned the behaviour, saying, “These stickers are part of a trend by Islamists and fundamentalists to target LGBT people. It is happening at universities and in communities. The main victims of this hate-mongering are LGBT Muslims.”

Tatchell added, “Only last week there were reports of threats being sent by Islamists to gay students at South Bank University. LGBT History Month posters have been defaced by extremist Muslim students. Several universities have hosted hate preachers who endorse the killing of LGBT people.”

The Association of British Muslims has also voiced concern about the stickers. Co-director Paul Salahuddin Armstrong said, “There is nothing in the Qur’an against LGBT people… Allah has honoured every son/daughter of Adam, so such a hateful message is not only morally and ethically wrong but actually unislamic.”

Ali Hilli of Iraqi LGBT added his condemnation, saying, “This small group of narrow minded people do not represent Islam or the Muslim community. In fact, a sentiment of rejection and condemnation for such a small group is growing among all Muslims. It is our duty to stop them and stand up to them whether we are Muslims, Jews or Christians.”

The stickers have now been removed by Tower Hamlets council. A spokeswoman for the council said, “We work hard to actively foster a climate of acceptance and tolerance, and combat all forms of discrimination and harassment within the borough. We are appalled by the actions of those who have produced and posted these stickers. We treat issues like this very seriously, and these incidents are being investigated by the borough’s Hate Crime Team who are working alongside the local police.”

Comments are closed.