Leader of anti-LGBT education protests refuses to accept judge’s ban in furious row live on air
Nick Ferrari debating protest leader Shakeel Afsal on LBC radio (Screenshot: LBC)
The leader of the anti-LGBT education protests has declared that a High Court judge who ruled against him was “wrong”, and says he will be continuing protests near the school with amplifiers.
Shakeel Afsal was interviewed by Nick Ferrari on LBC radio following a High Court ruling to permanently extend an exclusion zone banning protests around a Birmingham primary school.
The months of protests accompanied by a loudspeakers and a PA system caused stress and panic attacks in local residents, and left 21 members of school staff with trauma, anxiety and sleeping disorders.
The interview descended into a bitter row as Ferrari took Afsal to task, asking if he planned to continue his “anti-social” methods of protest. After persistent questioning Afsal admitted that he does plan to use the amplifiers and denied all evidence of the stress these had caused.
“That’s grossly exaggerated,” he repeatedly claimed, refusing to accept the judgement of an educational psychologist who testified in the trial. “That evidence was not cross-examined.”
“Sorry, are you an educational psychologist?” Ferrari asked. When Shakeel Afsal refused to answer, he said: “Right, let me take it another way.
“You are not an educational psychologist. This woman is, and she swore on oath to give her testimony. Are you honestly suggesting that an acclaimed psychologist with years of experience would lie to the court Mr [Afsal]?”
“I’m not suggesting any lies,” Afsal replied. “That evidence was not cross examined, and this whole judgement, the findings by the judge in fact, are prejudiced and biased.”
When asked to explain, Afsal criticised the judge for making “all his findings very politically correct” and “all one-sided”. He further claimed the judge’s ruling was not a fair judgement.
“Just because the judgement has currently gone against you doesn’t mean that it’s one-sided,” Ferrari quipped.
“What gives you and your colleagues the right to behave in what’s perceived to be an anti-social fashion, to cause a resident panic attacks, another sleepless nights, and another 21 members of staff to have persistence of trauma? And I’ve not even touched on the children yet.”
“That’s false reporting, that’s one-sided reporting as well. You haven’t seen the evidence,” Afsal repeated furiously.
#ICYMI: Protests against equality lessons outside a #Birmingham primary school have been banned after an exclusion zone has been made permanent.
Megaphones and amplification used at demonstrations are also banned.
We asked lead protestor Shakeel Afsar about that decision⬇️ pic.twitter.com/CueIlBOEyv
— Free Radio News (@freeradionews) November 27, 2019
He defended his right to free speech, which has not been threatened by the city council in any way. He then claimed that the school had been teaching the LGBT-positive lessons in “a surreptitious manner”, which again has been disproved by the judge.
Ferrari raised the matter of Shakeel Afsal allegedly inviting a controversial imam to the anti-LGBT education protests, who falsely claimed schools were teaching children about anal sex, paedophilia and ‘transgenderism’.
As Ferrari asked why the protesters “peddled lies” such as this, Afsal desperately attempted to distance himself from the matter, even though he has been seen in footage holding the imam’s notes as he speaks.
“Well this is one point we will be appealing against because the judge has got it wrong,” he said. “On this specific point we will be appealing. We did not say that the school was teaching masturbation.”
