THE ASIAN INDEPENDENT UK
Bal Ram Sampla
Geopolitics
A mosque in Tower Hamlets has banned women and girl s over the age of 12 from participating in a charity run in a public park. The event is marketed as “inclusive” and “family-friendly.” Yet where is the outrage? Where are the politicians lining up to condemn this blatant sex discrimination? Where is Keir Starmer? Where are the champions of equality and diversity?
The silence is deafening. And it speaks volumes.
The Double Standard Nobody Wants to Admit
Let’s be brutally honest about what would happen if this were a different scenario. Imagine a Church of England congregation announced that women over 12 couldn’t participate in their charity run in a public park. The response would be swift and furious. Politicians from all parties would be tripping over themselves to condemn it. The media would run wall-to-wall coverage. Equality campaigners would be mobilized. Social media would explode with justified outrage.
But when it’s a mosque? Silence.
This isn’t about one event. This is about a pattern of selective morality that has poisoned our public discourse and betrayed the very people who need protection most.
Why Leaders Stay Silent
The reasons for this silence are as predictable as they are shameful.
1.Fear of being called racist.
Politicians have calculated that criticizing practices within Muslim communities carries the risk of being labeled “Islamophobic.” In today’s political climate, that accusation can be career-ending. So they stay quiet. They look the other way. They abandon their principles to protect their reputations.
2.Electoral mathematics.
Tower Hamlets has a large Muslim population. Politicians know this. They know that speaking out might cost them votes. So they make a choice: political survival over the rights of women and girls. It’s cowardice dressed up as sensitivity.
3.Misguided multiculturalism.
There’s a toxic idea that has taken hold: that we should not impose “our values” on minority communities. But sex equality isn’t a Western value. It’s a human value. When we refuse to defend it universally, we’re not being respectful. We’re being condescending. We’re saying that we expect less from some communities than others.
4.Different rules for different religions.
Christianity, as the historically dominant faith in Britain, is treated as fair game for criticism. And it should be. But why are other faiths handled with kid gloves? Either discrimination is wrong or it isn’t. Either equality matters or it doesn’t. You can’t have it both ways.
Who Pays the Price?
While our leaders stay silent, women and girls pay the price.
The women within these communities who want equality are abandoned. They’re told, implicitly, that their rights matter less than not offending religious sensibilities. They’re left to fight alone, without the support of the very people who claim to champion women’s rights.
Young girls are taught that they are lesser. That their participation in public life can be restricted simply because of their sex. That the rules that protect other British girls somehow don’t apply to them.
This is what happens when principles become negotiable. When equality is championed in some contexts but ignored in others. When political leaders care more about optics than outcomes.
The Cost of Silence
This silence doesn’t just harm women and girls. It damages our entire society.
It breeds cynicism. People see politicians speak about equality one day, then turn mute the next. They stop believing that anyone in power actually stands for anything. They conclude that it’s all just performance, all just politics.
It fuels resentment. When people see different standards applied to different groups, when they see some forms of discrimination called out and others ignored, they feel the system is rigged. This isn’t imaginary. This is real. And it’s corrosive.
It undermines social cohesion. A shared society requires shared values. When we apply those values selectively, we’re not building unity. We’re building division.
What Needs to Happen
The answer is simple, even if the politics are hard.
Sex discrimination is wrong. Full stop. It doesn’t matter who’s doing it. It doesn’t matter what the religious justification is. It doesn’t matter how many votes might be at stake.
If we believe in equality, we must defend it consistently. If we believe women and girls have rights, we must defend those rights in every community, not just the convenient ones.
Keir Starmer should speak out. Other leaders should speak out. Equality organizations should speak out.
This event should not go ahead with these discriminatory rules. And if religious organizations want to claim exemptions from equality law, those claims should be scrutinized properly, not simply accepted out of fear or political calculation.
The Real Test of Values
Anyone can defend equality when it’s easy. The real test comes when it’s hard. When speaking out might cost you something. When staying silent would be more comfortable.
Our leaders are failing that test.
The women and girls of Tower Hamlets deserve better. They deserve leaders who will stand up for them, regardless of the political risks. They deserve the same protection, the same outrage, the same support that would be automatic in other circumstances.
Until our leaders find the courage to speak with one voice against all discrimination, their talk of equality rings hollow. The silence on this event is not diplomacy. It’s not sensitivity. It’s not respect for diversity.
It’s moral cowardice. And it needs to end.
References
1. https://www.gbnews.com/news/mosque-bans-women-girls-charity-run
2. https://thecritic.co.uk/political-islam-is-already-in-britain/
3.https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/4345852/posts
