UK Education Secretary Nadhim Zawahi was forced to flee a university after he was berated by leftist students over his supposed transphobic views, such as defining a woman as an “adult human female”.
On Friday, Iraqi immigrant turned government minister Nadhim Zahawi had a talk Warwick University’s Conservative Association disrupted by a group of activists from “Warwick Pride, the LGBTQUIA+ Association” which had reportedly attempted to prevent the event from taking place.
In footage obtained by The Telegraph, Zahawi was seen being ushered by campus security guards after being surrounded by leftist activists holding trans flags and chanting “Tory scum” and “Zawahi is a transphobe” as he attempted to leave the hall.
The students berated the Education Secretary for supposedly espousing anti-trans positions and “inciting hatred” by stating that women are “adult human females”.
Recalling the incident, the chairman of the Conservative Association, Tom Garth told the broadsheet: “As Zahawi was leaving the second, members-only talk, protesters rushed towards him and one landed a blow onto one of our executive members’ head, our events secretary, although he wasn’t injured.”
In a statement, the group added: “The anger and hatred aimed at us that evening only scratches the surface when it comes to revealing what protesters actually feel towards those they disagree with. There is a general unwillingness to exist alongside those with a difference of opinion on topics that should be open for legitimate discussion.”
The Westminster gossip site Guido Fawkes revealed that one of the activists who attempted to break up the talk from Zahawi was Joel Cooper, the son of Labour Party Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper and former government minister Ed Balls.
Zawahi defended Cooper on Tuesday, saying: “This student was very polite to me. He made a reasonable point about how schools can help children which I was happy to debate. His right to free speech is vital too. We will never deny biology but we must always show kindness, tolerance and love when discussing these issues.”
The opposition Labour Party has been embroiled in an ongoing dispute over what constitutes a woman, perhaps one of the reasons for the left-wing party failing to capitalise on months of scandal for Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s government.
Over the weekend, Labour MP Stella Creasy drew ridicule for coming out against Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling and declaring that she believes some women can be “born with penises“.
While Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has so far struggled to provide a coherent definition for woman, his far-left Corbynista deputy, Angela Rayner has been more strident, saying in March that it is “not acceptable” to question if a transgender person has a penis. Yvette Cooper has herself struggled to provide a definition for women.
The attempt to disrupt Zahawi’s talk comes as he is leading an effort to pass an academic freedom bill, under which public universities could be fined for bowing to student mobs and censoring or deplatforming speakers.
A Department for Education source said: “This proves the need for the Freedom of Speech Bill and is more evidence against those who say there is no such thing as a chilling culture on campus.
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