From: Islamic Human Rights Commission

18 October 2017

PRESS RELEASE – Katies Hopkins among front-runners for Islamophobe of the Year award

Islamic Human Rights Commission has announced the nominees for the Islamophobia Awards 2017. The event aims to subvert Islamophobia through comedy and revue while simultaneously addressing a serious issue in a creative manner.

The event, which includes a gala dinner, features a satirical awards ceremony in which those who have been the most Islamophobic over the past year are awarded for their “accomplishments”.

Following the format of years gone by, the awards are split into four separate categories: UK, International, News/Media and Film/Book/TV Series. Nominees were submitted by the general public who had the chance to name whomever they felt had been Islamophobic.

The UK category sees familiar faces such as Katie Hopkins, Maajid Nawaz and Tommy Robinson. The EU referendum and the London mayoral election saw hateful campaigning from the likes of Nigel Farage, Boris Johnson and Zac Goldsmith who are all also nominated.

Nominees in the ‘International’ category are literally spread across the globe with the inclusion of Burmese politician Aung San Suu Kyi who has blatantly ignored calls to halt the ethnic cleansing of the Muslim Rohingya minority in the region as well as Ashin Wirathu, the anti-Muslim Buddhist monk who has been responsible for inciting racially and religiously motivated violence.

Last year’s Islamophobe of the Year winner Donald Trump was bound to make an appearance since being elected US president, his misdemeanours too numerous to name. Europe’s rapidly rising far right also makes a good showing with representations from Alternative for Germany and Austria’s Freedom Party as well as regulars Marie Le Pen and Geert Wilders.

The ‘New Media’ category consists of favourites like The Daily Mail, The Sun, Fox News and Breitbart. These publications really found time to shine over the course of the EU referendum, the US presidential election and the UK general election. Many people nominated Kelvin Mackenzie who attacked Channel 4 present Fatima Manji for wearing a hijab while reporting on the Nice terror attack and political commentator Tomi Lahren who stated ‘I don’t hate Muslims. I don’t hate snakes either, I just know they bite.’

This year also sees a crop of very similar movies in the ‘Movie/Book/TV’ category as ‘Patriots Day’, ‘American Assassin’ and ‘London Has Fallen’ are all nominated, as is last year’s winner ‘Homeland’.

Winners will be announced during the spoof awards ceremony which will be taking place on Sunday, 26 November 2017.

2017 ISLAMOPHOBIA AWARDS NOMINATIONS:

UK:

• Katie Hopkins
• Nigel Farage
• Tommy Robinson
• Anne Marie Waters
• Boris Johnson
• Trevor Phillips
• OFSTED
• Zac Goldsmith
• Maajid Nawaz
• Louise Casey

INTERNATIONAL:

• Donald Trump
• Aung San Suu Kyi
• Richard Spencer
• Marie Le Pen
• Geert Wilders
• Ashin Wirathu
• Milo Yiannopoulos
• Alternative for Germany (AfD)
• Freedom Party Austria
• Hege Storhaug

NEWS & PRINT/ONLINE MEDIA:

• Melanie Philips
• Daily Mail
• The Sun
• Fox News
• Daily Express
• Breitbart
• Tomi Lahren
• Kelvin Mackenzie

MOVIE/BOOK/TV SERIES:

• Patriots Day
• 24: Legacy
• American Assassin
• London Has Fallen
• Chicago Justice
• The X-Files
• Homeland

Notes to editors:

Date: Sunday, 26 November

Time: 4pm – 8pm

Venue: Abrar House, 45 Crawford Place, West Central, London, W1H 4LP

The general public can vote for their choice of Islamophobe here at https://www.ihrc.org.uk/events/11973-islamophobia-awards-2017-vote-now

For all media enquiries and to register to attend please email nadia@ihrc.org or call 020 8904 4222

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IHRC is an NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations.

Islamic Human Rights Commission
PO Box 598
Wembley
HA9 7XH
United Kingdom

Telephone (+44) 20 8904 4222
Email: info@ihrc.org
Web: www.ihrc.org
Twitter @ihrc