A Muslim teacher who told pupils “Ukrainians are Nazis” and “gay and transgender people are mentally ill” has been banned from the profession. The Telegraph has more.
The panel heard that during a Year 11 history lesson at St Mary’s Menston Catholic Voluntary Academy in West Yorkshire in October 2023, William Garwood, 60, was asked “are there any just wars?”, to which he replied: “Yes.”
A child in the class, known as Pupil A, alleged that he said he was “happy” that Vladimir Putin, the Russian president, was killing “satanic Nazis” in Ukraine and that the world was run by billionaires who created “evil Ukrainians”.
The Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) found that Garwood’s comments amounted to justification for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in front of pupils.
During a misconduct investigation into his comments, Garwood told a TRA panel that he was entitled to his religious belief in Islam and to the philosophical belief in anti-Nazism under Section 10 of the Equality Act 2010.
Russia has previously said that Ukraine’s government is heavily influenced by radical nationalist and neo-Nazi groups, an allegation derided by Kyiv and its Western allies.
During the same class, the teacher also made comments to the effect that “gay and transgender people are mentally ill”, it was found.
In his evidence, Garwood said that his Islamic stance on transgender issues, which he believed also “coincided with traditional British values”, had been used to “assert that he was a psychological threat to children’s wellbeing”. He said that this was then used to “emotionally manipulate safeguarding professionals”, the panel wrote.
Garwood said that he did not give an opinion on gay people “but asserted that he is a Muslim and that this position is known, and that students misinterpreted this and formed a false caricature of him”, the TRA said.
Worth reading in full.
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I wonder if this article would get the same comments if, say, Farage had said the same thing? There are plenty of neo Nazis in Ukraine and many people that declare themselves not heterosexual have been made mentally ill by the system. So the Muslim William Garwood has a point.
The teacher may have done better pointing out that “just war” is arguable, and that one country’s “unjustified invasion” is another’s “existential intervention.” Maybe he even did so, and that part is not reported.
But the TRA’s condemnations, as quoted, are simply taking a political side (and punishing the other), as if the whole world knows that Ukraine is totally in the right, and Russia totally in the wrong. But given how it was fine to fly Ukrainian flags and so on, clearly “education” is about making sure students know that NATO’s wars are axiomatically just, rather than about students weighing the issues themselves, which should certainly include NATO provocation, and Ukrainian corruption and fascism, as well as the ethics of invasion.
It has become hard to remember that, officially, the Russia-Ukraine conflict is a foreign war in which Britain has not declared hostilities. That ought to mean it can be discussed freely by anyone.
William Garwood doesn’t sound like a traditional Muslim name, so I assume he’s chosen to convert at some point, which is his choice of course. I wonder if he was RC before – used to be the schools could insist staff and students were practicing, however I think that’s long gone.
It does sound like a bit of a stitch up to be honest, and his answers are his own opinions, based on some truth…
Objective truth is inadmissible as a defence in these woke organisations.
A shame that the opportunity for civilised debate was apparently lost. These are not ‘children’ they are, under Labour’s recent decision able to vote.
if they cannot discuss such matters without melting, what hope is there for them to decide how to vote.
The world is not all rainbows and unicorns; these students need to understand that not everyone is always going to agree with them, and find the wherewithal to deal with it, without falling to pieces.
What a weird story all round. I think it’s probably unrealistic to expect teachers never to express their own personal views on a given subject, and especially by Year 11 pupils should realise that it’s just an opinion, not “the truth”. The important thing is to present and discuss different opinions on subjects.
I just had to log in again.
I had no idea the TRA even existed. Why have they not done something about the highly biased, politicised teaching in schools and universities. Why have they tolerated the suppression of non-left non-anti Israel opinions among teachers.
Why are teachers frightened it might become known their relatives are Reform members or candidates.
Why are newly appointed head teachers allowed to dis USA their membership and support of the Labour Party and their admiration for particular left politicians.
Why?
Histroy and recent events clearly back the teacher’s position.
Sadly this country seems to be basing decisions on a completely fallacious versions of history, science and economics.
Putin shill. The only Nazis involved are those invading a neighbouring country.
Need to read some history about Stephan Bandera and the Azov brigade as to how aligned many in Ukraine were and still are with the National Socialists in the 30s.
‘Unheard’ had an article a couple of years ago. There was a video of British army staff training Azovs in their HQ and wearing the Nazi badges,
The teacher is correct about Ukrainian neo-Nazis who were encouraged by the US through billionaires like Soros to be a proxy against Russia.
The FSU should be supporting him.
We have lost our minds.
Why does a catholic school have muslim teachers, FFS.
Civilzational suicide.
Indeed.
One would imagine that you would at least broadly subscribe to Catholic beliefs.
Which would be categorically impossible for a Muslim.
How does it work for Muslim schools? Do they employ atheists, Christians or Jews?
Do they employ atheists, Christians or Jews?
Only for stoning practice.
Are Catholic views very different? They believe sex outside marriage is a sin. Marriage is between a man & a woman.
Some views may overlap but Catholics are Christians who believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, I think Muslims believe he was just a prophet – I would say that’s pretty fundamental.
…and God incarnate.
Yeah. That’s fundamental.
Catholic schools are no longer allowed to consider the faith or otherwise of the child or its parents in the admissions process. Although it’s a long time since I was a volunteer foundation governor of our local school I’m pretty sure that even then we could not consider the faith or otherwise of teachers before appointing them. We just had to hope that a teacher who wanted to work at an RC school had some sort of RC reason to do so.
I don’t know if it is the case now, but when my kids were young you had to be a practicing RC in order for your kids to be admetted.
See soundofreason post above – apparently no longer the case which seems to go a long way towards defeating the purpose of schools with a religious character (probably the intention).
In your case, they have to be Russian Orthodox.
Seems to me as a if William Gareood isn’t really a Muslim but a saboteur of some sort, testing what he can get away with by claiming to be a Muslim.
My guess is that he is burned out, fed up with all the nonsense in education and has provoked a situation, perhaps taking advantage of the fact that he is close to retirement.
I could be wrong, but it.looks that way to me.
Thanks Stewart, I’m not the only one who thinks William Garwood is playing the establishment woke twats at their own game. And good for him although I guess he is going to have to play the Islamic card a bit harder going forward.
You could be right and who could blame him? I cannot fathom how any normal person could function for more than a few weeks in our state education system.
Wasn’t there, a few years ago, a Canadian teacher who rebelled against the system by wearing huge prosthetic breasts?
Yes, there was, but I don’t think that he did it as an act of rebellion per se. I think that he was unhinged.
Certainly unstable, with a high centre of gravity.
A Muslim convert too, presumably, i.e. someone denying Christ’s divinity and status in favour of ‘The Prophet’.