The Islamic society of the London School of Economics has been flayed by a leading peer after hosting an event which segregated men from women by a 7ft screen running down the middle of the hall, leaving them unable to see each other.
The annual event was held in the evening of March 13 at the Grand Connaught Rooms, near the university in Holborn.
Muslim students from the LSE even had to purchase separate tickets at £20 each for ‘brothers’ and ‘sisters’, according to a report in The Telegraph.
Speaking to Asian Voice, Lord Dolar Popat said: “I was very surprised to hear about this sort of segregation in today’s day and age and more surprisingly by young people in modern Britain in one of the world’s most progressive educational institutions. These young people are our future and if they are accustomed to such radical segregation at this age then our future looks very bleak. Whilst it may be common practice for segregation to occur in some religious institutions or countries, they should not be promoted in a social scale. We should be proud to live in a diverse and open society where we celebrate our differences. I can see why a world class university such as LSE is shocked at what’s happening on its doorstep.”
According to a report in ITV News, currently, gender segregation is ‘not permissible’ in the UK under equality law unless it’s in a building permanently or temporarily used for religious practices.
The LSE says it follows the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) guidance on this matter, and regards gender segregation at events on campus or organised by LSE or the LSE community as contrary to the law, except for certain exceptions such as occasions of religious worship or where segregation is entirely voluntary, according to the ITV News report.
The School says it’s now investigating.
