British progressives were scandalized last week when 5Pillars, a prominent Muslim news organization known for supporting the U.K. Green Party, published a homophobic guide on navigating Pride month. The incident laid bare the intellectual and moral incoherence of the Islamo-left alliance, providing a useful case study for Canadians who feel anxious about Muslim-led intolerance.
Homophobic Guide Sparks Outrage
The short practical guide was written for Western Muslims and repeatedly emphasized that, according to Islamic texts and scholars, both homosexual acts and same-sex marriage are forbidden and immoral. Although it stated that same-sex attraction, being involuntary, is not inherently sinful, it encouraged homosexual Muslims to seek conversion therapy because acting on their desires is religiously prohibited.
Homosexuality was framed as an affliction that calls for compassion without compromise. Parents were further advised to monitor their children's information diet, whether through schools, social media, or popular culture, and to neutralize LGBT-inclusive messages through Islamic teaching.
The guide caused an uproar upon publication and attracted millions of views on X, partially because of its authors' political associations.
5Pillars: A Controversial Voice
5Pillars bills itself as the largest English-language Muslim news site in Europe, Australia, and the Americas, and though that self-promotional claim cannot be independently verified, the organization's hundreds of thousands of social media followers confirm that it is not a fringe voice. This is concerning because, since launching in 2013, 5Pillars has repeatedly peddled Islamist extremism and antisemitic conspiracy theories. Among other things, its past content has minimized the Holocaust, accused Zionists of being behind an LGBT conspiracy, lauded the Taliban, and called for the establishment of a global Caliphate.
British regulators sanctioned the organization in 2020 after it published a video wherein co-founder Dilly Hussain, who personally has over 180,000 followers on X, described homosexuality as a gross crime against Allah. The organization was then sanctioned again in 2023 for publishing a podcast episode that, according to British authorities, encouraged hatred and abuse towards Jewish and LGBT people.
Alliance with the Green Party
Yet, late last year, 5Pillars began to enthusiastically promote the United Kingdom's far-left Green Party, even though the Greens support radical gender ideology, want to legalize drugs and prostitution, and are led by Zack Polanski, a gay Jewish vegan who previously worked as a theatre actor and hypnotherapist. This alliance has fractured British socialists, exposing deep contradictions within progressive movements that seek to include Islamist voices while defending LGBT rights.
The incident serves as a warning for Canadian progressives who may face similar tensions as they navigate the intersection of religious conservatism and leftist politics.
