The Trojan Horse Affair

A new viral podcast exposes institutional Islamophobia, and witch hunt on Muslims after a hoax letter claims jihadist plot in Birmingham schools

A letter claiming that Muslim extremists were infiltrating schools in Birmingham and brainwashing children led to a massive operation by the government in 2014 to shut down the so-called jihadist plot.

The plot was named Operation Trojan Horse, and it resulted in increased draconian laws to target all Muslims and sparked a media storm that fed into the widespread fear of Muslims and Islam.

The Education Secretary at the time, Michael Gove launched the investigations even though it materialised that the letter was fabricated, and he was fully aware of this. But – that didn’t matter!

Despite the letter proving to be fake, it led to a series of serious repercussions for Muslims including multiple government investigations, teachers losing their jobs, a harsher counterterrorism policy and more surveillance in schools.

The schools that were being investigated had raised the attainment levels of Muslim students, and a large part of their success was due to introducing cultural and religious understanding, and allowing the children freedom to be themselves and practice their faith. But these practices, which were all open and transparent, were equated with radicalising young people.

The recently released Trojan Horse Affair podcast by Brian Reed and Hamza M. Syed is superbly produced, professional and even witty despite its serous subject matter. I felt at times I was listening to an Agatha Christie mystery, and as the clues unravelled, I became more and more drawn into the story.

At the same time, the findings highlighted in this podcast are deeply upsetting to listen to as a Muslim. It raises so many important points about Islamophobia on an institutional level, the public perception of Muslims and Islam, media misrepresentation and a disregard for the needs and education of Muslim young people.

What is even more worrying is that this fake letter gave the government justification to surveil Muslims. The implication was that ALL Muslims are capable of being radicalised and need to be kept under watch. And worse still, the average person who statistically knows nothing about Islam and is drip fed negative news about Muslims on a daily basis, can report you.

After the Trojan Horse affair, all public institutions became legally bound to adopt the PREVENT strategy – a part of the government Counter Terrorism Strategy. Schools were taking part in this, and it led to several incidents where innocent young children were reported by teachers and staff for nonsensical reasons and questioned. These incidents have a profound effect on young people and their sense of belonging in British society; it leads to alienation and trauma. 

The podcast dissects the affair, with due time and attention, and giving victims a voice. It demonstrated how the Trojan Horse affair has had a major impact on Muslims and wider society; from draconian counter terrorism laws to feeding into a negative narrative about Muslims.

Even though the investigations and claims came to nothing, there was no accountability or apology issued to those impacted. Such actions are not without repercussions. They exacerbate Islamophobia, and there has been an increasing worrying trend of foreign governments treating Muslims as second-class citizens, and subjecting them to genocide while the world doesn’t bat an eyelid.

The Prophet Muhammad said, if you see injustice and can do nothing to help, you should use your words to call it out. Hamza Syed states in the final episode that this is what drove him to pursue journalism. He wanted to find out the truth and stand up for the oppressed.

This podcast made me realise that the fear and suspicion of Islam is embedded into the western psyche, and can be triggered at any point. As depressing as this is, I believe the way forward is not being apologetic and trying to grovel for acceptance, but to engage with mainstream society and educate people about Islam and history. We should also challenge and expose injustice wherever we see it just as this podcast has done, and stand shoulder to shoulder with everyone who is abused and mistreated. Standing together means strength in numbers and helps us to create a better world for everyone.

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