LONDON – Popular British Muslim chef Nadiya Hussain, the 2015 winner of The Great British Bake Off, responded brilliantly to a troll who left a hate comment on UK mosques’ initiative to open doors to the public.
It all started when the Muslim Council of Britain tweeted a post advertising the hashtag #VisitMyMosque, which stands for an initiative aimed at inviting people to visit mosques across the UK.
Over 200 mosques are taking part in this year’s #VisitMyMosque day facilitated by the MCB. Find your local mosque at https://t.co/lPmcknrTOA ? pic.twitter.com/qGSH08y8HH
— MCB (@MuslimCouncil) February 13, 2018
An Islamophobe left a hateful comment under the post.
Wouldn’t step foot into one if I was paid ,And no way would my children go to one either ,
— its only me (@Dingdongbell179) February 17, 2018
Once again, Hussein talent and lightheartedness shined through Twitter as she responded brilliantly to troll.
That’s a shame.We are raising Muslim children&they love attending the church for Christingle https://t.co/Wack6UgYLh makes them appreciate their religion as well as other religions around https://t.co/eoQEOf3QC6 know they won’t turn into Muslims if they attend, right? https://t.co/M1unfOMxhm
— Nadiya Jamir Hussain (@BegumNadiya) February 17, 2018
The response of the celebrity chef was widely hailed on Twitter.
Superb response. This kind of bigotry and ignorance is frankly breathtaking
— Michael Vallance (@MikeyVallance) February 17, 2018
I love this, it’s so vital children not only explore their own religion but others too (and also atheism which is often either assumed or dismissed) to understand the religious culture of others is to grasp the humanity of others too. Your school is clearly doing it right
— Victoria Thomas (@stardust6794) February 17, 2018
I’ve been in a mosque helping my neighbour go for prayers while her family where away for a couple of days, they were lovely in there x
— Sarah Ward (@tiggsie) February 17, 2018
#VisitMyMosque is meant to enable and enforce love and tolerance. The whole reason it was started was to remove that exact mentality
— Haleemah S Farooq (@haleemahfarooq) February 17, 2018
Well said Nadyia. Some are so ignorant. We visited the grand mosque in Abu Dhabi and it was the most beautiful place and the tour was so interesting. I will visit again.
— Tracy Stephens (@tracystephens1) February 18, 2018
Hussain, a second generation British Bangladeshi Muslim mother, won the popular tv series in 2015.
Since winning Bake Off, Hussain has appeared in her own series, The Chronicles Of Nadiya.
She is set to launch her new BBC TV show, Nadiya’s British Food Adventure, on 17 July and will release a book of the same name alongside it.
Hussain will also host the BBC Two series The Big Family Cooking Showdown with Zoe Ball and judges Rosemary Shrager and Giorgio Locatelli this autumn.