Man who heckled Shabana Mahmood dismisses ‘laughable’ white liberal claim

A protester who heckled Shabana Mahmood said he came to the UK as a child from Malaysia, describing the home secretary’s claim that he was a white liberal as “laughable”. Joe, 32, who did not wish to give his last name, migrated from Malaysia at the age of four with his family. He said the home secretary’s proposed immigration reforms would have left him, and thousands of children like him, in limbo. “Imagine being a child growing up and not knowing whether you’re going to be deported out of this country?” he said. Mahmood told “white liberal” hecklers to “fuck right off” during a live interview in central London last week, after protesters accused her of copying the policies of Nigel Farage’s Reform UK during an on-stage event. Joe had told the home secretary he wanted to “personally thank you for out-Reforming Reform” before being escorted out of the room. Two other audience members shouted “refugees welcome” as he was removed by security. The protesters were part of Green New Deal Rising (GND Rising), a UK youth-led climate campaign focused on engaging politicians to secure radical environmental policies. Footage from the action shows the room was dark. The campaign has released a tool, “My Map”, to support progressive candidates in the local elections, in a twin bid to tackle the climate crisis and fight the far right. …