Inaya Folarin Iman (born 8 November 1996) is a British journalist, commentator, and television presenter who has presented for GB News.[2] She is also the director and founder of the Equiano Project (named after abolitionist Olaudah Equiano), which describes itself as "a debate, discussion and ideas forum" that "focus[es] on race, culture and politics".[3] A 2023 conference held by the organisation was described as a “wonderful and inspiring gathering” by Ian Leslie.[4] In September 2021, she was appointed as a trustee for the National Portrait Gallery in London.[5]
Inaya Folarin Iman | |
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 Iman in 2021 | |
| Born | Inaya Folarin Iman 8 November 1996 |
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Iman was signed by GB News, a news channel that began broadcasting in June 2021. On the channel, she hosted a weekly culture and politics show, The Discussion, which aired every Sunday until May 2022. In 2023, Iman became a regular panellist for the BBC Radio 4 programme The Moral Maze.
Early life
editBorn in Tooting, south London, in 1996, Iman is the daughter of Bola Anike. She is of Nigerian descent.[6] She was educated at Hockerill Anglo-European College in Hertfordshire, St John Fisher Roman Catholic School in Chatham, Tonbridge Grammar School and the University of Leeds, where she gained a BA in Arabic and International Relations in 2019.[2]
Political views
editA supporter of Britain's withdrawal from the EU and former Brexit Party candidate,[7] Iman was a founding board member of the Free Speech Union and was a former project manager for Index on Censorship.[8]
Iman has criticised Black Lives Matter, seeing the movement as an "opportunistic pretext for an outpouring of self-righteous rage".[1] Following the murder of George Floyd, Iman criticised comparisons between black people's experiences in the United Kingdom and the United States.[9] Alongside Andrew Doyle, Claire Fox and others, she was co-signator of a letter in The Spectator which said that "activists, corporations and institutions seem to have seized the opportunity to exploit Floyd's death to promote an ideological agenda that threatens to undermine British race relations. ... We must oppose and expose the racial division being sown in the name of anti-racism."[10] She has also criticised gestures such as "taking the knee" against racism, which she sees as part of a culture war.[11][12]
Writing for Spiked, she rejected the claims of BLM that Britain is a racist society, saying that in the UK, "racial equality is near achieved and so-called structural racism has been almost totally eradicated".[1][13]
She has written for The Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, Spiked[1] and other national publications. She regularly features and makes appearances on Politics Live, The Big Questions, Sky News, Good Morning Britain, Sunday Morning Live and Question Time.[14]
References
edit- ^ a b c d Sherwin, Andrew (2 March 2021). "Andrew Neil's GB News signs 'woke opponent' Inaya Folarin Iman as a presenter". inews.co.uk. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ a b "Iman, Inaya Folarin, (born 8 Nov. 1996), Director, Equiano Project, since 2020; Head, Public Events Programme, Civic Future, since 2022". WHO'S WHO & WHO WAS WHO. doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u296350. Retrieved 4 January 2024.
- ^ "About". The Equiano Project. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ "Testimonials". The Equiano Project. Retrieved 3 October 2024.
- ^ "Inaya Folarin Iman and Simon Sebag Montefiore appointed as Trustees of the National Portrait Gallery". gov.uk. Retrieved 26 September 2021.
- ^ Dialogues, Bajada (20 July 2024). "Inaya Folarin Iman – Bajada Dialogues – Podcast". Podtail. Retrieved 25 August 2024.
- ^ "As a Brexit Party candidate I'm disappointed some are having to stand down". inews.co.uk. 14 November 2019.
- ^ "Who We Are". The Free Speech Union. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ "Has Black Lives Matter made a difference?". The Sunday Times. 25 May 2021. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ "Racial division is being sown in the name of anti-racism". The Spectator. 30 June 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ Adejobi, Alicia (14 June 2021). "GB News' Inaya accuses England team of 'waging culture war on fans'". Metro. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ Balla, Reemul (16 June 2021). "'GB News is a breath of fresh air but a few things made me cringe'". MyLondon. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ "2020: the year racial identity took over". www.spiked-online.com. 27 December 2020. Retrieved 21 June 2021.
- ^ "Inaya Folarin Iman". Debating Matters. Retrieved 21 June 2021.