Shoaib Sohail, a Pakistani Muslim, proudly calls himself a British patriot. He is a citizen journalist, and Tommy Robinson supporter—views that have rubbed both his mosque and the authorities the wrong way, and in turn landing him a visit from the UK’s extremism-prevention police.

– We think the far right is radicalizing you, they told him. Then they arrested him, accusing him of racism against his own faith and ethnic background.

– All they said when they took me in, was that I’d been racist toward Muslims. That was the charge, he explains, before adding:

– As a Muslim, I believe it’s my duty to call out wrongdoing by other Muslims—and it happens a lot. It’s everywhere, Sohail tells Document, underlining the urgency of addressing cultural problems that feed stereotypes.

Shoaib opens up about life as a Pakistani Muslim immigrant in Britain, exploring the challenges of legal immigration, his run-ins with community tensions, and that unsettling Prevent police encounter. He vents about illegal immigration and skewed racism accusations, while shedding light on the struggles faced by immigrants who play by the rules.

He also reflects on his days at a Quranic school in Saudi Arabia and what drove him to settle in the West.

The conversation digs into the fallout of being branded a radical and the role authorities should play in tackling local issues.

Sohail voices alarm over growing racism and how UK government policies are straining community relations, while stressing his loyalty to a nation that’s given him so much.

Join us for a talk with Shoaib Sohail.