Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity News,
In the heart of the Oxford Union, a supposed bastion of open debate, a single brown paper envelope triggered pure panic.
Commentator Laurence Fox stood to argue that the West is right to be suspicious of Islam. He held up the envelope and indicated it contained a cartoon of the prophet Muhammad. The chamber erupted in frantic attempts to stop him opening it. Rules were suddenly invoked. Relevance was questioned. Respect was demanded.
The Muslim president of the Union interjected that her very presence should have been enough to persuade Fox that Muslims believe in free speech.
Best clip from the Oxford Union in a long time. A speaker suggests that he is about to display a cartoon of Muhammad to prove that Islam has a problem with free speech.
— Champagne Scar (@champagne_scar) August 6, 2026
People scramble frantically to stop him: It is against the rules, unnecessary, irrelevant, disrespectful, and... pic.twitter.com/oRJ6MCXQOz
"My wife asked me not to show this for fear of repercussions for my family," Fox said. "But I told her that if I did not, I would have submitted to Islam." He continued that the West should resist Islam "in the strongest terms on free-speech grounds alone."
Fox opened the envelope and revealed a cartoon of Rees-Mogg
