Over the half the students at the school come from minority groups with some students coming from severely deprived areas of North London. Many of the students have a different first language than English.

For the students being in the presence of Yaqub was an inspiring experience. Firstly as Yaqub is a Muslim of Asian heritage he can relate to their situation of growing up between cultures and traditions. Secondly through his profession Yaqub understands what is happening on the streets today as he on several occasions has dealt with gang and drugs related cases.

Most importantly these bright young people needed to be faced with a role model who graduated from the school of hard knocks and became successful. This will help them gain belief that irrespective of their backgrounds they can achieve beyond their dreams if they have vision, faith and a strong work ethic.
We caught the session on video and you can check out the clips on our YouTube channel (links below).

Yaqub at Haverstock – Your Journey

Yaqub at Haverstock – It Takes Belief

Yaqub at Haverstock – Convict to Lawyer

More clips from from Haverstock will be added in the coming weeks.

We are currently arranging a day out for the students from Haverstock at London Gym South where Yaqub, gym owner Winston Newton and their champion fighters will put the students through the paces. It should be a fun and confidence building experience.

Link to post on blog: Yaqub Hussain A Modern Muslim Role Model

9/11 changed the direction of the world as the war on terror has been top of the agenda since that day. As a consequence, the rift between the Western world and the Islamic world has grown ever bigger. To the uncritical eye, Islam has become synonymous with terrorism. A recent study of Muslim stories in UK newspapers since 9/11 shows that 46% of stories had terrorism/extremism as their news hook. This has left a generation of young Western Muslims feeling shamed and frustrated, leading to isolation.

Young Western Muslims desperately need role models who share their faith and have achieved success in Western societies. Such heroes will inspire these young people to believe they are faced with a world of opportunities. But the rest of Western society also need to experience Muslim role models who are an anti-dote to the negative Muslim stereotype that has developed.

The awe-inspiring journey of Yaqub Hussain, a real life ugly duckling tale, is one that both Muslims and the wider society will identify with. The magical power of heroes is that we relate to their spirit and bravery regardless of their race, religion or social class. Even if we don’t admit to it — that is the power of human nature.

Many heroes from literature and film have one huge mountain to climb to realise their goal. From this perspective Yaqub was born at the foot of a mountain range. While growing up, Yaqub’s world was destitute of love but rich in abuse. At an early age he realized to survive he had become streetwise and a fighter. Today he is passing these valuable lessons on to champion fighters and youngsters by teaching them self-discipline and belief.

Yaqub is a role model especially to young Muslims as several incidents where he has had to dig right to the bottom of his soul for strength are related to his cultural background. Three fragments from his life story highlight how he has had deal with issues of family honour, forced marriage, racism and terrorism.

At the age of 16 his father sent him to Pakistan on a holiday which turned out to be a set up for a forced marriage. A desolate rural village nearly became his last destination on earth. After refusing to marry he was dragged off to a shed, tied to a chair and beaten 2 days by 3 burly villagers. Waking up in a puddle of blood he knew agreeing to the marriage was his last chance of survival. He had to sacrifice his freedom to stay alive. But Yaqub didn’t end up a married 16 year old as he hatched the most amazing escape from Pakistan to the UK on the “big day”.

A decade later an event that landed him in prison brought about a life changing transformation. Yaqub was attacked outside his workplace and defended himself. In a state of panic he asked a friend to falsely witness which became his downfall. He was charged with perverting the course of justice and remanded in custody. In prison he was an obvious target being the only Asian on the wing and once again he literally had to fight for his life. But slowly the dynamic changed as he started talking to the other inmates about faith, unity and brotherhood. They were inspired by his words and gained a sense of hope. Realizing that he had changed things in one of society’s most hostile environments, he decided to become a lawyer to fight for truth and justice.

Being an ex-convict Yaqub’s foray into the legal profession was a rocky road. But the turning point came with the Transatlantic Liquid Bomb terrorism trial which was one of the biggest cases in British legal history. Despite only being a trainee lawyer he came to play a key role in the case of Donald Stewart Whyte who was exonerated of all terrorism charges after a three year-long nightmare. In that moment Yaqub was rewarded for living through all the pain and hardship as he saw an innocent young man avoid a life sentence to reclaim his life.

A key lesson we should all take from Yaqub’s story is that despite having had to fight many wars he did not turn bitter on society. He never stopped believing there was a place for him in this world and time has proved him to be right. Heroes might become victims of circumstance but keep taking action until they regain control of their own destiny. In that sense we are all either heroes or victims and the choice is ours.

To read the article click here: AFTER HARDSHIP COMES EASE

To read this inspiring article click here: CRIMINAL-TO-LAWYER TALE

Readers responded strongly to the article and left some very touching comments. You can read all the comments for this article on the following link: SCUNTHORPE TELEGRAPH ARTICLE

Parts of the news media were quick to brand Donald the “New Face of Terrorism” only days after his arrest showing no regard for the principle of “innocent until proven guilty”. After Donald was cleared off all terrorism charges BBC produced an interview allowing Donald to explain the ordeal he had been subjected to. The interview was broadcast on BBC News and you can watch it by clicking on the link below:

BBC interviews with Donald Stewart-Whyte

As police strike to foil a terrorist attack on the scale of 9/11 a British teenage Muslim convert is arrested. Immediately the media brand him the new face of terrorism as he is white middle class with a Christian upbringing. Despite distinct lack of evidence the teenager looks doomed for life imprisonment. But a young British Pakistani trainee solicitor refuses to let the teenager go down without a fight. An ex-convict who used to live on the streets he is no ordinary trainee solicitor…and he plays by his own rules.

One Last Hope is inspired by real events and is being developed by Mikkel Juel Iversen outside Dignity Entertainment.

Arriving in Islamabad airport the teenager is stripped of his passport before being transported to a small rural village hours from the city. When learning he has been set up for marriage he refuses. Two days of torture leaves him on the verge of death…agreeing to the marriage is his only chance of survival. But to retain his freedom he must escape!

Rights of Passage asks the question…”what is life without freedom?”. This modern day David and Goliath tale will inspire teenagers globally to face their fears to conquer their dreams.

Rights of Passage is inspired by real events and is currently in development.