A date vendor in London who faced racist abuse online has received some welcome publicity after he invited his trolls to sample his dates for free.
Syed Usman Shah was one of 14 people pictured in a poster welcoming people to London Heathrow Airport last year, acknowledging his food business at Borough Market, a historic set of food stalls in the heart of the UK capital. The campaign included a Beefeater and others who worked in prominent London jobs and tourist spots.
The trader, who set up his business only a couple of years before, said appearing in the campaign was an important “milestone”.
But he soon became the target of online abuse by trolls who opposed having a Muslim appear in a campaign welcoming people to the UK. A picture of Mr Shah’s Heathrow appearance was posted online with the caption: “No Joke. This is what welcomes people to Heathrow Airport these days.”
It chalked up 3.6 million views within days and thousands of negative comments. Mr Shah responded to his trolls by offering free dates at his market stand in central London, including a 20 per cent discount for online orders “in honour” of the originator of the abusive pose.
To his surprise, people came to the stand in person to apologise, and many more are still coming to support his business after the publicity he received online. “People come every day to promote [and] to say they stand with me,” he told The National. “Even people who were saying horrible things about me.”
Mr Shah said he wanted to respond to the hate with peace. “I just think we have to show love in times like this,” he said.
Religious hate crime in England and Wales reached a record high in 12 months ending in March 2025, with offences targeting Muslims rising by 20 per cent to 3,200 cases.
During the same period, Jewish people experienced the highest rate of religious hate crime, with 106 incidents per 10,000 people. Muslims suffered the second-highest rate, with 12 per 10,000.
Mr Shah said he wants to change the public perception of Muslims and Islam. “People have a very negative view of Islam,” he said. “People say to me they never thought they would be in touch with a Muslim.
“I’ve not done anything outstanding. All I’ve done is follow the teachings of my religion. I’m doing what the Prophet [Mohammed] told us to do.”
Mr Shah said he was grateful for the publicity that he says online trolls gave to his business. “We gave so many dates away for free,” he added. “But business is booming now.”
