Pressure mounts to ban 'dangerous' US preacher who called being gay 'an abomination' from Newcastle

American evangelical preacher Franklin Graham is set to speak at the Utilita Arena as part of a tour of the UK to address "falling morality" in the country

Pressure is mounting on the Utilita Arena to drop a "hate speaker" set to appear in Newcastle.

LGBT+ groups, supported by Newcastle City Council leader Nick Forbes, have led the calls for the Newcastle venue to cancel a planned appearance by US Christian evangelist Franklin Graham.

The preacher, son of late minister Billy Graham, has insisted he's travelling to the UK with a "message of love". But campaigners point out he has described homosexuality as a “sin”, claimed Satan was the architect of same-sex marriage and said that gay people are causing a “moral 9/11".

Donald Trump supporter Mr Graham has also described Islam as a "very evil and wicked religion". He has referred to homosexuality as "an abomination" and stood against attempts to ban so-called conversion therapy.

Describing his UK tour on his Facebook page, he told followers the country's "morality is falling, the institution of marriage is at risk, godless secularism is permeating all levels of society".

An online petition against his visit has now garnered more than 4,000 signatures, as three UK venues say they will not play host to the eight-day religious tour.

Sheffield Arena and ACC Liverpool have now both cancelled the visit, while Glasgow’s SEC Arena, which confirmed on January 29 it was cancelling due to “recent adverse publicity”, has reportedly been threatened with legal action for breaching a contract by cancelling the appearance.

The free-to-attend event is set to take place in the Newcastle arena on June 3, and arena bosses have not yet made any change to the arrangement.

But members of the North East LGBT+ community urged organisers to withdraw the invitation immediately.

Tee McGahey, of the LGBT+ Northern Social Group, said the location of the arena, close to many of Newcastle's LGBT+ bars and social venues, was a cause for concern.

Pointing to a recently-reported rise in hate crime on the basis of sexual orientation in the North East, they said: "I think in this current time it's dangerous to have a hate speaker in Newcastle. [Given] the rise in hate crime, having a public speaker like this could be rather detrimental to the safety and wellbeing of the lives of LGBTQI people."

Fellow group member Cat Hurst said: "I say that the more we allow hate speakers to have a voice in public, the more it solidifies phobic behaviour and attitudes. It makes lgbtqia+ people unsafe."

And Beki Eaton added: "It’s hypocritical to be hosting the country's pride- a celebration of love and diversity and acceptance - to then allow someone in our space who goes against everything we stand for as a community. It’s hurtful. It’s thoughtless. It’s rude."

Commenting on the petition, Andrew Smith, from Gateshead, added: "As a gay Christian this 'preacher' serves only to fuel hate and division within a wholly tolerant and inclusive region. If this event goes ahead it would indicate that a more organised boycott of the arena would be needed."

A spokesperson for Utilita Arena said: “We are aware of the concerns raised regarding the Franklin Graham event scheduled at the Utilita Arena in June. We are currently talking with our partners and relevant stakeholders in order to come to a measured and fair conclusion."

The statement was issued to ChronicleLive on Tuesday, and by Friday there was no update.

Responding to the backlash, Mr Graham penned a "letter to the LGBTQ community in the UK", which he shared with his over eight million followers on Facebook.

He wrote: "It is said by some that I am coming to the UK to bring hateful speech to your community. This is just not true. I am coming to share the Gospel, which is the Good News that God loves the people of the UK, and that Jesus Christ came to this earth to save us from our sins.

"The rub, I think, comes in whether God defines homosexuality as sin. The answer is yes. But God goes even further than that, to say that we are all sinners — myself included.

"The Bible says that every human being is guilty of sin and in need of forgiveness and cleansing. The penalty of sin is spiritual death — separation from God for eternity."