Commemoration of Lee Rigby

Councillor Patrick Vernon OBE shares his reflections on the tragic death of Lee Rigby and highlight the needs for all communities to work together to find a solution.

Last Friday, I attended an event at Brent Town Hall which was a commemoration event for the murder of the drummer Lee Rigby. The event was organised in less than 2 days and attracted over 200 people reflecting the diversity of Brent in terms of faith, ethnicity, age, identity, and politics. It was the foresight of Councillor Mohammed Butt, Leader of the Council, with the support of Cabinet Lead for Community Safety, Councillor Aslam Choudry who chaired the event. The event provided an opportunity for Brent to give solidarity to the family of Lee Rigby, but also a renewing commitment of our multicultural and multi-faith society.

Significantly, I saw the event on Friday also supporting and standing side by side with the Muslim community who have contributed to the economic, political and social life in Brent and across the country. A minute silence was led by Mayor Bobby Thomas who recently became the first Jamaican Councillor in Brent to become Mayor.

A number of speeches, prayers and reflective comments were given by a range of local and national faith leaders reflecting the diversity of religious thought and expression in Brent. Speeches were given by the local Commander for Brent MPS Alan Jones, elected representatives Sarah Teather MP, Barry Gardiner MP and Navin Shah AM. Their speeches were passionate reflecting the human spirit, values and sanctity of life and forgiveness.

A number of community responses from the council chamber made similar points to the speakers. However a number of comments referred to the link between the radicalisation of young people and the impact of Britain’s foreign policy in Iraq, Afghanistan and potentially the current situation in Syria. The relationship between the defence industry, political lobbying and regime change has been well documented in books and films over the last twenty years. CND and the Stop the War Movement remind us that a number of these conflicts and regime changes are also not in our name too. Whilst the work of Help for Heroes, Combat Stress and Royal British Legion also reminds us that ex-service men and women also face inequality, social exclusion and discrimination as they try to settle back into civilian life.

In addition to the above reflections, one of the major consequences from the murder of Lee Rigby is how the far right have claimed him as a political martyr as part of the wider discourse of Islam and the West in term of a moral crusade as part of their pseudo fascist ideology. The BNP and the EDL systemic plans of inciting further hatred and increased Islamaphobic attacks against the Muslim community is something we must respond effectively to and ensure the Muslim community around the country is not further isolated and marginalised and at worst not stereotyped as all radicalised or terrorists.

Since 2010, I have been a board member of the North Muslim Housing Association which is based in Hackney, one of the longest running independent BAME housing associations in the country.In response to the murder of Lee Rigby, the Board members stated,

This is a betrayal of Islam. Indeed, this is a truly barbaric act that has no basis in Islam and we condemn it utterly and unreservedly. This horrific incident reminds us why we should come together and work together to defeat hatred. We call on all, to come together in solidarity to ensure the forces of hatred do not prevail. Our thoughts and prayers are with Lee Rigby’s family and friends and especially his two-year-old son.”

We must learn from the above experiences and also the failure of the PREVENT program to effectively engage with the diversity and different perspectives of the Muslim community. Also we must not expect that every single Muslim individual to justify their existence in Britain or to enter in to a new Norman Tebbit Cricket test or scrutiny to prove their Britishness.

Cllr Patrick Vernon OBE