Saltley Gate Peace Group
Encyclopedia
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
.
Background
The Saltley Gate Peace Group (SGPG) was initially formed as a joint ChristianChristian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
/Muslim
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
peace initiative in response to the threat of war
War
War is a state of organized, armed, and often prolonged conflict carried on between states, nations, or other parties typified by extreme aggression, social disruption, and usually high mortality. War should be understood as an actual, intentional and widespread armed conflict between political...
in Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
as a part of the growing peace movement in Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
following 9/11.
The group played an active role supporting the Stop the War Coalition
Stop the War Coalition
The Stop the War Coalition is a United Kingdom group set up on 21 September 2001 that campaigns against what it believes are unjust wars....
in the city and encouraged local activism through a united faith-based front.
It continues to participate in the anti-war
Anti-war
An anti-war movement is a social movement, usually in opposition to a particular nation's decision to start or carry on an armed conflict, unconditional of a maybe-existing just cause. The term can also refer to pacifism, which is the opposition to all use of military force during conflicts. Many...
establishment along with its other work.
Community
The SGPG has since become more communityCommunity
The term community has two distinct meanings:*a group of interacting people, possibly living in close proximity, and often refers to a group that shares some common values, and is attributed with social cohesion within a shared geographical location, generally in social units larger than a household...
based, working with various authorities to ensure a better quality of public service for residents in the more deprived areas of Birmingham.
The organisation also takes a tough stance on vandalism, racism and crime and encourages inter-religious dialogue. It works closely with Birmingham Citizens and the Birmingham Quaker-Muslim Peace and Social Justice Group.
Campaigns
Amongst its causes has been working with faith leaders to prevent the promotion of glorification of terrorismTerrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
amongst younger Muslims in the inner city.
In 2005, the SGPG also called on the West Midlands Police
West Midlands Police
West Midlands Police is the territorial police force responsible for policing the metropolitan county of West Midlands in England.Covering an area with nearly 2.6 million inhabitants, which includes the cities of Birmingham, Coventry, Wolverhampton and also the Black Country; the force is made up...
to ban the flying of Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i flags in the city during the festival of Eid to prevent racial tensions. This followed a similar ban enforced in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/news/topstories/display.var.560405.0.flags_ban_for_eid_clampdown.php.
In January 2007, the group publicly supported the city's Green Lane Mosque against accusations of extremism, made in the Channel 4
Channel 4
Channel 4 is a British public-service television broadcaster which began working on 2 November 1982. Although largely commercially self-funded, it is ultimately publicly owned; originally a subsidiary of the Independent Broadcasting Authority , the station is now owned and operated by the Channel...
documentary Undercover Mosque
Undercover Mosque
Undercover Mosque is a documentary programme produced by the independent television company hardcash productions for the Channel 4 series Dispatches which first aired on 15 January 2007 in the UK. The film caused a furore in Britain and the world press due to the content of the released footage...
.
Founders
The Saltley Gate Peace Group was founded by Methodist minister Simon ToppingSimon Topping
Simon Topping is a Methodist minister and faith leader based in Hucclecote in Gloucester, England, known for his campaign work in favour of ending world poverty.-Background:...
and community activist Adam Yosef
Adam Yosef
Adam Yosef is a British multimedia journalist and community activist.-Activism:Between 2003 and 2004, Yosef was employed by the Birmingham Mosque Trust as a Press & Public Relations representative...
in 2003.
The organisation is currently based at the Saltley Methodist Church in the West Midlands
West Midlands conurbation
The West Midlands conurbation is the name given to the large conurbation that includes the cities of Birmingham and Wolverhampton and the large towns of Dudley, Walsall, West Bromwich, Solihull, Stourbridge, Halesowen in the English West Midlands....
and is supported by Reverend Chris Shannahan, founder of youth programme Yeast in the City.
Sources
- Police hunt killer of Birmingham stab victim – Birmingham Mail, March 2009
- Man, 20, 'critical' after shooting in shop – Birmingham Post, February 2008
- Man gunned down in shop – Birmingham Mail, February 2008
- Anger over anti-British hate posters – Birmingham Mail, May 2007
- Birmingham's Muslims fear reprisals after anti-terror raids – The Independent, February 2007
- Birmingham rocked by terror raids – The Asian Today, February 2007
- Terror arrests anger community – BBC News, February 2007
- Communities must unite – Birmingham Post, February 2007
- Terror arrests: A call for calm – Birmingham Post, February 2007
- Community leaders fear raids could be 'damaging – Birmingham Mail, February 2007
- Channel 4 accused of creating mischief over portrayal of Black Muslim in Dispatches documentary Black Britain, January 2007
- Channel 4 Blasted for Demonising Muslims MD News, January 2007
- Mosque launches probe after TV claims Birmingham Mail, January 2007
- Faces behind the faith – BBC Birmingham, July 2005
- City outrage over pro-Osama poster Evening Mail, September 2004
- Muslim leaders outraged by bin Laden posters Birmingham Post, September 2004
- Mission alongside the poor The Methodist Church of Great Britain, 2003/2004