'Suella Braverman is wrong - we've always had Muslim neighbours and it's great'
It may have been a dreary grey afternoon in Bradford, but there was the usual warm atmosphere as people of all ages and from all backgrounds mingled together.
A toddler called Finley gleefully chased pigeons in Centenary Square while groups of students chatted animatedly and others caught up with friends at cafes or power-walked to appointments in the West Yorkshire city centre. Safe to say, Suella Braverman wouldn’t have believed her eyes.
The Home Secretary gave a speech declaring that ‘multiculturalism has failed’ and complaining that people from certain religious backgrounds live ‘parallel lives’ because they have failed to integrate and, alarmingly, are a threat to national security. Ms Braverman trotted out the usual myths and misinformation about ethnic minorities in the UK.
But media student Elora Kirk, 23, wasn’t convinced. She said: “I am born and raised in Bradford. The school I went to was in a ‘white’ area but as long as I can remember we have always had Muslim neighbours and it’s been great. You learn so much about different cultures and religions.
Amy Heaney (© Glen Minikin)
Elora Kirk (© Glen Minikin)"Our Muslim neighbours are very generous, always sending over food especially on special occasions like Eid and during Ramadan. Obviously they have certain rules about their faith but that doesn’t stop them from being friendly.” Elora said Bradford has the largest youth population in Europe, adding: “Maybe it’s easier for young people to mix, we don’t have prejudices maybe.”
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Amy Heaney, 20, who is a student in Liverpool visiting her boyfriend, Oisin O’Kane, also said she loved the diversity of Bradford. She didn’t like Ms Braverman’s harsh approach to migrants trying to make a better, safer life for themselves in the UK. Oisin said he had made lots of friends on his course, adding: “I’ve never felt excluded just because of my colour or nationality.”
For Bradford-born Awais Shezad, 17, the city has the best of both worlds. He said: “It’s a myth that Asians don’t mix with people from outside their culture. I have friends from all different backgrounds. We all get along.” Sisters Jennifer Greenwood, 70, and Christine Blakely, 75, were not impressed with Ms Braverman’s comments.
Awais Shahzad (© Glen Minikin)
Iftikhar Hussain (© Glen Minikin)Jennifer grimaced: “I’ve lived in Bradford my whole life. My area has become a lot more mixed recently but that’s no bad thing. Some people like to live near their relatives or near the mosque and near their amenities but that doesn’t mean they don’t want to mix.” Christine added: “We don’t see people as different and divide them on religious or cultural lines. We just see them as people. We are all Bradfordians.”
Iftikhar Hussain, 70, said he half-agreed with Ms Braverman. “I think she has a point,” he said. “I came to Bradford at the age of eight in 1962 with my brother and we were the only two Asian boys in Bradford. It has changed beyond recognition.” He mentioned Norman Tebbit’s infamous cricket test – in 1990, the Tory questioned the loyalty of Brits with origins in Asia or the Caribbean who failed to support England at cricket. Iftikhar said: “I support England because England has supported me.”
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