Religious Groups March for Peace & Tolerance amid BNP's "Messages of Hate"

|PIC1|Members of the Christian, Muslim and Jewish communities in Sheffield joined together in a walk through the city in protest to the British National Party which will run in the local elections next month.

The walk was organised by the Yorkshire Faiths Forum under the leadership of the Bishop of Sheffield, the Rt Rev Jack Nicholls, in a bid to demonstrate solidarity with other faith communities and take the message of unity to an area of Sheffield being targeted by the BNP for the forthcoming elections.

“We want to spread a message of peace and tolerance in our communities, and reject the one of animosity and division,” said Bishop Nicholls.

“In a divided world we need to be seen as united in our desire for all communities to live in peace and harmony. This is a walk of witness to our hope,” he added.

|TOP|The walk took local faith leaders to areas in North and North East Sheffield, including such as Southey, Shiregreen and Wincobank where the BNP is hoping to make inroads at the May 4th elections.

The local faith leaders united primarily out of a concern that the BNP is running its four candidates in the local elections with policies that are seemingly intended on stirring up racial hatred.

The walk from the Al-Rahman Mosque in Spital Hill to the Firth Park Methodist Church on Stubbin Lane was punctuated by short silent vigils for peace and unity held outside each place of worship passed by the group.

Bishop Nicholls was joined in the march for peace by the Rev Inderjit Bhogal, Director of the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Faith Forum, Bernard Rosenberg, President of the Sheffield Representative Jewish Council, and Abdool Qadir Gooljar, President of the Sheffield Branch of the Islamic Society of Great Britain.

|AD|The Bishop of Sheffield joined with other faith leaders from across the region in issuing a statement against political extremists in the run up to the May 4th local elections.

In the statement, the religious leaders said they were “deeply concerned” by the activities of what they described as racist and fascist groups in the area including the British National Party.

"Sheffield's rich and diverse religious communities are an integral part of the strong community life for which the city is renowned. As leaders of these faith communities we are committed to strengthening the bonds between us and all the communities of Sheffield,” said the religious leaders.

The statement continued: “We reaffirm that all our faiths are incompatible with any political party or philosophy that is based on hatred or treats people as inferior because of their race or beliefs.

“We also reject the current demonisation of the Muslim community as an affront to all our beliefs and a danger to the unity of the whole community. We can only continue to move forward as a city through mutual toleration and respect.

“We assert that racism is a sin and are appalled at the claim made by groups such as the British National Party and the Christian Council of Britain that they speak for Christians, when in fact their messages of division and hate are the opposite of Christian values.

“We urge the people of Sheffield to use their vote on 4 May, in order to reject racist policies and to make an informed choice in favour of candidates committed to healing division and creating an inclusive and truly strong community.”