Role of honour

The history that black and Asian service people in the British armed forces is a long and rich one, as Joy Persaud reports

Corporal Bharminder Singh Osahan, 27, grew up in Kenya. A member of the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME), he has been attached to 4 Regiment in the Army Air Corps for the past eight years. He believes that a British serviceperson is a symbol of the nation’s and its people’s sovereignty.

"I am very proud to be in the REME, and above all the armed forces," he says. "In my unit, each individual has a role regardless of their ethnic origin, but there is a variety of backgrounds from all parts of the world – Indian, Zimbabwean and South African."

The notion that his race or religion could be an issue in the forces is one that Corporal Osahan finds hard to comprehend. "I find it a complete misunderstanding," he says. "People may have encountered personality clashes or arguments with their peers, and this may have been flaunted as a racism case. On the contrary there may be some cases of racism, but I haven’t heard of any while I’ve been serving."

He maintains that there are no conflicts between his religion – Sikhism – and his job, and has found that while some people are curious about his beliefs in a politely inquisitive manner, others don’t seem to notice.

"I personally choose not to wear a kirpan (ceremonial sword), as I have not been baptised yet. However I do wear a turban all the time. I wear a patka, which is a smaller turban when at work, or when I need to wear a helmet, as this doesn’t compromise my safety.

"People may have different approaches and be slightly aware of the difference in me, not knowing how to converse, what to expect, but after the initial barrier is broken, life’s plain sailing."

Such positive talk would likely be music to the ears of those at the Ministry of Defence, which has admitted that it is falling short of its recruitment targets among ethnic minorities.

The percentage of UK forces from ethnic minority backgrounds has risen only slightly recently; as of 1 January 2008, ethnic minorities accounted for 6% of the armed forces compared with 5.8 % at the same point last year.

The MoD stresses that it regards education and awareness of diversity and equality issues as a high priority. It says that annual equality and diversity training, at a level appropriate to rank and responsibility, is mandatory for all members of the armed forces. In addition, the Joint Equality and Diversity Training Centre at Shrivenham delivers a five-day course to unit equality and diversity advisers and a one-day seminar, which is mandatory for senior officers.

The MoD says that is has made ‘great strides’ in improving its record in equal opportunities. It’s hard to argue. After all, it’s within living memory that non-whites couldn’t join the army. They were categorised as ‘aliens’ and fears abounded that they would be ‘too conspicuous on the battlefield’. While such notions were, incredibly, held by 20th century minds, they would shock all but a minority today, which is testament to how attitudes have evolved.

Yet there has never been a shortage of black and Asian people volunteering to fight. During World War I, two out of every 10 service people were volunteers from the Indian Subcontinent, the Caribbean and Africa. In World War II, the figure rose to three out of 10 – this included nearly three million people from the Indian Subcontinent – the largest volunteer army in history.

In fact, more World War I soldiers came from India than from Scotland, Ireland and Wales put together. This commitment has been acknowledged of late. In 2002, the Queen opened the Memorial Gates across Constitution Hill at Hyde Park Corner in London to honour the millions from the Caribbean, Indian subcontinent and Africa who contributed so significantly in World Wars I and II. Without their sacrifices, the world may have been very different today.

As well as the Gates, regional war museums and education services have held exhibitions and published literature that tells the stories of those who eagerly left their sunny homelands and families to fight for Britain, many never to return. And there were, of course, the many service personnel from minority ethnic backgrounds, born within the British Isles.

The Ministry of Defence’s website includes a section entitled ‘We Were There’. It details the personal commitment and professionalism of Britain’s minority ethnic service men and women, aiming to promote understanding by showing how those from all over the world fought alongside British forces. It acknowledges that while it is a positive story, "it should be remembered that over many years some of those who served did experience racial prejudice. Despite this they continued to offer their services to help Britain."

Some accounts of bravery and service have inevitably been lost for good, but others are still celebrated. For example, the story of the first black officer of the British Army – Lieutenant Walter Tull – was unheard until relatively recently.

Tull’s father was the son of slave who arrived in England from Barbados in 1876, marrying a local girl. When his mother died, Walter was just seven, and he and one brother were sent to an orphanage when their father’s new wife couldn’t cope with the large family. Tull went on to be one of Britain’s first black professional footballers. He played for both Tottenham Hotspur and Northampton Town. When the World War I was declared, Tull, like many players, joined the Football Battalion.

He was promoted quickly to Sergeant, and in 1916, he fought in the major Somme offensive. Although he developed trench fever and had to return to England, Tull had so impressed his senior officers that they sent him to Scotland for further training and, despite rules stating that no "negro or person of colour" could exercise "actual command" as officers, he was commissioned in 1917.

The 29-year-old and his men returned to France but, on 25 March 1918, in no-man’s land near Favreuil, a German bullet hit Tull in the head. His body was never recovered, despite the efforts of several of his men, who risked heavy machine gun fire to retrieve him.

Another life that is celebrated is that of Subadar Khudadad Khan. He was the first Indian to receive the Victoria Cross. Khan was a 26-year-old Sepoy in the 129th Duke of Connaught’s Own Baluchis, British Indian Army, during World War I. On 31 October 1914 at the front line in France, Khan was in charge of one of two machine guns. The British officer in charge was wounded and the other gun was put out of action by a shell, but Sepoy Khan, although badly hurt, continued to operate his gun after the other five men of the detachment had been killed. Eventually, he was left for dead, but was able to crawl back to his unit. He was awarded the Victoria Cross for his bravery in helping to prevent the German Army reach crucial ports.

Such accounts can be found, if you look, but they can’t negate the bad press that surrounds the treatment of some servicemen and women. At the time of writing, the struggle of the Gurkhas is in the headlines (See News, page 57). Many have handed back hard-won medals and honours to the Government to highlight the fact that pension allowances are less than those of British-born soldiers, as well as that veterans can’t stay in the country for which they helped to secure freedom.

The plight of the Gurkha veterans, who have been awarded an unparalleled 26 Victoria Crosses, has touched many who were previously unaware of the disparity in the way these soldiers are being treated. But while members of the public at least instantly recognise Britain’s strong connections with the Gurkhas – past and present – the same cannot always be said for Indian, African and Caribbean forces.

Hav Major Rajindar Singh Dhatt, 85, (pictured, right) who holds a Burma Star, is a member of the Undivided Indian Ex-Services Association. He says that until recently television coverage never mentioned the Indian Army – instead they would talk about America, Canada, Australia, New Zealand. "They ignored us. So, we decided to fight for our recognition and acknowledgement. In 2002, when the memorial was built, it was the best day of all of our lives. What we were struggling for we achieved. We were happy to get that in our lifetime."

While Major Dhatt acknowledges that British officers have "done a lot to help us get these Memorial Gates", he laughs gently as he recalls the differences between the way the Indians and the white British were treated. He doesn’t complain, he simply recounts the disparities in a factual manner. "We played hockey, football, volleyball and basketball and when we mixed with them, we were just like them. But there were differences between our uniforms, living standards and living quarters. We were living in mud-baked huts, and they were in very nice pukka barracks, they had ceiling fans and we had windows – the wind coming through was meant to be enough for us. "Rations were not bad but it was inferior to what the British were getting. So, sometimes we did feel the differences, but at that time they were ruling us."

He also acknowledges that the British officers were "happy if you did mix with them and they were trained in how to behave and about the religions and languages. They were prepared and were trained to do the right thing when they went to India."

Another ex-serviceman is West Indian AC1 Airman First Class RAF, Arthur Leigh, who joined up from Jamaica. He says that things have changed enormously since his days in the forces. The 85-year-old member of the West Indian Ex-Servicemen’s/Ex-Servicewomen’s Association UK (Wiesa) says he doesn’t see the point of dwelling on the negative experiences that some may have had more than 60 years ago.

"There were good times and bad – but we came through. I’ve listened to men giving their version of what happened to them during the war, in the Army, Navy and RAF, and they tend to highlight the negatives of the past. In those days you were put into a flight squadron and told to get on with the job.

"I have no regrets – that’s why I am here in England. If I had any regrets, I wouldn’t be here. I don’t agree with those who have come back and are living here comfortably and are griping about the experiences they had in 1945."

Unsurprisingly, Leigh says he would encourage young people to go into the services, saying that they would gain "discipline and straightening out", adding that the forces offer opportunities in various fields.

Major Dhatt echoes this. He and members of his association visit schools and Sikh temples to tell young people about the war. He describes them as being "very attentive" and curious about their treatment and daily lives.

"When we are interviewed or asked, we always say to the young boys that this is their country, they have to live here and where they live, they have to defend that country. You should join the Army or police. We say they should not just become doctors, lawyers or engineers – don’t miss out the armed forces.

"Some people say there is too much discipline in the Army or discrimination – but we tell them that all these things you have to face. Keep high-spirited and you can be successful.

"We used to go and see [lots of people] but now some of us are housebound and we can’t afford transport. We would like to carry on this duty so that if someone calls us, we can tell them about this country and encourage young people to join the Army."

Corporal Osahan agrees. "I would encourage strongly anyone who wishes to experience a lifestyle out of the ordinary, which is testing day to day, to join the forces," he says.

"If I did ever encounter racism, then the immediate point of contact is my chain of command. If that fails there is an equal opportunities officer I could report to. I am confident that if any such incidents occurred then they would be dealt with appropriately."

But maybe the fact that there needs to be training programmes and specific recruitment drives to attract black and Asian people indicates that this is still an area of concern. Perhaps in the future all service men and women will be able to echo veteran Arthur Leigh, who says: "Of course there were problems but there is absolutely no point in me repeating them. They were the problems of the day and they were resolved."

And perhaps those who remain ignorant will realise that the major conflicts of the last century were – in every sense – world wars and will happily acknowledge the sacrifices made by the millions who came running from distant lands when the mother country called.

Legion Magazine

Commemoration day to recall slave trade and make UK face up to past

· Call for subject to be put on school curriculum
· Prescott compares slavery to the Holocaust

An annual commemoration day is to be held to recall Britain's role in the slave trade, and the fight against it, John Prescott, the deputy prime minister, has told the Guardian.

He expected the day to be held in common with the rest of Europe in June so that modern day slavery - human trafficking - could also be recalled and combated.

Mr Prescott said the commemoration day would provide a chance for national and local government, as well as schools, to think how they could help modern day Africa. He likened slavery to the Holocaust and expressed his deep personal regret.

The government has refused to make a full apology for Britain's role. Mr Prescott argued that Africa didn't want this, but that it was time Britain faced up to the past. "Like the Holocaust, we are learning to talk about the slave trade openly and more honestly. Tragic and terrible as it was, the slave trade defied anyone to discuss it because it was so horrendous."

He said he believed Britain was about to go through the process of self-examination that the US experienced with the publication of Alex Haley's Roots in the 70s. He said: "The book had an effect on Americans who are now going back to Ghana and turning the slave dungeons in Elmina in Ghana into a shrine.

"I think this anniversary is beginning to make us think again in the same way as the US. There is a sense of shock and horror at what went on in our history, and the sheer brutality of it. It has not yet fed into the schools. Indeed it has been kept out of the curriculum.

"We need to get the proper history told, including the good, the bad and dreadful. For instance we need to recall that parliament for the best part of a century facilitated slavery. It did not just have an overnight intellectual conversion. Public opinion made the change and forced the change on parliament. We have fed it into our minds that a Christian from Hull, William Wilberforce, came along and changed the law in 1807. It was remarkable, but the real change came from working people.

"It is one of the reasons why I would like us to pick a date every year. The legacy of this 200th anniversary should be a permanent date when we ask whether there is more we could do, so that every year, like Holocaust, we remind people of the horrors. Each year we should think about it and commemorate and rededicate ourselves to helping people on which such horrors were inflicted."

Mr Prescott was speaking the day before Britain signs the European convention against human trafficking, publishes an action plan to fight modern day slavery and he hosts the visit of Owen Arthur, the prime minister of Barbados, to Hull, the birthplace of Wilberforce.

Tony Blair is to deliver a pre-recorded address to a ceremony in one of the slave ports in Accra at a ceremony on Sunday. A national memorial service will be held at Westminster Abbey on Tuesday and the former secretary general of the UN Kofi Annan, a Ghanaian, will address both houses of parliament in May .

Critics have suggested the country needs to apologise for slavery, a phrase that has led to legal actions in the US for compensation. The mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, has apologised and the prime minister has expressed his deep sorrow.

Mr Prescott said the country had to express "more than regret" for its role in the slave trade, but argued the issue of an apology was not being raised in Africa. He has been to Ghana and Sierra Leone in the past few months to visit the jails from which slaves were transported. He said he had met children in Ghana who had told him: "Not every white man was guilty and not every black man was innocent."

"That has started a debate about whether you really want the native chiefs really to apologise for selling their own people. The traders only had to go to the ports and the slaves were delivered from inside Africa. The Ghanaians said 'We don't want apologies. We want people to think what we can do to help us. What our ancestors did was horrific, but everyone feels we need to learn and move on from that experience'."

He said he would never forget how shocked he felt visiting the slave prisons of Elmina in Ghana. "Even 200 years after the slave trade you can still feel the pain the dark stench, the horror, the cold and the hole in the wall, the point of no return."

Mr Prescott said the climate of awareness in Britain was changing, pointing out that black youngsters in St Pauls, Bristol, had demanded that the name of the new shopping centre should not be called Traders or Merchants. "To those black people it meant the language of slavery. A more open debate about this is necessary. We have properly spent a lot of time talking about Muslims, but there are a lot of black people in Britain who feel their history has not been recognised."

He said it was vital that the government went ahead with changing the national education curriculum so that there was a proper presentation of slavery in its true abhorrent sense. He argued that abolition was closely associated with white people, but there were many black heroes.

Guardian

Soul diva Bev joins our anti-racism drive

People spat at my mum in the street because she was black...we have to teach Britain not to hate

She's Britain's Queen of Soul who wowed the crowds on a recent tour with comeback kings Take That. But life hasn't always been as good for singer Beverley Knight. The 34-year-old still bears the scars of racist abuse she suffered as a little girl growing up in Wolverhampton.

The star, who has a string of chart-topping hits and an MBE, is speaking out for the first time about how she and her family were targeted because of the colour of their skin. And she is urging everybody to support the Daily Mirror's Hope Not Hate anti-racism campaign, which was launched yesterday.

Our two-week bus tour across the country aims to celebrate all that is great about Britain. And spread the message - hope not hate...

'I'm the first generation of my family to be born in Britain - my parents were born and raised in Jamaica. Living in Wolverhampton was very diverse and mixed, and most people got along pretty well most of the time. But from a very early age I was aware of hostility towards people like me and my family. Of course, back then I didn't know it was racism, I was too young to understand. It was a dodgy time. The National Front had its headquarters just down the road in Walsall and they did their best to stir up trouble.

'School could be awful at times. I remember being in maths class when I was seven and I was the only black person in the top stream. Other kids would say things like: "Your skin's black because you haven't washed" and "your hair's like a Brillo pad". I did my best to ignore them, but it just got worse. Until one day the teacher went out of the class and this girl starting chanting: "Blackie, blackie." And soon the whole class caught on.

'I got very upset because I felt horribly isolated - I still remember that feeling now. I knew they picked on me because I was black. They were listening to their parents, that's the problem. When I told the teacher she just said: "Oh sit down, you're causing trouble." So I said: "But they're calling me names." And she replied: "Well just call them whities then." I went home and sobbed to my mum and she went straight down there and said this was unacceptable. The next day, in the middle of the lesson, I was removed from the class and sent to the lower stream where there were other black people. That was their way of dealing with it.

'But what happened to me as a child was so trivial in comparison to what my parents suffered. My dad came to Britain in 1959, Mum in 1962. She says it was November, it was freezing and she'd never seen snow before. Once, shortly after my dad arrived in the country, he had to defend himself against a gang of about 20 men. It was Dad and three of his brothers and they were only young.

'Wolverhampton was a different place back then. My mother was spat at, called names and shouted at in the street. People would make excuses not to serve you or let you on to public transport. Buses would drive past or kick you off. I think we have made astonishing progress but we still have a way to go.

'My parents went through hell. Those days may have gone but you still get comments from people. People still say to my mum: "Oh those black people, they're always fighting with knives, they're lazy and they don't want to work." When my mum makes a comment back, they say: "Oh not you! You're different!"

'Some people will ask daft questions and just not realise, like: "Where did you learn to speak English like that?" They're not racist, they're just not engaging their brain. They look at you and see that you're black and think you can't be from here, even though your accent is from Wolverhampton. Some people speak innocently out of ignorance and some people speak with racial intent. Most of the time you can completely see the difference. The race row on Celebrity Big Brother was shocking. I was so disappointed with Jo O'Meara. I had worked with her on Just The Two Of Us, and we had a laugh together.

'Jade Goody is not a clever girl. The reason she got the brunt of the criticism is probably because she was the mouthiest of the lot. She was daft enough to put her mouth into action far too many times. But the comments that cut to the core came from Danielle Lloyd. With Jade, to a certain extent, you have to ignore the ignorant rantings of someone who's not very clever. But Danielle said: "F**k off home." I remember those comments when I was a child, and they still hurt.

'Once in Italy, two of my band members, Carlos and Joe, went into the bank for some money. The woman took one look at these two black guys, one of them pretty big and powerful, and she pushed the panic button. I couldn't believe it.

'Carlos said the next thing he knew he was being hauled out and told to spread against the wall with a gun aimed at him. It was awful for them. Sadly it doesn't surprise me that people can still behave like this. Not everywhere is Britain. As we've seen in very recent cases, Britain isn't perfect, but we're doing a lot better than our European cousins.

'There are far-right parties in other countries that have much more of a foothold than the BNP has here. But we can't be complacent where racism is concerned and, in some parts of the UK, the BNP is on the rise. This has got to stop! I was lucky because my parents taught me to be proud of my heritage and of being British. They would say: "You are a child of Britain, you were born in Wolverhampton, raised in Wolverhampton, and we want you to be proud of that." And I was not the kind of person to cower, ever. I was proud of me and who I was, I always had an inner confidence. But stereotypes are so deeply entrenched and people hold on to them.

People must learn not to hate someone because of where they're from. The reality is that no matter what the colour of your skin, or where you're from, we're all going through the same struggle - just trying to get through life the best we can.'

CATCH OUR CAMPAIGN BUS

Tomorrow the Hope Not Hate bus leaves London for Glasgow on its mission to celebrate modern Britain. Over the next fortnight our red double-decker bus will be coming to you, bringing a message of hope to communities across the country. Our bus will be visiting Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly Circus in London tomorrow afternoon.

And from 10am on Saturday we will be at Dagenham Civic Centre in Rainham Road North. Then at Kilverts Field in Grays, Thurrock, from 12.30am-2.30pm.

By Sunday lunchtime, we'll have reached the Golden Mile in Leicester.

Here's a list of our planned stops...

Fri 23 March: Trafalgar Square, London

Sat 24 March: Dagenham & Thurrock

Sun 25 March: Leicester

Mon 26 March: Nottingham & Lincoln

Tues 27 March: Sheffield

Weds 28 March: Oldham & Manchester

Thurs 29 March: Liverpool & Wrexham

Fri 30 March: Dudley & Birmingham

Sat 31 March: Stoke-on-Trent

Sun 1 April: Sandwell, West Bromwich

Mon 2 April: Blackburn & Burnley

Tues 3 April: Keighley, Bradford & Batley

Weds 4 April: Leeds

Thurs 5 April: Sunderland & Newcastle

Fri 6 April: Glasgow

Mirror

This nation of tolerance

This is a country of unparalleled tolerance, the envy of many other European countries.

A nation built on difference, where people of all colours and religions rub along together day by day. That’s why today, we are launching the Daily Mirror Hope Not Hate campaign – to celebrate modern Britain.

Over the next fortnight our red double decker bus will be coming to you – bringing a message of Hope to communities across the country.

Travelling from London to Glasgow via Dagenham, Thurrock, Northampton, Leicester, Nottingham, Lincoln, Sheffield, Oldham, Manchester, Liverpool, Wrexham, Dudley, Birmingham, West Bromwich, Blackburn, Burnley, Keighley, Bradford, Leeds, Sunderland and Newcastle – this is a celebration of the Britain we live in.

Just look at the restaurants on any high street – Indian, Chinese and Bengali, Turkish and Thai, fish and chip shops, bagel bakeries, pubs and pie shops, cafes and takeaways. Just look at our vibrant cities – great melting pots of cultures, where you can hear a dozen languages on any street corner.

Look at our schools, where children grow up together unaware of the colour of each other’s skins. Look at our army where black, Asian and white soldiers fight together on the frontlines.

What would London be without the Notting Hill Carnival, Brick Lane’s world class restaurants or Chinatown? Where would Leicester be without it’s Golden Mile or Birmingham without its Baltis?

Imagine Arsenal without Thierry Henry, cricket without Monty Panesar, rugby union without Jason Robinson and British boxing without Amir Khan, Frank Bruno and Errol Bomber Graham. Imagine British high streets without Marks and Spencers

Everything about Britain – our soap operas, our pop charts, our novelists and actors, the men and women who read the news – shows the diversity of our nation. This is the Britain admired by people overseas – a draw for tourists and a huge part of what won our country the Olympics.

We hear a lot about the ways in which multicultural Britain isn’t working – often from extremists who have a vested interest in replacing tolerance with prejudice and violence. At last year’s council elections the BNP doubled the number of council seats it holds by telling carefully placed lies, hiding their message of hate behind a ‘respectable’ veneer.

This May, let’s kick them back out again.

Because the everyday reality is that our multicultural society does actually work. We all know that, because whether we’re looking out of the window or talking to a colleague, eating our dinner or listening to the radio, supporting our favourite football team or watching Coronation Street, we can see it working every day of our lives.

This month sees the 200th anniversary of the abolition of slavery, the moment when the MP for Hull William Wilberforce led parliament to end a deplorable chapter in our history. Two centuries on, our commemorations of that moment should also include a determination to kick racism out of Britain wherever it raises its ugly head. And at the same time, let’s celebrate just how far we have come.

Mirror

Hope not Hate

More items from Mirror's Hope not Hate supplement

Murders that still haunt Rio

Loyal to the flag

Cheering our great Britons

Future face of Britain

The stars speak out

Footie got kids on side

Way to go

COME along and climb aboard as our Hope Not Hate bus spreads its message of goodwill across the nation. Setting off from Dagenham on Saturday, March 23, it will criss-cross the country until it reaches Glasgow on Good Friday, April 6.

At each stop celebs will be out to show their support and we’ll be holding food festivals, staging concerts and giving out T-shirts, mugs, rosettes and postcards.

Check the newspaper and website every day for details of where we’ll be and bring your friends and family. Look in the paper tomorrow for details of day one in Dagenham and Thurrock and Leicester on Sunday. Thank you for your support.

Bus Tour dates

Saturday, March 24 - Dagenham & Thurrock
Sunday, March 25 - Northampton & Leicester
Monday, March 26 - Nottingham & Lincoln
Tuesday, March 27 - Sheffield
Wednesday, March 28 - Oldham & Manchester
Thursday, March 29 - Liverpool & North Wales
Friday, March 30 - Dudley & Birmingham
Saturday, March 31 - Stoke-on-Trent
Sunday, April 1 - Sandwell
Monday, April 2 - Blackburn & Burnley
Tuesday, April 3 - Keighley, Bradford and Batley
Wednesday, April 4 - Leeds & surrounding area
Thursday, April 5 - Sunderland & Newcastle
Friday, April 6 - Glasgow

The Daily Mirror backs HOPE not hate campaign

We are pleased to announce that the Daily Mirror is supporting the HOPE not Hate campaign. Today's edition carries an 8pp supplement celebrating modern diverse Britain and opposing the politics of hate.

On Saturday a HOPE not Hate bus, organised by Searchlight and the Daily Mirror, will begin a 14-day journey across the country. It will start in Dagenham on Saturday morning and end in Glasgow on Friday 6 April. Along the route we shall be joined by national celebrities and visit local community groups at the forefront of offering a positive alternative to the BNP. Click here to see the route map.

The campaign is being backed by X-Factor winner Leona Lewis, boxer Amir Khan and The Apprentice's Alan Sugar.

You will be able to follow the tour via our Hope not Hate bus tour blog and picture gallery.

Jon Cruddas, MP for Dagenham and joint secretary of the Anti-Fascist Fortnight steering committee, told Searchlight: "This is really exciting news. The support of the Daily Mirror takes our campaign onto a new level. I would urge everyone to get involved."

HOPE not Hate literature

Searchlight has produced a range of HOPE not Hate literature which local groups and unions can distribute. These include newspapers, leaflets, postcards, posters, balloons and badges. View the merchandise here.

Anti-Fascist Fortnight

Over the next two weeks there will be anti-BNP activities across the country. It is really important that we translate opposition to the racist views of the BNP to positive action. If we are going to prevent the BNP from winning council seats then we need to get anti-BNP literature out through doors. Please do you best to spare some time to help out. You can view the activities here.

£8,000 to defeat the BNP: Please support Searchlight

Searchlight still needs to raise £8,000 to fund its campaign. Every penny raised will go straight to our campaign fund. The more money we raise, the more we can do. The more we can do, the more we can stop the BNP. The more we can stop the BNP, the better life will be. It's that simple.

We would like to thank those who have already given generously and we would urge others, especially those who are unable to attend our activities, to support the campaign through a donation.

To donate to the campaign click here

You can download a fundraising leaflet here

Get involved If you would like to get involved in the campaign or want to know what is happening in your area email me at nick@stoprthebnp.org.uk

TOGETHER WE CAN BEAT THE BNP

Hope not Hate