Margot James backs campaign against extremism

Stourbridge MP, Margot James, addressed a seminar organised by Lye-born Shahid Mursaleen of Minhaj-ul-Quran UK called ‘tackling non-violent extremism and promoting integration’.

Margot was joined by fellow MP Lyn Brown and former MP Paul Goodman. There were also contributions by Maqsood Ahmed OBE and Hasan Mohi-un-Din Qadri.

Having personal experience of trying to foster cross-community relations, Margot shared her experiences with the audience. She spoke of the difficulties of bringing together people who come from different backgrounds and may speak different languages.

Margot condemned religious extremism and called for more people to gain a better understanding of the different cultures in the UK.

Margot said; “Although there is a problem with extremism in some of our cities, and we do need controls over the sort of propaganda which fuels the ideology underpinning this, it is important to remember that these individuals form a small minority. As organisations such as Minhaj-ul-Quran UK have shown, the way to tackle this problem is for communities to work together to win over the hearts and minds of each and every one of its members. As can be seen in our own Muslim community in Lye, we all have far more in common than the differences between us and Islam is a religion of peace.”