Cardiff.
Post 11 September 2001.
SAHELI – Outreach Project
Since September 11, SAHELI initiated an ‘Outreach Project’. The purpose was to support and encourage Muslim women & their families to report any incidences to the relevant service providers i.e. Minorities Support Unit- South Wales, Race Equality First and C.R.E Wales.
SAHELI found that people were not confident in reporting crimes or had little or no knowledge of what is not acceptable and whom they should approach. SAHELI observed that ‘Community Isolation’ has partly contributed to this factor but not entirely, which has resulted in communication with public services being limited.
Vulnerable Groups – Who are they?
Women & Children.
Within the Muslim/Asian Community, there is no active Voluntary Service Provision that has the remit or capacity to support them. Therefore, in such a sensitive climate SAHELI felt it imperative to put aside (once more) the strategic development of SAHELI and to priorities and safeguarded the needs of the Muslim women & their families.
Prior to the ‘American Attack’, there had been cases where Muslims/Asians had been victims of Racism but the recent events have caused an escalation of these cases especially Muslims.
SAHELI has come across endless cases, most of which a far more distressing than the ones mentioned below.
Recent case examples:
- Grange Gardens Park. A Muslim father & daughter were walking along the road; a 12 year old girl hurled abusive language and threw stones at them, made faces and ran off.
- Grangetown area. A Muslim mother & 7year old daughter were walking to the local Mosque. A male threw alcohol at them from his car.
- In a local Cardiff School: A 7-year-old Muslim girl asked if she could play with her peers in the playground. A girl put her middle finger up at her exactly 8 times leaving her too frightened to ask to play with them again.
- City Rd. An 8-year-old Muslim boy along with his 14-year cousin was approached on a bus by a man who eloquently put his 2 fingers at them.
- Pen-y-wain Rd. An 11-year-old Muslim boy was walking home alone from the local Mosque. A car pulled up, the boy was sworn at and called an Afghani Terrorist.
- A Muslim family that live in a predominantly ‘White’ neighborhood found human excretion in their front garden.
- A Muslim family caught a person urinating threw their front door letterbox. As soon as the alarm was raised from within the house the person ran off.
Islamaphobia.
Innocent Muslim & Asian people have been and are being abused because they are believed to be Muslim. White Muslim women & their families have approached SAHELI who have been victims of abuse and who have been discriminated against, not for the colour of their skin but for the religion they practice. The evidence brought to SAHELI’s attention clearly indicates that the form of discrimination and racial hatred is Islamaphobia.
SAHELI has two outreach workers whose job roles go far beyond that of an Outreach worker. They work in a totally unpaid fulltime Voluntary Capacity.
Time constraints and an increasing amount of Casework along with unlimited stresses of ‘No Finances’ are limiting SAHELI’s aims
Forthcoming:
- SAHELI will shortly release a report, which illustrates the experiences of Muslim Children (Post September 11) that attend schools in the Cardiff and surrounding areas.
- On the request of the Finance Minister of Wales- Ms Edwina Hart, in the near future SAHELI is to arrange a meeting for ‘Women Only’ in which we hope to invite members of An-Nisa Society (London) and The British Muslims and Islamaphobia Commission in attendance & dialogue with Female Members of The National Assembly of Wales; to share their expertise and explore avenues in which the wider Muslim community can interact positively in Wales.
