Preventing Violent Extremism?
Nearest stations: Shadwell / Whitechapel / Aldgate East)
Entry is FREE. Lunch will be served at 1pm
Note change of venue
Conference to address the UK government's PREVENT strategy.
For several years the Home Office has funded a programme supposedly to 'Prevent Violent Extremism'. As a basic rationale, people espousing 'non-violent extremism' create an environment in which terrorists can operate and encourage 'violent extremism'. Therefore entire Muslim communities must be monitored for 'extremist' ideas – defined as hostility to 'British values'. This phrase conflates universal human values with the British state, whose foreign policy regularly contradicts the supposed values. In practice those who criticise UK foreign policy have been treated as 'extremists' by the Prevent programme.
This has spread fear within Muslim communities, as well as among voluntary organisations and public employees who are expected to implement the programme. Even worse, it is given a statutory basis by the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act.
Co-sponsored by the Islamic Human Rights Commission (IHRC), Campaign Against Criminalising Communities (CAMPACC) and the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers.
Supported by Bandung2, Black Activists Rising Against Cuts, CAGE UK, Free Talha, Lewisham Islamic Centre, Muslim Directory UK, Netpol, NUS Black Students, Scotland Against Criminalising Communities (SACC), The Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers, University and College Union (UCU)
