Not in our name

We were all shocked, sickened and angered by the atrocities in London and Manchester. Like many British Muslims I have found it difficult, at times, to contain my anger that these people could claim to act in the name of my religion, particularly during Ramadan.

There has been some comfort in the response from within the Muslim community – with thousands of imams and ordinary British Muslim citizens joining their neighbours in sorrow, solidarity and defiance.

While I have felt embarrassed at times that these evil people could claim to find inspiration in Islam, I have never felt more proud of Britain, my home. The way people have stood together in defiance of those who try to divide us, has shown this country at its very best.

So we must continue to stand united in our defiance of ISIS and their kind. But standing together will not, on its own, be enough to defeat an enemy that despises our shared society and our way of life. We must show them, together, that they are wrong. I, and hundreds of other British imams, are committed to making clear that the twisted ideology of ISIS has no place in our community. But we must be able to offer them something more. It is too passive to just tell people, ‘Don’t be an extremist’. We need to make clear that my fellow Muslim citizens and I are welcomed to be fully and equally part of British society.

Let us be honest: there are some who do not feel that Muslims can fully be “one of us”. We need to challenge this view and make clear that we all have a stake in this country we all call home.

WHAT UNIT No matter w we are or w we’re from, all one race that’s huma And cake

NADIYA HUSSAIN