Too many young lives are being lost for no reason.. we must find a way to stop people carrying knives
England star Raheem Sterling’s plea over killings
PREMIER League football stars Raheem Sterling and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have backed the Mirror’s campaign to end Britain’s knife crime epidemic.
The England players joined victims’ families to demand Theresa May tackles the rise in the murders of young people, which comes after she cut 21,000 police officers.
Manchester City winger Sterling 24, said: “Too many young lives are being lost for no reason, and we must find a way to stop people carrying knives and harming each other.”
Liverpool’s 25-year-old midfielder Oxlade- Chamberlain added: “We must find a way to persuade young people to stop carrying knives, and to understand the terrible consequences of using them.
“I hope the Mirror campaign can help us all find a way to stop the use of knives on our streets.”
The pair are the latest in a string of public figures to support our campaign demanding more police with greater powers, a reverse to youth service cuts, knife awareness in schools, and a knife crime tsar. They spoke out after the Met Police released pictures of a terrifying stash of blades they took off the streets of London yesterday. One photo shows more than 50 weapons, including Stanley knives and scissors seized across East London. Also pictured are a “zombie” knife, Rambo knives and a samurai sword. Four former Home Secretaries, Jack Straw, Jacqui Smith, Alan Johnson and David Blunkett, have thrown their weight behind our campaign, as have relatives of youngsters whose lives have been cut short by knives.
Anne Gray, 75, whose grandson Jamie Stuart was killed in 2011 aged 19, said: ‘“I’m glad the Mirror’s trying to get change. Nobody should have to go through what we have been through.
“These deaths are terrible and senseless. Something has to be done. When my grandson was killed there were nowhere near as many deaths as today. Theresa May was responsible for these police cuts and that’s what I blame for the growing knife crime.”
Jamie was stabbed to death on his way home from a friend’s 21st birthday party in Sheffield.
Mum, Dawn, 53, added: “Everyone needs to get behind the Mirror campaign. We need to make sure the Government takes action. Knife
crime is out of control and that has to do with the police cuts. We need parents to be more vigilant and we need people going into schools.
“There needs to be tougher sentences for carrying knives too.
“There are young people dying all the time and I don’t want more parents to go through what we have.”
Julian Moodie’s son Jaden was stabbed repeatedly by a group of men in East London after being knocked off his moped in January. He was just 14.
His dad said: “I will do anything to stop this madness. I don’t want any parent to go through what I have been through. It has to stop, we still have so many families crying.” Barry Mizen, whose son Jimmy, 16, died after having his throat slit in a bakery at Lee Green, South East London, in 2008, said: “We are happy to support the Mirror’s campaign, we support anything that can help make a difference to tackle what is a national disgrace.”
In the wake of his boy’s murder, Scotland Yard launched anti- knife crime strategies Operation
Blunt and Operation
Blunt 2. Barry, 67, added: “2008 was the worst year in recent
history but it led to a police response that had an impact.
“At the moment there are a number of things set up, all kinds of groups, and everybody’s trying to come up with their own ideas.
“But I think one person, a tsar, is crucial. That is something I think should really be pushed for.
“There’s a national commissioner for human trafficking, which is a horrific crime, but we need something similar, our kids are being killed on
our streets. I said when Jimmy was killed, it’s not new laws we need, we need to understand these children’s backgrounds.
“Listen to teachers, who take care of them, and find out what the problems are at home.
“My son’s killer was bullied at school and slipped through the net, then murdered my boy. Bullying is almost always a causal factor in those who use knives like this.”
The family of 18-year-old Connor Brown, who was stabbed to death in Sunderland last month, said: “We are 100% behind the Mirror campaign.”
Knife crime is out of control. I’m glad Mirror is trying to get change ANNE GRAY GRAN OF KNIFE VICTIM JAMIE, 19