Students gather in Telford against hate crimes
Hundreds of students gathered in Telford to raise awareness of hate crime during a series of talks at a college.
Telford College of Arts and Technology opened its doors to a range of speakers, with all of them sharing the same message – intolerance will not be accepted.
Throughout the day there were a number of short discussions made to a room packed with pupils from a variety of backgrounds.
Charities were on hand at TCAT to talk about help available to those struggling with hate crime, while police highlighted the need to report anything that could be deemed unacceptable.
But it wasn't just a lecture to young people. Pupils were given the chance to voice their concerns and talk about their experiences, with some even rapping their thoughts on the matter.
Principal Ian Clinton said: "It was fantastic. What we're saying to young people is that we're listening to them. Everybody was allocated the same amount of time, regardless of where they were from, because we're all equal when it comes to dealing with hate crime. As far as I'm concerned this is the most important part of my diary this week. It demonstrates that we're not working in silos. We're working together."
Mr Clinton has worked in education for 35 years, and he said the rise of the internet has massively changed the problems being faced by young people. "We have an old expression about your home being your castle – that is no longer true with the internet," he said.
"Things are more immediate than they used to be to people. People are confronted with issues in a much more rapid way.
"You can be wherever and you can be subject to hate crime regardless."
Inspector Gary Wade, safer neighbourhood team inspector for North Telford, said: "From a police perspective we'd like to see more awareness from the people attending today, but we're also sending the message out about the importance of people reporting incidents.
"We're in 2017 and people know what's right and what's wrong. Young people are very aware of race, disability, sexuality and gender and the importance of treating everyone equitably. Hate crime reporting has gone up, and I see that as a sign that people have more confidence in reporting.
"I don't think we live in a racist society in Telford. It's very diverse, the communities get on very well, and that's been shown in visits from far-right groups where communities have come together against what in my mind is hate crime."
