FOUR former extremists united in Warrington today to challenge violent conflict at a ground breaking project at the town’s Peace centre.
A former female recruiter for an Islamist group; a former white supremacist from the United States; a former Irish Republican and a former jihadi fighter all feature in a special documentary film “My Former Life.”
The multimedia education resource that is set to change the approach to tackling extremism that leads people to violence and terrorism has been launched by Tim Parry Johnathan Ball Foundation for Peace – the international charity created from a terrorist atrocity which claimed the lives of the two young boys in 1993.
The resource is focused around a documentary film sharing the story of four former extremists. The film explores the motivations these people had to become
involved in violent conflict, the consequences of their actions and their departure from the group that brought them to the brink.
Through this resource, young people are taken through a journey of understanding and learning about the causes and effects of violent extremism. Ultimately, the ideologically driven stories, that violent extremists perpetrate, is undermined by the powerful film that aims to show that violence and the chosen group didn’t solve anything.
The Foundation for Peace is well known for its work assisting victims of terrorism to cope and recover and in educating young people to resolve conflict without resorting to violence. Now the charity has turned its attention to those people who are former extremists and has challenged them to share their experiences to prevent others from following the same path.
The Foundation has launched ‘My Former Life,’ to an audience of local and national Government stakeholders with a 20-minute extract from the film as well as demonstrating the supporting education materials.
Kelly Simcock
Kelly Simcock, ‘My Former Life’ project leader said: “if we are to counter extremism that can lead people to turn to violence then we have to start early on the playground, in the classroom and youth groups, and provide young people with the resilience and abilities to think for themselves and reject the warped ideologies of violence and terrorism.
“The film and supporting education resource has been produced and tested over a period of two years and features former extremists who have been encouraged and persuaded to share what led them down a path of extremism and violent conflict.
“The film shows their journey and explores what has now changed their minds and describes why they have united with the Foundation to ‘fight’ for peace and to defeat ISIS and others who use violence and terrorism to further their aims.”
Those whose stories are told through the film; a former female recruiter for an Islamist group; a former white supremacist from the United States; a former Irish Republican and a former jihadi fighter. Some of the people featured in the film will be speaking at the event, provided a rare opportunity for the audience to hear, first hand, about their experiences and motivations to share their stories.
The Foundation is aiming that every young person in this country gets the chance to see the film and take part in a short project ‘My Former Life’ to raise awareness and understanding to help those vulnerable to radicalising themselves and others to turn away from violent extremism.
For more information visit www.myformerlife.org or on Twitter @Formers4P or on Facebook, search My Former Life.
2 Comments
More inspirational work going on at the peace centre – proud to be a patron.
I do see what they are trying to do but I must admit I did find it a little unnerving to read that a former Islamist recruiter, a jihadi fighter and the likes have been invited to our little town and it worries me that we may be put on the map by those who do support these types of people because of stances like this. Sorry if that offends but just my opinion and one that I can’t help feeling.