Bristol CoRE official statement on the death of Sir David Amess MP
We awake today feeling grief for the family of Sir David Amess. He leaves behind a wife and five children; one can't imagine their pain. Their message to us yesterday was typical of the husband and father they lost "Show kindness and love to all." As Kim Leadbeater MP said as she remembered the brutal way in which her own sister Jo Cox was taken five years ago, this will keep hurting. His family remain foremost in our thoughts right now. May he rest in peace.
As difficult a day as Friday was, we must never allow the actions of one man to stop the fundamental connection that defines democracy and public service in this country. Public servants are at their best because of the direct contact they have with the people they serve. This is especially true of politicians. It is universal in societies around the world and is the hallmark of the freedoms we enjoy in democracies. Everytime our values are challenged we stand together and stronger and now, today is yet another time to show that unity.
People like David Amess who stood for public office did so largely out of a deeply held conviction and beliefs. It is our individual responsibility to temper the language we use about others, about politicians, journalists, just other people. As the country comes out of the pangs of Brexit, we need to shift gear, reflect something of the nuances of life as it is, not as we'd like it to be. Life really isn't binary. Black or white. Life is lived for each moment, event, and relationships through shades of grey.
Today is a reminder of just how important it is for us to embrace diversity and inclusion as fundamental values that make us who we are. However disagreeable the discourse and the politics becomes, perhaps especially when it becomes those things.
We will move on from this by living in the other person's shoes. Through kindness, compassion, forgiveness. Treat this act as a statement of political violence. However inspired, these are extreme and by definition, exceptional, errant even. They do not define us and definitely don't define me. Bristol's Muslim community will be on edge at moments like this, but we take heed from the words of Zara Mohammed, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain - Mohammed said she hoped communities would remain united in response to the killing of the Conservative MP: “Division is what the terrorists want. A true remembrance of Sir David’s life would be about coming together and showing we can build a better Britain.”
We are separated from such people by universal values that transcend the divides that some will seek to plant between us at this time. Bristol is a city that was tested by events that made international history in 2020, but thanks largely to the tone set by Mayor Marvin Rees he took Bristolians through that pain barrier and we continue to stand together to build and rebuild. Let that spirit prevail in your hearts today. Stand united against all forms of hatred. Spare a moment in your hearts as we come out of the weekend for the life of a very extra-ordinary politician, but a very ordinary soul, a son, husband and father who is lost to his family and friends.
Museji Ahmed Takolia CBE
Independent Chair
Mayoral Commission on Racial Equality