By Jahan Mahmood

OPERATION: SHARED HISTORY

Many young Muslims believe that their heritage has originated and progresses along a completely different trajectory to that shared by other British people. Consequently this has negatively impacted the idea of a viable British Muslim identity and caused a number of unnecessary fracture lines across our society. However, this idea that Muslim and other British communities have no shared history is completely untrue. In actual fact many ethnic groups living in Britain today had ancestors who fought in the First and Second World War.

It is unfortunate that due to the sensitivities that are often raised when discussing the British Empire, there has often been unease and reluctance to explore our shared past. Moreover, sharing our past can be done without glorifying the Empire. It involves telling the stories of ordinary men who fought in distant lands,driven by the same goals and aspirations, to live in a peaceful and secure world.

The Shared War Project is a cross-community programme that retells the accounts of Muslim soldiers and also draws attention to African, African-Caribbean, Hindu, Jewish, Sikh and British efforts. For almost 4 years, our team has witnessed the positive impact of telling these shared stories at schools, youth centres and community events. The Project encourages young people to view Britain as their home, to appreciate the contributions of their ancestors and to see themselves as stakeholders in Britain and not as voiceless subjects within a foreign land.

Since its inception, the Shared War Project has been utilised by a large number of service providers ranging from schools and local authorities to youth organisations and the prison service. Its primary aims are to:

i) create a stronger British Muslim identity

ii) forge better cross-community relations

iii) counter radical sentiments (as part of a wider programme)

iv) encourage active citizenship

v) promote history and learning

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