Week of Peace in the Lyric Square

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A celebration of families and friendship will take place in Lyric Square on Wednesday, 14 September, as Hammersmith & Fulham celebrates London’s Week of Peace 2005.

There will be music and dancing, performances by local youth group, Young Blood, a balloon launch and a special tree where people will write their messages about their hopes for peace in our community.

Members of the community will be invited to sign a peace pledge in a book which will then be displayed at different locations across the borough.

Hammersmith & Fulham council leader, Stephen Burke, said part of the borough’s strength was in its diversity: “People from the four corners of the world live and work side by side here. The July terrorist attacks mean there is now an even greater need to preserve our unity and celebrate what makes ours such a special community.

“The more people can come together in peace and learn about each other, the less likely crime and hatred are to flourish.

“This celebration is about coming together and celebrating what makes us special – our diversity, our culture, our families and our friends. Everyone is welcome to take part in this week of peace,” he said.

Geoff Alltimes, Chairman of the Hammersmith & Fulham Crime and Disorder Reduction Partnership (CDRP) said it was the first time the borough had participated in London’s Week of Peace: “The CDRP strives to reduce crime and boost safety in our community and part of this can come through promoting understanding, which is exactly what the Week of Peace celebrations are about,” he said.

Borough Commander, Heather Valentine, said a key focus of the week was about joining the community together and promoting safety within the borough: "Hammersmith & Fulham has faced some enormous challenges in the wake of July's terrorist attacks - and the response of the local community has been nothing short of magnificent. Peace Week represents a really good opportunity to celebrate all that's best about our borough and our city - and to continue in the process of making it a safer place for all of us."

Mulat Tadesse Haregot, Chair of Refugee Forum (RF) and Hammersmith and Fulham Black & Minority Ethnic Network (H&F BMEN), welcomed the commitment to demonstrate the support that various community groups offer to each other: “The need to celebrate peace and support for ones neighbour has never been greater. Fortunately, the community of Hammersmith and Fulham is rich in diversity and well equipped to show how united its people are, whatever their ethnicity, culture or religion.”

Cindy Butts, member of the Metropolitan Police Authority (MPA), said Peace Week is a perfect example of people contributing positively to community safety in their neighbourhoods: "Peace Week enables everyone in the borough to join together to send out a clear, united message against violence. As a resident of Hammersmith & Fulham I am proud that so many people in the borough feel, like me, that standing together to promote peace, and taking part in local initiatives, reduces criminality. Together we can make a difference and your participation to promote and improve community safety is exactly what we at the MPA are keen to encourage."

LBHF are seeking community and voluntary groups, however big or small they are, to get involved in these celebrations, by signing our peace pledge, performing, making a commitment to plant a tree, or simply coming along to join in the celebrations.

September 4, 2005