Sheffield MP to senders of Muslim hate letters: 'If you think you'll turn communities against each other, you're wrong'

A Sheffield MP said she was 'beyond horrified' to learn of the Muslim hate letters received by three people in the county, and urged police to take them 'extremely seriously'.
Gill Furniss, Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and HillsboroughGill Furniss, Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough
Gill Furniss, Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough

Last weekend, South Yorkshire Police revealed it was investigating three reports of people in the county receiving 'punish a Muslim' hate letters, which encourages people to take part in a 'punish a Muslim' points-scoring game.

The letters have also been received other parts of the UK, including West Yorkshire, where one recipient said their hate letter bore a Sheffield postmark.

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Gill Furniss, Member of Parliament for Sheffield Brightside and Hillsborough said today: "I was beyond horrified to have heard that letters inciting violence towards Muslims have been

received in Sheffield and elsewhere in this country.

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"I am especially saddened to also hear that at least some of these letters may have originated in Sheffield.”

“I urge the police to continue to take these letters extremely seriously and I ask that if anyone receives any letters they report this immediately to the Police or through independent Hate Crime reporting centres such as Tell Mama.”

“I have this to say to the perpetrators of this hate crime: If you think you can cause community to turn against community in Sheffield by spreading your threats, you are completely wrong.

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"Our tolerance and respect for our fellow humans will every time defeat your attempts at division and hostility.

"I am proud that we are the UK’s first City of Sanctuary and a place where we celebrate Britain’s diversity and rich heritage including the contribution of Sheffield’s Islamic community.”

Anyone with information is asked to call South Yorkshire Police on 101, quoting incident number 420 of March 11, 2018.