Community rallies to support Muslims in Thornaby following mosque vandalism

The Telegraph and local paper Gazette Live report on the strong support provided to the Muslim community in Stockton-on-Tees following offensive graffiti being sprayed on the wall of a local mosque.

The words “Muslim cowards” were daubed on to the wall of the Thornaby Muslim Association in Westbury Street in the early hours of Monday 5 June. The comments were discovered as worshippers arrived for early morning (Fajr) prayers at around 3am.

The mosque was inundated with messages of support and assistance since the incident, with local people offering to provide financial assistance and volunteering to come and remove the graffiti.

A spokesperson for the mosque described the response as “overwhelming”. He said, “We’ve had nearly 300 comments on Facebook to say they are disgusted with what’s happened. People are saying they either want to donate money or volunteer to come down and paint it.

The mosque member even told how a local mother-of-three, Angela Gill, had bought a tin of paint and stood in the rain that morning attempting to paint over the hateful message.

Stockton Council since responded by sending a team to clear up the graffiti.

The mosque has taken the opportunity to organise an open day for Saturday 10 June inviting the local community to ask questions and tackle common misconceptions about Islam. The open day will run from 10.30am to 12.30pm.

Cleveland Police said regarding the incident that “this type of activity is completely unacceptable and that we are treating it as a hate crime.”

Anyone with information on the person responsible for the graffiti is urged to contact Cleveland Police on 101. Alternatively, members of the public with information can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.