Ever since a group of Burnley's youth erupted in violence three years ago, the town has been hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons.
Since then, far-right politicians from the British National Party (BNP) have been winning council seats: they currently hold six. Reports have highlighted Burnley's religious and cultural divisions. The media spotlight is sure to fall again on Burnley at this month's local elections, where the BNP is contesting eight of 15 seats.
Home-grown prejudice
But behind the negative headlines, young people like Asrar and Chelsea Wooller, 16, have been pulling apart myths and pulling together their peers from different backgrounds. It is particularly hard for young people as they may be fighting the views of their own families as well as their friends.
"I come from a racist family," admits Chelsea. "My brothers are racist and I have grown up with them. When I started coming to the Breaking Barriers in Burnley group, I got called names at school and asked what I was doing 'hanging around with Pakis'."
Breaking Barriers in Burnley is a group of 44 young people, including Asrar and Chelsea, who for the past 18 months have been taking on ambassadorial roles in the town. They have had conflict-resolution training, run anti-racism workshops for pupils, put on exhibitions, helped at community events and, of course, had a lot of fun.
Breaking Barriers in Burnley was set up in response to the Burnley Task Force report into the riots of 2001. Lisa O'Neill, youth arts development worker at Burnley Youth Theatre, which helped form the group, played a key role in the formulation of the report.
Using video, drama, graffiti and music, O'Neill joined young members of the task force to gather as many young people's views on the riots as they could. That work, says O'Neill, is locked up to protect the young people.
"There were some very racist comments," she states. "This was a time when everything was very raw for everyone. It was the first time that they had been asked what they felt about race issues and what had happened.
It went both ways too - it is not just White people here who are racist.
Here, it is all about fear. When a White person sits on a bus, for example, and hears someone talking in a different language, that frightens them."
A chance to mix
The task force report recommended that more work should be done to create safe environments for young people to explore race issues and more opportunities should be created for young people to mix.
The Office of the Deputy Prime Minister's housing, planning, local government and the regions committee last month released a report, Social Cohesion, into race issues facing communities such as Burnley. The report identifies youth work as a key tool in providing links between communities. "Providing high-quality youth services is a fundamental requirement for addressing social cohesion," it states. "We urge the Government to put the provision by local authorities of youth services on to a statutory basis to ensure adequate standards and consistent provision. This needs to be backed up by funding from central government."
Breaking Barriers in Burnley is supported by a mix of voluntary and public sector groups that have all taken a stake as part of their pledge to address the issues raised in the task force report. All of the group's work is aimed at bringing the young people who live in Burnley's segregated areas together.
"At first, the young people found it very hard to work together, but we encouraged them to think about what had happened and why we should be doing this," says O'Neill.
Lancashire County Council's voluntary sector co-ordinator, Bea Foster, adds: "Breaking Barriers in Burnley helps the members to see each other as people - they become much more comfortable together."
The group has not shied away from the political events in the town, during which the BNP won its first electoral seats anywhere for almost a decade.
Group member Khaledur Rahman, 16, was questioned by his friends at first about why he was going to a place that was full of White youths.
"I was pretty small-minded myself when I joined last year," he says. "But I got to learn about other people and where they came from. We see ourselves as peace engineers - we are trying to tackle people who vote BNP."
The BNP is targeting young people through its Young BNP Supporters' Club for those aged 14 to 16, run by 17-year-old Jennifer Griffin, daughter of the BNP's leader.
Hellal Bokta, a youth worker at Lancashire County Council Youth Services in Burnley, has been bringing young people from different White and Asian estates together at the Basement Project - a youth centre at the town's Central Methodist Church.
"The White children will make up views of what Asian people are like," she says. "Some of their views are very narrow-minded. The Asian kids were the same - they thought White kids just drank beer and had sex all the time. If the next generation has a better understanding of each other, maybe they won't vote BNP."
Another project helping to dispel the myths that can fester around different cultures among adults is called Welcome Diversity. The project is funded through Lancashire County Council Youth and Community Service, part of Burnley's Community Cohesion Team, and the Church of England.
Break the myths
So far, more than 200 adults have been able to ask a panel that includes young people any questions they like about Asian people and their religions.
Youth and community worker Asrar Ahmed, 22, who helps co-ordinate the scheme and answers questions from the groups, said: "You get the typical stereotypes that all Muslims are bombers and the women are all repressed. We pick those issues out and clear up those stereotypes."
Up to now, many of the visits have been with older community groups, but the project is planning to start work with youth groups. Young people from Breaking Barriers in Burnley have also attended the workshops.
Force for change
Mike Waite, Burnley Council's head of community cohesion and engagement, believes the youth work going on in the town will have a lasting impact.
"Race is the biggest single dividing line that creates tension and conflict between people in Burnley," he says. "So many youth workers and young people have responded to the challenges of making links across these barriers and pulling together those distances between different people."
He adds: "When young people from different parts of town do get a chance to get to know each other, that can have a massive impact. We are hugely impressed with organisations such as Burnley Youth Theatre."
Sixteen-year-old Ali Beg also believes that, as a young person in Burnley, he can shape the town's future by being part of groups like Breaking Barriers.
He says confidently: "I know the group is going to change things. We are going to make a difference."
BURNLEY: A TIMELINE
June 2001: Violence erupts in the town and rioting begins after an Asian taxi driver is attacked
August 2001: Four young people form part of the Burnley Task Force, set up to find the causes of the riots and find solutions
December 2001: Task Force report says more opportunities should be created in Burnley for people of different cultures to mix
May 2002: BNP has its first electoral success for nine years, winning three council seats in Burnley. Six more are gained the following year
December 2002: The Breaking Barriers in Burnley youth group is formed to take on the fight against segregation and racism
June 2004: Eight BNP members are standing for election to Burnley Borough Council
BREAKING DOWN BARRIERS
I came to the group to see what young people's views were. They all wanted to build a better Burnley. Breaking Barriers shows there is hope - it shows we are more mature than the adults in this town. - Asrar Ahmed, 22
I have met a lot of new people at the project - people I would not have spoken to before like Asians and younger and older people. - Chelsea Wooller, 16
Most of my friends just choose to stay racist and we have a lot of debates about that - I've had three today. - Rhiannon Garth Jones, 14
There's a lot of racial stuff going on in the town. The riots were pretty scary - I hope it doesn't happen again. - Jenny Grennan, 16.
