Inner-city pride restored

IT'S an area where people take pride at what has been achieved - and are excited about what the future will bring.

For the way the inner-city area of Southampton has been transformed into a bustling, vibrant multicultural community, their pride is justifiable.

Shelves at food stores dotted around Newtown and Nicholstown are cram-med with delicacies from around the world and the aroma from exotic herbs and spices fill the air.

Community leaders say the area provides a "window to the world" and can rightly boast there is nowhere quite like it across the city.

But the Newtown and Nicholstown of 2004 is a far cry from its murky past, when its notoriety was known around the world.

Through passion, belief and a community spirit that is almost tangible, however, its residents have always refused to buckle in the face of adversity.

All this week the issues and initiatives in Newtown and Nicholstown area are in the spotlight as part of the crime Reduction and Environ-ment Week.

Back in the 1960s and 1970s the area was dogged by crime, rife with prostitution and drug dealing and in a state of disrepair.

Residents, frustrated at the lack of action by the council and police, decided to take matters into their own hands - and won.

More than 2,000 people, from all backgrounds, joined forces for the March of Neglect.

It began in Derby Road, went on through the winding streets of Newtown and Nicholstown, picking up more and more protesters along the way, before ending up for a rally outside the Civic Centre.

Ahmed Shah Moied, one of the organisers, can still remember the first words of his speech delivered to civic leaders and MPs who had agreed to listen to demonstrators.

"I said: 'Ladies and gentlemen, when God ordered Let There be Light when he created the Earth, it must have been ignored by this city.

"In the daytime you cannot see anything because the trees are so overgrown and no light can get in and at night-time the lamp posts don't work'.

"Shortly afterwards the Queen made a visit to the area and then the government gave a £500,000 grant to help improve the area.

"It was a small drop in the ocean but it was a start."

He moved to England from Lahore in the mid 1960s and arrived and settled in Southampton about three years later.

While the area had a huge ethnic minority population still dominant today, there were few places of worship.

Now Newtown and Nicholstown, with a host of temples, mosques and even synagogues dotted among the terraced houses, can lay claim to being the multicultural capital of the south.

Ahmed, 63, now a member of the Muslim Council of Southampton and a member of the city's Council of Faiths, which draws together leaders from all faiths, helped set up the first mosque in Northumberland Road.

More than 30 years on the city can boast the south's first purpose-built mosque, the Medina Mosque in Compton Walk, which, however, has been dogged by disputes and will be at the centre of a court case to decide who owns it later this year.

Ahmed said: "There was quite a large Pakistani community when I arrived and I set up the Pakistani Welfare Association.

"The area has changed so much in the time I've been there.

"When I arrived it was a very run-down area, the trees were never cut, it was quite a state.

"The area was so dilapidated and run-down at the time and on top of that it was rife with crime, prostitution and drug dealing.

"The prostitution was the worst problem.

"I was living in the area and sailors would come from the ships down there every day.

"Every other house had a red lamp in the front window.

"It took a long time to bring the area into shape and create a much better quality of life."

"Eventually grants were given to people to improve their homes and lamp posts were repaired and trees cut back.

"However, the improvement has been much more dramatic in recent years."

When the area started to be cleaned up, the bond between residents grew even stronger.

And ten years later, when the community faced its next testing period, it had to be.

In the early 1980s the race riots that broke out in Brixton sparked a series of copycats incidents across the country.

Many people were terrified they would spread to Southampton, a city where 14 different faiths are followed and more than 40 different languages spoken.

And when 200 far-right extremists booked into hotels in the city, intent on stirring up hatred, it seemed their worst fears would come true.

Once again the Newtown and Nicholstown pride and courage came to the fore. Community leaders from all faiths and police officers joined forces and patrolled the streets.

The bigots backed down and never showed.

Two years ago police and community leaders were successfully able to restore the peace and quell tensions when a full-scale riot, caused by a family dispute, erupted in Derby Road between Pakistani and Afghan youths.

John Roath, a community liaison officer for the city's Sikh Gurdwara temples, was born and bred in Newtown and Nicholstown.

His family was prominent in creating the first of the city's four Gurdwaras in Clovelly Road.

The evolution of the area can be seen at the Singh Sabha Gurdwara, on the outskirts of Newtown.

It was originally a church, then a community centre before becoming a Sikh temple.

"I can remember watching Indian films there in the time it was used as a community-type centre," said John.

"When I was born there was four or five main families. I was part of the family that put the first Sikh temple in the inner city.

"Obviously new communities have come into the area over the years and contributed their own things.

"When I was younger the community worked with police and other agencies to tackle the Red Light problems that were here.

"All the communities worked together to do that because it is a family-orientated place. Derby Road at one point was known around the world.

"But it's now recognised because of the multicultural status that has been achieved and how much it contributes in the way of business and culture.

"Some people would call it a 'Little India' but it is a very welcoming area to everyone who comes here. They put the football stadium here for instance.

"I think the community spirit is very strong still and partnerships between groups are still here.

"In recent years we have seen prominent elders pass away, which has been a huge loss, but in their place a new generation has come along to follow in their footsteps.

"We are trying to put something in place not just for people now but for future generations.

"There are so many of us who were born here and have become adults and seen the changes that it almost has a village atmosphere.

"Everybody knows who everybody is and everybody knows each other's history.

"It's a very strong and vibrant community and will only continue to grow stronger with the regeneration that is still going on.

"I think one of the strongest qualities is that communities are able to come together and talk around the table about any issues.

"It proves that different communities can come together and create and build something positive."

The area's vibrancy is never more apparent than at festival time, when communities turn out to celebrate their faiths.

One of the biggest, the Sikh Vaisakhi period, sees thousands of people turn out for a colourful parade through the city's inner city ever year.

The Rev Ian Johnson, team rector for Southampton city centre parish, said: "I think it's an incredibly lively and interesting area.

"It's one of the most interesting parts of Southampton.

"It's strongly multicultural and when I have visitors I always take them to the international food shops in Derby Road as it's a great experience.

"I go there to visit, I go there for work and it's a very safe community.

"Like many Asian communities, people tend to live much more on the streets, which means the streets haven't been surrendered to young people like many areas.

"I believe it's one of the safest areas of the city.

"It's a welcoming community but un-accepting of people who can be destructive. It's a community that doesn't smile on people who upset it.

"The area offers a richness and diversity that opens a window to the world.

"Southampton would be a very introspective place without that community."