Friends
Jasvinder Sanghera
I wholeheartedly support the aims & objectives of Mix-together, as someone who has first-hand experience of being disowned by her family having fled a forced marriage and in my family’s eyes added insult to injury by running away with someone of a lower caste. I remember how on the advice of the Police finding me in my hide-out I rang my mother to say I was safe and well and she then told me it was bad enough that I had run away, but to runaway with a ‘chamar’ (an ‘untouchable’) now meant I was dead in her eyes! Upon reflection I recalled how we were brought up with a hatred of races & castes that were different to our own and the question of mixed relationships was not only intolerable but also punishable.
Karma Nirvana is a national charity that campaigns on behalf of those who experience forced marriages & honour related abuse and there is no doubt in our minds that the majority of mixed relationships do cause honour based abuse. Nationally we hear of murders that are related to unacceptable mixed relationships and Karma Nirvana is increasingly identifying mixed couples in need of support emotionally and practically.
I was very pleased to hear of the work of Mix-together and soon made a link with a view to develop work in partnership. Karma Nirvana intend to build on the relationship with Mix-together to reduce the isolation of those who face challenges and prejudices to ensure that these voices do not go unheard or un-supported.
Jasvinder Sanghera
Author ‘Shame’
Director Karma Nirvana
National & International Campaigner
Interfaith Marriage Network
Hi from the Interfaith Marriage Network to everyone at MixTogether, and congratulations on a brilliant site. Couples who face opposition from their families and communities often feel so alone, which means that sites like this can be a lifeline. The ‘Experiences’ section and the forum help you feel that whatever you’re going through, someone else has been through something similar.
The Interfaith Marriage Network was started so that people in relationships across faith boundaries can get information and support, and learn from one another. Even those who don’t think of themselves as religious can find that faith issues crop up in their relationships, especially at times of birth and bereavement, and also sometimes in unexpected ways. We have information about the main faiths found in the UK, and what they say about mixed marriages.
We’ve also got contacts with ministers and faith leaders who are known to be sympathetic to people in mixed relationships.
www.interfaithmarriage.org.uk
Ann Cryer
Dear friends at MixTogether, many thanks for your kind comments regarding the work of the Home affairs Select Committee. Our enquiry into Domestic Violence, including forced marriages draws to an end next week and I hope our deliberations and findings help to defeat these dreadful crimes.
As you are aware, I have a son and a step-son who have mixed marriages, both happy and both blessed with children. I would therefore like to be associated with Mix Together and send my very best wishes.
Regards
Ann
Ann Cryer, MP for Keighley until 2010
