Councilor recalls when racist thugs chased him and his family in Bury

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A counselor has recounted a terrifying experience in which racist thugs chased him and his family over 40 years ago.

North ManorCllr Khalid Hussain, who was nominated to be the borough’s next deputy mayor, moved from Radcliffe to Horne Street in Bury with his family in 1979.

As he and his family were out one day, they were nearly attacked by a “group of hooligans”.

Speaking at a full council meeting he said: When my family moved from Radcliffe in 1979 I was about nine years old and I and my brother who was about seven lived on Horne Street near by Gigg Lane.

We left our house on the weekend to go shopping and we walked through Parkhills Road, and a bunch of racist thugs started chasing us.

My dad was a big man and I’ve never seen my dad run so fast.

This group of hooligans chased us and we managed to escape by somehow entering the grounds of Bury College.

The hooligans picked up rocks and threw them at us, luckily none of them hit us but my dad was holding my younger brother’s hand, and we basically ran for our lives.

This 1979 incident has always marked me and since then, whether consciously or unconsciously, I believe that my fate has been assured in the sense that I will always fight for human rights.

“I will always fight for greater understanding between different communities and bring greater tolerance in our community.

The Tory adviser was speaking at the meeting after his fellow representatives welcomed nominations for him to be the next deputy mayor.

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Borough Chief Conservator Cllr Russell Bernstein also offered his recommendation for Cllr Hussain and provided details of the significant contributions he has made to the community in his life.

He said CllrHussain’s father moved from Pakistan to England in 1964 and worked as a laborer for more than three decades.

He also said that Cllr Hussain became the first person in his family to go to college.

Cllr Bernstein said: In 2003 Khalid was appointed by HM the Queen as a Justice of the Peace.

In the summer of 2004, Khalid became the first Muslim in Bury’s history to be elected as a Conservative councillor.

In 2005, he became the first Muslim from Bury to run for Parliament.

I want to share three very brief examples that I believe epitomize Khalid.

The first was in 2000 when Khalid, as director of the Bury Racial Equality Council, worked tirelessly to bring justice to the family of Tariq Javed, a private taxi driver who was brutally murdered in an attack in racist character in the city.

The second was director again when Khalid defended the rights of the Jewish community by publicly denouncing religious extremists who desecrated Jewish graves in Prestwich.

Finally, on Christmas Day 2021, Khalid, on behalf of Bury Parish Church, delivered food parcels to the elderly and disabled.

Khalid, as a leader, as noted, is a valued and respected member of this council and a very worthy appointment for deputy mayor.

Head of Council Cllr Eamonn OBrien added: It gives me great pleasure to nominate Councilor Hussain to be our next Deputy Mayor.

I think we all know that Cllr Hussain’s commitment to his residents, this council and his long record of service is a testament to that.

I think he will do a fantastic job in the seat and congratulations again to him.

I’m sure he’s very proud and hope he sees this as a fitting reward for his time and effort and commitment to the residents of not just North Manor but the entire borough.

Cllr Hussain thanked his fellow advisers for their kind words.

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