Tariq Jahan: Pride of Britain

Tariq Jahan – father of one of three young men killed during the UK riots in August – is the winner of one of 2011 Pride of Britain Awards.

Mr. Jahan, whose son Haroon was mown down by a car in Winson Green, Birmingham, became a lightening rod for peace , calling for calm and urging Britain to unite on a community and national level to heal itself.

At this week’s awards, Mr. Jahan received a standing ovation from 800 guests as he received his Special recognition award.

In a speech that reduced many of the audience to tears, Mr. Jahan spoke of his grief, but also of his great faith in the humanity of the British people.

“The response from the country has been ­phenomenal. I never realised there were so many good people in this country.

We seem to emphasise the bad but never emphasise the good.

The real heroes of this country in my eyes are people that do a great job every day.”

He added:

“The love I’ve seen in this country has come from every walk of life. We have a great community in this country and it’s a shame we don’t let the good people take control.”