Advocacy: Take Action Today
Contact your MP
If we’re going to get parliamentarians to take note of the suffering which millions of Christians and members of religious minorities face throughout the world, we need to speak up and act.
It’s people like you who can make a difference. Who can drive change in the UK political landscape, and urge our government and all elected officials to take a stand against religious persecution.
This #RedWednesday, we’ll be joined by Margaret Attah; survivor of the St Francis Xavier Church massacre in Owo, South-West Nigeria. Margaret will be the guest of honour at a drop-in event we are hosting in Parliament, to raise awareness amongst parliamentarians around the dire situation faced by Christians in Nigeria and across Africa.
We encourage you to write to your local MP, requesting they attend an event ACN is hosting in UK Parliament on Wednesday 22nd November to raise awareness of the dire humanitarian crisis plaguing the African continent.
How it works
Enter your contact details into the adjacent form
Click “GO”, and you’ll be directed to WriteToThem.com. You’ll see a letter template, addressed to your local MP.
Copy and paste the below email into the text box in WriteToThem (the salutation and sign-off are provided already). Click send, and let your voice be heard.
Re: ACN’s Drop-In Event With Margaret Attah: Survivor of Jihadist Massacre
Hosts: Aid to the Church in Need (UK)
Venue: Inter-Parliamentary Union room, near Westminster Hall
Date & Time: Wednesday, 22th November 2023, 10.00am — 12.00pm
I’m reaching out today to request your attendance at an event which Aid to the Church in Need (UK), the Catholic charity which supports Christians and religious minorities wherever they face persecution or suffering, is hosting in Parliament on Wednesday, 22nd November from 10.00am-12.00pm.
The event will be hosted in conjunction with The Prime Minister’s Special Envoy For Freedom of Religion or Belief, Fiona Bruce MP, and will be an opportunity to meet Margaret Attah; a survivor of the Pentecost Church Sunday massacre in Owo, South-West Nigeria.
On 5th June, 2022, Margaret Attah was one of hundreds of parishioners who flocked to St Francis Xavier’s Catholic Church in Owo to celebrate Pentecost Sunday. As Margaret was in the gallery, singing with the rest of the church choir, gunmen opened fire on the parishioners.
41 Christians were killed that day, and more than 70 were injured. Margaret was blinded in one eye, and lost both of her legs. Simply for attending Mass. Militants from the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) claimed responsibility for the slaughter.
Through the event, and this year’s #RedWednesday initiative, ACN will be looking to raise awareness around the plight of persecuted Christians and other religious minorities in Nigeria and across Africa. The situation is truly dire: in the Sahel region alone, the number of people facing displacement and starvation due to militant extremism has surged to 10.5 million people over the past 3 years – a nearly 300% increase.
I encourage you to stand in solidarity with Margaret Attah and all those persecuted because of their beliefs, by joining Margaret and ACN on Wednesday 22nd November in the Inter-Parliamentary Union room, near Westminster Hall in the Palace of Westminster.
To RSVP, please contact daniel.beurthe@acnuk.org
Best regards,