I have forwarded to you a statement about NIMBY’s not wanting homeless and vulnerable people receiving the right kind of assistance from the community. I hope you could use this as an article in your newspaper. Please let me know if you require any further information.

STATEMENT ABOUT NOAH PROJECT IN HIGH TOWN, LUTON.
NOAH Enterprise plans to open a multi-use project in High Town, Luton but you’d think that they were planning to house mass murderers in it going by the amount of hate generated in High Town against it. NOAH provides a practical, empowering and caring service to homeless, marginalized and socially excluded people, through welfare, skills training and work experience.

Their project will provide a community café, a furniture recycling facility and furniture shop, a “dry” day centre, supported care accommodation, retail charity shop and an up to 10 place “wet” facility.

Like the campaigns against Travellers, the NIMBY’s have targeted the most vulnerable members of society by making it clear they are not wanted in High Town. A public meeting held by the Luton Council on Feb 17th, to hear the views of residents and businesses of High Town, descended into a display of prejudice with the shouting, insults, hysteria, bigoted ignorance and sheer hatred from a small unrepresentative group (Wendy Walker, Josie Fensome, Colin Brown – all NIMBY’s). One person from the assembly was ejected for calling out racial abuse and another person was warned against calling out insults. Another NIMBY (Jose Fensome, an ex-Mayor of Luton) called out that she didn’t want vulnerable people to receive any help at all.

NIMBY’S OUT OF TOUCH
Natalie Feerick of the High Town Conservative group spearheads the campaign against NOAH’s project and she also publishes the local Tories newsletter called “In Touch” (Out of Touch?). “In Touch” has published a number of articles full of inaccuracies and distortions (lies?). For instance, they said that the NOAH project was going to have a needle exchange. The executive director of NOAH, Jim O’Connor, made it clear this was untrue.
Another article falsely claimed the project was going to be a drink and drug rehabilitation centre – again there is no truth in this assertion.

The right wing Tories in High Town have successfully put fear into local residents and businesses – shop windows display posters that say “No To NOAH Project” – without these people knowing what the project is really going to be.

The local Blairite MP, Margaret Moran, has joined the fray on the side of the NIMBY’s (i.e. local Conservative Association, racists etc). She sent the Council a scurrilous letter claiming that NOAH doesn’t know what it is doing, despite NOAH being in existence for over 17 years and has helped dozens of people. NOAH’s staff and 100 volunteers are professional and caring people who can do without the interference of opportunist MP’s.

In an article in the Luton News on 7th April, Moran said that “High Town was the wrong place for the centre”. She repeats the NIMBY complaint that having this project within 100 yards of a school and in an area where alcohol was sold would be unsafe for children! Moran has now joined forces with ex-Mayor Fensome and promised to have planning permission delayed. (The project has already had an “outline” planning permission granted and a full Council meeting is to decide on the matter on 20th April). Moran has also accused the Council of improper conduct, by saying it had gone beyond the scope of its planning responsibilities by assisting NOAH with its plans.

Mrs Fensome’s last remark in this article reveals the true nature of the opposition to the project when she said: “People oppose NOAH’s plans. The centre is in the wrong place. We don’t want it here. It would turn High Town into the cesspit of Luton”.

A week ago, in a newsletter called High Town frendz, I reported the goings on at the Public Meeting, but Mrs Fensome took exception to my reporting her (and some of the other trouble makers’) over the top behaviour as “a display of prejudice with the shouting, insults, hysteria, bigoted ignorance and sheer hatred”. She sent her husband round to my house to speak to me about it, but he just ranted and made verbal threats and partially raised his fist to me.

SUPPORT FOR THE NOAH PROJECT IN HIGH TOWN GROWS
There are people who support the NOAH project and see no real good reason against having it sited in High Town. The people who work in the NOAH Charity Shop in High Town have noticed a big increase in support for the NOAH project and more and more people are leaving items outside the Shop for NOAH to sell, since the controversy started. My wife, Debby, and I have spoken to a number of shopkeepers and residents in High Town and they also want to see the project up and running.

“Friends of NOAH”
The nature of the opposition sickens the supporters of the new project, who feel strongly that we need to put across arguments to counter the whipped up hatred of ignorant and badly misinformed people of High Town.
Therefore, we have formed the Friends of NOAH.

What TO DO Next!
With a view to gathering more sympathetic support, Friends of NOAH is planning to hold a number of regular street stalls in the High Town shopping area. We’re expecting a fair amount of hostility, but as always with such stalls supporters will come forward and in greater numbers than the NIMBY’s. We want to have regular gatherings, small events, including “coffee mornings” and arrange awareness raising talks in High Town.

It is essential that nothing stops the NOAH project from opening in High Town. So, once it is up and running, a sustained campaign will be needed to keep it open and to stop NOAH getting blamed for every bad thing that happens in High Town – predictably, every crime will be blamed on NOAH people, without one shred of evidence. From the moment it opens, the NIMBY’s will be scheming to get it closed down.

ends.

Many thanks,Love, peace and freedom, Peter