Talking to people involved in extremism, we believe it’s crucial to catch people’s views and opinions as we believe not enough is understood about why people get involved in extremism and what the impact is of involvement..
Engaging with Conner, we asked him for a short overview of his time involved and why he left.
Here’s what Conner had to say……………………….
It all started when I was 14, I’d spent the last ten years living with my dad after my mum passed away but sadly my dad then passed as well. I was grief-stricken and lonely, my family pretty much all fell out with me and I was on the brink of homelessness being moved from house to house.
I have always been patriotic, I joined the cadets when I was twelve, but it was when I started going into online groups and chat rooms that things changed.
By the time I was sixteen, this was where everything started going off the rails.
They promised me a sense of belonging, and a nice little role within their group, which for a sixteen-year-old seemed like my breakthrough into politics and made me think that I could change the world.
It was all lies. They were nasty and vile, telling ‘stories’ about their hatred of people who I thought weren’t bad people. This is where I started to wobble a bit and question why I was actually in this group. But before I could even think about leaving, I got a call. It was Prevent.
They’d been notified of what I’d done and what group I’d joined and stepped in, they supported me through the leaving process and helped me get back into society.
I was scared, and if I'm honest, in tears most days but Prevent really was helpful, I talked to somebody who’d been through a similar situation to me and realised that life goes on.
After leaving I went back into the cadets, I went on to study hard, going to university and eventually, I got a good job.
If you’re reading this and you’re in one of these groups wanting to leave or was in one of these groups and want to talk, there is support for you and all I would say, is get out and get help.
Do you need help or just fancy a chat? You are not alone. Exit Hate Trust can offer support from a lived experience perspective and we are non-judgmental.
To get in touch, please email Exit at – info@exithate.org
Conner