Latest news with #Elianne
Yahoo
14-03-2025
- Yahoo
'Men and boys struggle with emotional literacy'
"There's a real sense of emotional illiteracy among men and boys and there are difficult emotions, difficult things that happen in life, but nobody teaches us how to process them." Ben Hurst, from the charity Beyond Equality which works with young men on tackling issues around violence against women and girls, and the topic of masculinity, has been speaking to Riz Lateef on her BBC Radio London programme on Friday. Their conversation followed the news of the sentencing of Hassan Sentamu, who repeatedly stabbed 15-year-old Elianne Andam outside a shopping centre in Croydon, south London, in September 2023. He was ordered to spend at least 23 years in prison for her murder. Ben believes there is a "real systemic issue" across the UK with how boys, and men, have been socialised to move through and experience the world. He said it is about addressing the "attitudes beneath the behaviour". The Old Bailey heard Sentamu had a history of aggression towards young people and girls. In her sentencing remarks, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said on Thursday, when he was aged 11, he harmed himself and, unprovoked, assaulted other children at school. She added: "While in foster care you used a knife to threaten a pupil who you thought was mocking you on a school trip. You threatened to stab another student with scissors. On another occasion you assaulted two female pupils at the school." The court also heard Sentamu had "not had the benefit of a settled and nurturing, childhood and family life". BBC iPlayer: The Big Cases - The Bus Stop Murder Ben told BBC Radio London: "My heart breaks for Elianne and the Andam family, that's a life that's been cut short, potential that's wasted that will never be seen. "There's also some kind of feeling there for Hassan, not in a sense of 'I wish that hadn't happened to him', because we want justice ultimately, but we know the statistics about prisons, which don't often lead to rehabilitation." "So the question remains, what happens to this young man who's done this thing and how do we move forward? Two wasted lives," he added. Ben believes there are real issues with how boys are able to process situations. He said: "They manifest in a range of different ways and lots of ways that are widely inappropriate - and you add that to the context of sexual harassment, sexual violence, gender-based violence, men's violence against women and girls, men's violence against men." The court heard the day before Sentamu killed Elianne, she and her group had teased him and thrown water over him in an attempt to get him to apologise to his ex-girlfriend. Jurors were told that later that day the teenager had told a friend he felt there had been disrespect shown to him by Elianne and her group. The court heard that Sentamu had called the friend and told him: "I can't let this slide." Elianne's cousin, Reverend Denzil Larbi, told BBC London: "We knew exactly what that meant," Rev Larbi told BBC London. "We knew it meant he's going to bring some sort of harm. "I honestly believe if it wasn't Elianne it would have been someone else, and so yeah, he was looking to bring some sort of revenge that day." In his victim impact statement, Rev Larbi told Sentamu he had committed "the most monstrous and evil act that is imaginable". He told BBC London he questioned whether more could have been done to prevent Elianne's murder. "What would have happened if maybe another male took him by the hand and maybe invested in him and mentored him? "Or if other organisations really took him by the reins and said: 'Yes, we recognise you're struggling here, we're here to listen'. "I really wonder if maybe my cousin would still be here." Croydon Council said there are no plans for a serious case review. Rev Larbi said Elianne's family hope to work with schools to talk to young people about the dangers of carrying a knife. "There are many Hassans just walking around Croydon. Young boys who are angry, young boys who are lost, young boys that want to be listened to. "But I do believe there are great people in our community, great organisations who are in place who can really help and support these young people." Outside court after the sentencing on Thursday, Pastor Mark Rossell, from New Life church in Croydon, issued a statement on behalf of the family. "Our daughter Elianne Andam was a vibrant, bright and loving innocent 15-year-old with her entire future ahead of her, until it was stolen in the most horrific way. "Brutally killed in broad daylight by a 17-year-old who showed no mercy." Mr Rossell said the justice system had "failed to reflect the sheer brutality" of Elianne's killing and that the Andam family were critical of Sentamu's minimum term, saying it had left them feeling "abandoned and unheard". He added: "We cannot accept such lenient sentences are appropriate for violent, calculated crimes like this. "The current legal framework does not deter young individuals from committing violent crimes, it does not provide sufficient accountability for those who commit the most heinous acts." Ben told BBC Radio London the work of Beyond Equality is "preventative", to have conversations with boys, and men of all ages, before these situations arise. Their aim is to try to address gender equality "through the lens of masculinity", with an approach that asks the questions, "what is masculinity, how does that feel, do we like it, would we change it if we could?" and to build a picture about stereotypes, norms and the expectations from there. Ben added: "It's an epidemic - it's not decreasing, we all need to find a role in this conversation." Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to 'She was a miracle baby': Elianne had dreams of law career, aunt tells BBC Criminology student murdered woman on beach, court told Crossbow killer jailed for life for triple murders Girl begged killer to stop as he stabbed her
BBC News
14-03-2025
- BBC News
Elianne Andam: 'Sense of emotional illiteracy among men and boys'
"There's a real sense of emotional illiteracy among men and boys and there are difficult emotions, difficult things that happen in life, but nobody teaches us how to process them." Ben Hurst, from the charity Beyond Equality which works with young men on tackling issues around violence against women and girls, and the topic of masculinity, has been speaking to Riz Lateef on her BBC Radio London programme on conversation followed the news of the sentencing of Hassan Sentamu, who repeatedly stabbed 15-year-old Elianne Andam outside a shopping centre in Croydon, south London, in September was ordered to spend at least 23 years in prison for her believes there is a "real systemic issue" across the UK with how boys, and men, have been socialised to move through and experience the world. He said it is about addressing the "attitudes beneath the behaviour". The Old Bailey heard Sentamu had a history of aggression towards young people and her sentencing remarks, Mrs Justice Cheema-Grubb said on Thursday, when he was aged 11, he harmed himself and, unprovoked, assaulted other children at school. She added: "While in foster care you used a knife to threaten a pupil who you thought was mocking you on a school trip. You threatened to stab another student with scissors. On another occasion you assaulted two female pupils at the school." The court also heard Sentamu had "not had the benefit of a settled and nurturing, childhood and family life". BBC iPlayer: The Big Cases - The Bus Stop Murder Ben told BBC Radio London: "My heart breaks for Elianne and the Andam family, that's a life that's been cut short, potential that's wasted that will never be seen. "There's also some kind of feeling there for Hassan, not in a sense of 'I wish that hadn't happened to him', because we want justice ultimately, but we know the statistics about prisons, which don't often lead to rehabilitation.""So the question remains, what happens to this young man who's done this thing and how do we move forward? Two wasted lives," he added. Ben believes there are real issues with how boys are able to process situations. He said: "They manifest in a range of different ways and lots of ways that are widely inappropriate - and you add that to the context of sexual harassment, sexual violence, gender-based violence, men's violence against women and girls, men's violence against men." The court heard the day before Sentamu killed Elianne, she and her group had teased him and thrown water over him in an attempt to get him to apologise to his were told that later that day the teenager had told a friend he felt there had been disrespect shown to him by Elianne and her court heard that Sentamu had called the friend and told him: "I can't let this slide."Elianne's cousin, Reverend Denzil Larbi, told BBC London: "We knew exactly what that meant," Rev Larbi told BBC London. "We knew it meant he's going to bring some sort of harm."I honestly believe if it wasn't Elianne it would have been someone else, and so yeah, he was looking to bring some sort of revenge that day." In his victim impact statement, Rev Larbi told Sentamu he had committed "the most monstrous and evil act that is imaginable".He told BBC London he questioned whether more could have been done to prevent Elianne's murder."What would have happened if maybe another male took him by the hand and maybe invested in him and mentored him?"Or if other organisations really took him by the reins and said: 'Yes, we recognise you're struggling here, we're here to listen'."I really wonder if maybe my cousin would still be here."Croydon Council said there are no plans for a serious case Larbi said Elianne's family hope to work with schools to talk to young people about the dangers of carrying a knife."There are many Hassans just walking around Croydon. Young boys who are angry, young boys who are lost, young boys that want to be listened to."But I do believe there are great people in our community, great organisations who are in place who can really help and support these young people." 'Violent, calculated crimes' Outside court after the sentencing on Thursday, Pastor Mark Rossell, from New Life church in Croydon, issued a statement on behalf of the family."Our daughter Elianne Andam was a vibrant, bright and loving innocent 15-year-old with her entire future ahead of her, until it was stolen in the most horrific way."Brutally killed in broad daylight by a 17-year-old who showed no mercy."Mr Rossell said the justice system had "failed to reflect the sheer brutality" of Elianne's killing and that the Andam family were critical of Sentamu's minimum term, saying it had left them feeling "abandoned and unheard".He added: "We cannot accept such lenient sentences are appropriate for violent, calculated crimes like this."The current legal framework does not deter young individuals from committing violent crimes, it does not provide sufficient accountability for those who commit the most heinous acts." Ben told BBC Radio London the work of Beyond Equality is "preventative", to have conversations with boys, and men of all ages, before these situations aim is to try to address gender equality "through the lens of masculinity", with an approach that asks the questions, "what is masculinity, how does that feel, do we like it, would we change it if we could?" and to build a picture about stereotypes, norms and the expectations from added: "It's an epidemic - it's not decreasing, we all need to find a role in this conversation."
BBC News
13-03-2025
- BBC News
Elianne Andam: 'Croydon is full of angry boys like Hassan Sentamu'
Denzil Larbi had just got off a flight and was looking at the messages on his phone when he received a call from his sister. She had the worst kind of news. His beloved cousin Elianne had been stabbed to death."I picked up to my sister, and she told me that Elianne is dead. I remember I just froze. Me and my wife just stood there, weeping."Minutes earlier, he had seen that an unnamed 15-year-old girl had been stabbed to death on her way to school in Croydon, south London. "I remember I just paused and really felt for the family, you know, what they must be going through."But as it turned out, that family was his family. As senior pastor at West Croydon Baptist Church, Rev Larbi knew all too well about the fear of knife crime experienced by many in the the murder of his young cousin, repeatedly stabbed outside the Westfield shopping centre in front of other children, shoppers and commuters, was nonetheless extremely difficult to try to come to terms was born into a large and loving family, a much longed-for "miracle baby," Rev Larbi tells me, after his aunt and uncle had struggled to have children. "I always wanted a younger sister," he smiles. "I used to babysit and take her to school, and pick her up at times when her parents were working. She was very joyful, very funny, very cheeky. She was just a bundle of joy."They bonded over their shared love of music, and through their Christian faith. Elianne loved singing and dancing, and dreamed of becoming a human rights lawyer, Rev Larbi says. Her teachers at the Old Palace of John Whitgift School, a selective girls' school, remember Elianne as artistic and creative and devoted to her close group of friends. "They were thick as thieves," explains Harsha Evangeli, who taught the teenager art. "They could all rely on each other and they all had each other's backs."Pastoral leader Michele Smith tells me that the final time she saw Elianne was on a Tuesday afternoon, as she left her classroom. "The last words she said to me were, 'thank you Mrs Smith'." The following morning, on Wednesday 27 September 2023, Elianne was repeatedly stabbed with a kitchen knife by 17-year-old Hassan Sentamu, who was the ex-boyfriend of one of her who admitted killing Elianne, has been ordered to spend at least 23 years in prison for her murder, after his defence - that his autism meant he had diminished responsibility - was rejected by an Old Bailey jury. Jurors had heard how Elianne agreed to go along with her friend, and two other friends, to meet him ahead of school, so the former couple could exchange their belongings, among them a teddy when Sentamu turned up empty-handed, Elianne - anxious that they would be late for school and eager to stand up for her friend - snatched back the bag that had been handed to Sentamu. 'Sense of comfort' CCTV footage shows her running and laughing as she seized the bag."One of the last moments that we see Elianne alive, she's smiling as she grabs the bag," says Det Ch Insp Becky Woodsford, who led the investigation for the Metropolitan Police."This was no malice, this was her trying to do what's right, and get to school on time."Sentamu took out a kitchen knife, chased after Elianne, and repeatedly stabbed her. "Hearing that it was pretty much over a teddy bear, it was like, 'wow'," Rev Larbi tells me. "This amazing young beautiful girl, who had a bright future, parents have invested so much into her, gone in seconds, for this reason."During the weeks of painful evidence at the Old Bailey murder trial, the court heard from a bus driver who explained how he had tried to give first aid to Elianne, promising that he would not leave her Larbi says the family have been able to meet him to express their thanks."I remember that bringing me a great sense of sadness, but also comfort, to know that someone from the community of Croydon really comforted her in her last breath." The family found strength in the outpouring of support. Roads were closed to allow crowds to gather for a vigil to Elianne, while cards and flowers were sent from all over the world."To see the the community really support us in our most difficult time was so beautiful to see," says Rev Larbi."We had over 800 people at the funeral, and people standing outside, and like, wow, this is really honouring to her." 'He was looking for revenge' The Old Bailey heard that on the morning Sentamu killed Elianne, she and her group had teased him and thrown water over him in an attempt to get him to apologise to his were also told that the day before, the teenager had told a friend he felt there had been disrespect shown to him by Elianne and her court heard that Sentamu had called the friend and told him: "I can't let this slide.""We knew exactly what that meant," Rev Larbi tells me. "We knew it meant he's going to bring some sort of harm."I honestly believe if it wasn't Elianne it would have been someone else, and so yeah, he was looking to bring some sort of revenge that day." In an impact statement read out to the Old Bailey at Sentamu's sentencing, Elianne's mother Dorcas Andam said: "I feel the wait of her absence in every corner of my life. No 16th birthday, no prom, I will never see her walk down the aisle."My world almost stopped. She'd a beautiful mind, heart and soul... He killed my identity as a mother of two, killed me financially, socially, killed my future."The trial had heard that Sentamu, who had spent time in foster care, had a history of aggression towards other children, and had brought a knife into class at the age of 12, threatening to harm himself. 'I wonder if she could still be here' Although Rev Larbi tells me he is angry with Sentamu, he has also been questioning whether more could have been done to prevent Elianne's murder. "What would have happened if maybe another male took him by the hand and maybe invested in him and mentored him?"Or if other organisations really took him by the reins and said: 'Yes, we recognise you're struggling here, we're here to listen.'"I really wonder if maybe my cousin would still be here." Croydon Council has said there are no plans for a serious case Larbi says Elianne's family hope to work with schools to talk to young people about the dangers of carrying a knife."There are many Hassans just walking around Croydon. Young boys who are angry, young boys who are lost, young boys that want to be listened to."But I do believe there are great people in our community, great organisations who are in place who can really help and support these young people." 'I hope people stop and think' On the first anniversary of Elianne's murder, her family unveiled a mural at the spot where she with personal messages from those who loved her, it shows a beaming Elianne, her hair worn in her favourite pom-pom style."That mural is beautiful, because it really does reflect Elianne," Rev Larbi says. "And hopefully it's a reminder, as people walk and drive through one of the most busy parts of Croydon, to just stop and think about the impact knife crime has on this community."
