WANTED: A Muslim-led campaign against the evils of terrorism

The signs are everywhere – a message of defiance truncated into a three word sound bite.

Ever since Monday night's atrocity, posters and banners declaring "I Love Mcr" have been popping up on billboards and in shop windows, the logo an affirmation that the heart of this city – my city – will throb and beat again.

Simplistically kitsch? Well, perhaps. But how else can we concertina solidarity and support for the suffering in such a sharp, effective way.

In fact, I'm not ashamed to say I felt more than moved as I crossed the town centre the day after the bombing and saw a huge "We Love MCR" banner arced like a winning smile over one of the main streets.

Of course in an age of click-happy, social media campaigns, it's easy to prune profound emotion into a primary-coloured car sticker. But just as mass communication is being used to mobilise the extremists who seek to throttle our way of life, we need to marshal the same resources to shout louder.

And no more so than among Britain's Muslim communities who, once again, are reeling from the actions of those who use a toxic definition of their religious teachings to justify terrorist atrocities.

Surely the time is now ripe for Muslims in this country to consider a visible, vocal and collective campaign which proudly proclaims "not in our name".

How welcome it would be to see these words proudly and defiantly emblazoned on banners outside Muslim schools, community centres and mosques.

Not as an expression of weak deflection. But as a potent declaration that the Muslim community is far stronger than the poisonous sum of those small parts who seek to do so much damage.

And why stop at banners? There could be an internet campaign, mass rallies across major cities – all of which would semaphore the terrorists that their unpardonable actions have no place in the Muslim world.

There's no doubt that there needs to be more and better engagement from Muslim communities. The Muslim Council and others allied to the community do condemn the violence. But public relations has been lacklustre and the messages delivered are sometimes too ambivalent so failing to connect with the public

Only this morning, I joined the Imam of a large mosque in Manchester, for a live broadcast on national radio. As angry callers made accusations of mosques and schools preaching hatred, this gently spoken religious leader, promised he "categorically knew of no hate preaching in any mosques" and reaffirmed that Islam was a religion of love and cohesion. What's more he declared his pride in being British and expressed a desire to push out messages of warmth and unity.

It was clearly a warm and heartfelt sentiment. Yet though there are other voices like his, they aren't loud enough to quieten the knee jerk response of a weary public who watch in horror as innocent young lives are slaughtered on the alter of extremism.

But it can be done.

Only last year, more than 30,000 members of the Ahmadiyya Islamic movement met in Hampshire for a three-day convention where they rejected extremism and violence of terror groups such as Isis.

The movement was founded in India in 1889 with a strong emphasis of peace over violence and tolerance over extremism. And on the final day of the convention, attendees were led by the movement's global Caliph in a vow of peace and a pledge of allegiance to their home countries

Of course many Muslims have come out to condemn the terror attack in Manchester Arena. They joined the thousands of people who gathered at a vigil in Albert Square, and were part of the city's spirited response as taxi drivers turned off their meters and locals offered up rooms for free. But there needs to be that singular voice too.

It will not only be a victory for terrorism but an extraordinary irony if the hatred spewed by extremists triggers an exponential rise in hatred towards Islam.

So I hope that the Muslim community will consider the banners, the stickers, the poster campaigns and sound bites.

As my badge says, I love Manchester. How wonderful if Muslim leaders could seize an opportunity to remind the world how much they love to love too.

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