Gloucester residents say anti-weapon bee sculpture is 'thought-provoking'

A giant bee sculpture made out of weapons seized off the streets is "thought-provoking", local residents have said.

The anti-violence sculpture, made by the creators of the Knife Angel, landed in Kings Square in Gloucester earlier.

Tina Perry, a street pastor in Gloucester, said the sculpture has initiated "a couple of conversations already".

It will also stop at Gloucester Cathedral, where visitors will also be able to take part in free bee-themed craft activities.

Commissioned by Greater Manchester Police, the bee is made from thousands of knives and firearms collected by amnesty banks in Manchester and is inspired by the city's worker bee symbol.

Ms Perry said: "What it does is open up a dialogue about things like this, so it's not natural, so it's not normal, so it's not the done thing.

"Something like this really does make people think."

She added that through her work as a street pastor, she has discovered that some young people carry weapons because it makes them feel "safer".

But she said through conversations the street pastors try to encourage people to "make good choices".

Meanwhile, Riley Stevens said while the sculpture looks "brilliant", the meaning of it may be lost on younger children.

He said: "It's a hard one because no matter how many knives and guns you take off the streets it doesn't' seem to have any kind of effect.

"I think kids would just look at this and think 'oh yeah, it's cool'. It's glorifying crime."

Canon Rebecca Lloyd, from Gloucester Cathedral, reflected on the legacy of the Knife Angel, a year on from its visit to the place of worship, with the Bee acting as a follow up.

"We had 140,000 visitors in one month for the Knife Angel last year, so we reached a lot of people," she said.

"The bee is only here for the public viewing for three days but we're hoping to have a deeper, more intentional conversation with a smaller group of people."

The bee will tour colleges and schools, with the Canon helping to run anti-violence workshops with the hope of "engaging deeply with young people around issues of violence and speaking up against crime".

Michelle Polkinghorne said she hopes the bee sculpture will help people "realise what guns and knives can do".

"When I'm walking on my own, you never know who is going to come up to you," she said.

"Especially in the early hours of the morning when I'm walking to meet my friends at McDonald's, I'm always looking behind me to see who is there because I'm petrified to walk the streets, if I'm honest."

Beth Simpson, the Gloucestershire regional manager of Crimestoppers, is encouraging young people to get in touch with the charity if they know someone who is planning an act of violence or carrying a weapon.

Crimestoppers enables people to report crimes anonymously, and does not ask for people's names or track their IP address, meaning they cannot be traced.

"Young people are often afraid that they'll be called a snitch and they don't necessarily understand the difference between snitching and reporting," she said.

"We just want to reassure them that there is a way to take responsibility with information that they might have.

"If they know someone who is carrying a weapon or they have a friend who is planning violence of some sort, there is an avenue to speak up anonymously through Crimestoppers or fearless.org."

The bee is currently visiting Kings Square alongside the Music Works Bus and the Malevolence exhibition. It will then head on to Gloucester Cathedral.

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