Lancashire student sets up platform for victims of terror

A survivor of the Westminster Bridge attack has launched a platform featuring the voices of terror victims in the hope that it can "stop even one person from being radicalised".

Travis Frain, 23, started the Resilience in Unity Project while working from home during the coronavirus lockdowns.

As part of the project he has launched a platform that hosts the testimonies of more than 30 survivors of terror attacks from 15 different countries.

The platform will also contain an interactive mapping tool exhibiting survivors' testimonies for use in educational settings as well as in combating radicalisation.

The PhD student from Lancashire told the PA news agency that if even one person at risk of radicalisation views the testimonies and re-engages with local authorities as a result then it "will still have been worthwhile".

"If there is only one person who views this website and that one person is at risk of being radicalised - of going down that path towards committing an attack - and that person reconsiders or decides to re-engage with safeguarding and with local authorities, if all of our life stories are only viewed by that one person it will still have been worthwhile," he said.

Mr Frain added that stopping that one person would make a "huge difference" to hundreds of lives.

"Even just stopping one person from being radicalised, stopping one attack from happening, will make a massive difference to hundreds of lives," he said.

"We too often forget the community impact that terrorism has, in dividing and reaching out along generations and networks of family members, in addition to the geographical spread."

Mr Frain was just 19 when he was injured in the Westminster Bridge attack on March 22 2017.

He was in London on a university trip to visit the Houses of Parliament when he was struck by a car driven by Khalid Masood.

His leg was broken in the incident, but he has since recovered.

"I was down in London, I was only 19 at the time, and I was on a university trip," Mr Frain said.

"I was quite badly injured as were several other members of the public."

Masood, 52, was shot dead by police after he drove a rental car into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge before fatally stabbing Pc Keith Palmer, 48, in the Palace of Westminster's forecourt.

US tourist Kurt Cochran, Romanian tourist Andreea Cristea and Britons Aysha Frade and Leslie Rhodes were killed.

Despite his injuries, Mr Frain considers himself to be "incredibly lucky" to have survived.

"We were all incredibly lucky that we all survived," he said.

"That has really led me to where I am today."

Initially, Mr Frain said he did not want to feel like the attack had changed who he was or what his goals were.

However, as time passed, he said he decided that he needed to play his part in preventing future attacks from occurring.

"For a long time I didn't want to feel like being involved in the attack had changed me or changed my focus," Mr Frain said.

"But I think, having been through this, I was keen to feel like I had done my part to prevent other attacks in future and to improve things for people who come after me.

"The sad fact is that terrorism won't be going away any time soon, and there will be future attacks."

He also hopes that the project can help build resilience and unity for the public in the event of another terror attack.

"In my mind it's important that we build that resilience before an attack occurs," Mr Frain said.

"That we are ensuring that the country is resilient and unified and that it has the right support in place for these people before it's even needed, because that's the way we bounce back from these issues."

The platform was launched at an event in the City of London attended by 200 people, with more than 50 survivors present.