The east London gym fighting gang violence: 'Death and trauma shouldn't be normality'

Raheel Butt is building The Compound street gym in Newham, east London, an area he calls a “war zone”. After a number of young people lost their lives in the borough, which has been badly affected by postcode gang wars, he’s giving out free memberships to those caught up in serious violence. He has big plans for the gym to be a safe space where young people can rehabilitate and focus on improving their physical and mental health. The Guardian follows Raheel as he mentors the next generation and works with activists from around London to reduce the number of knives on the capital’s streets. Subscribe to The Guardian on YouTube ► https://ift.tt/16bR3Lu The Guardian publishes independent journalism, made possible by supporters. Contribute to The Guardian today ► https://bit.ly/3biVfwh Website ► https://ift.tt/1AFLGzy Facebook ► https://ift.tt/RENIv3 Twitter ► https://twitter.com/guardian Instagram ► https://ift.tt/2NMuUyt