Sydney shows its heart to the world with a #illridewithyou after Lindt cafe siege |  The Courier-MailSydney shows its heart to the world with a #illridewithyou after Lindt cafe siege |  The Courier-Mail



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						Sydney shows its heart to the world with a #illridewithyou after Lindt cafe siege
				





by:
Staff reporters 


From:

	        NewsLocal
							


December 16, 2014
3:36PM






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Twitter has been buzzing with #illridewithyou, with more than 350,000 tweets by Tuesday morning. Picture: Twitter
Source: Supplied
 

 
 



				It’s been labelled the most powerful hashtag of the year and revealed Sydney’s heart of gold.
				



Trending worldwide since Monday night, #illridewithyou continues to reverberate around the world  in the wake of the Martin Place siege.Started with a tweet by @sirtessa, the simple, spontaneous act of solidarity with Australian Muslims has become a global social media phenomenon, proving that those who stand united can find hope in adversity.







The campaign has gone beyond Sydney, as this sign at Gosford Anglican Church shows. Picture: Twitter
Source: Supplied











Ahmad Malas catching a train with his sister Ezdihar from Lakemba to Sydney’s CBD as part of #illridewithyou. Picture: Mohamed Taha/Twitter
Source: Supplied











@vanbadham posted this Tweet; ‘#illridewithyou because together the journey is more fun. That, friends, is our victory: one haters will never know’. Picture: Twitter/@vanbadham
Source: Supplied




Eastern suburbs woman Tessa Kum started the hashtag about 4.30pm on Monday, offering support to fellow travellers on the 373 bus from Coogee:
		
		  
	“If you reg take the #373 bus b/w Coogee/MartinPl, wear religious attire, & don’t feel safe alone: I’ll ride with you. @ me for schedule.”Ms Kum told ABC radio it was an act of compassion: “I sort of saw another tweet online indicating another woman’s act of kindness and I simply felt that there needed to be more of that in the world.“She’d done a very simple thing — she had seen a distressed Muslim woman on a train take off her hijab and had approached that woman at the train station and simply said, “Put it back on, I’ll walk with you”. That broke my heart a little bit.”







On Monday night, the hashtag was trending worldwide. Picture: Twitter
Source: Supplied




After tweeting the hashtag #Illridewithyou, the concept quickly took off.From riding the bus or train, offering a seat in the car, cycling together and even walking to work, the offers came thick and fast as Australians reached out to Muslims fearful of reprisal attacks after the siege.Strangers began publishing their travel timetables, attached stickers to their bags and posted images of themselves so they would be easy to identify to travellers in need.Following @sirtessa's example, #426/425 bus 2 Burwood, If u wear religious attire, & don’t feel safe alone: I’ll ride with you. @ 6:30 ish.— Hannah Groff (@PalindromicGirl) December 15, 2014 
And if you want to be an ally, tweet your bus, train or ferry to #illridewithyou. If you don't match up, keep an eye out.— Amy Gray (@_AmyGray_) December 15, 2014 
By Monday night it was the number one Twitter topic trending worldwide. At 3.45pm on Tuesday, it was still in the top five and rising again.NORTHERN BEACHES COMMUTERS EMBRACE #ILLRIDEWITHYOUGUNMAN AMONG THREE DEAD AS SIEGE BROUGHT TO A ENDISLAMIC LEADERS CALL FOR CALM AND SOLIDARITYKamal Saleh, a university student from Punchbowl, said it was phenomenal seeing Australians supporting each other.“It is a reflection of the true Australian values of respect, tolerance and helping each other,” he said.“I have a lot of friends who have been helped into taxis or trains and the like so it is good to see that people are acting on this hashtag.”







Kamal Saleh says Australians are more tolerant than people think.
Source: News Corp Australia












Commuting on the 373 bus from Coogee, Fiona Newton was evacuated from her Martin Place office during the siege on Monday. Picture: John Appleyard
Source: News Corp Australia











Graeme Innes posts a picture with his #illridewithyou sticker on a backpack, ready for his Tuesday commute. Picture: Twitter/@Graemeinnes
Source: Supplied




Passengers on the 373 bus today said they were encouraged by the campaign.Fiona Newton, who watched SWAT teams surround the Lindt cafe from her Martin Place office, said the ordeal had been traumatic.“I think it really became horrifying when you see the actual windows and hostages with their hands up it struck me it was much more than we anticipated.”No matter your beliefs, culture or heritage, Western Sydney always rides with you #illridewithyou pic.twitter.com/qSGPEAkjI2— WS Wanderers FC (@wswanderersfc) December 16, 2014

many tourists among the shaken sydneysiders also leaving tributes. #illridewithyou pic.twitter.com/YuVBG72CSo— Patty Huntington (@pattyhuntington) December 16, 2014

She said she was saddened by the loss of life but encouraged by the inspiring acts of her  community.“One of the first things I did see was the #Illridewithyou campaign and I just think it is really amazing that Australian people have done,” she said.“It is really about being educated and having perspective, I mean, ISIS is a very small percentage of people and people misconstrue that with all Muslims. That is what I think the campaign is generally about, creating that comfort and security and awareness for them.”Thanks for the big love. It wasn't asked for but thank you. A little bit of love, goes a long way. We want peace. #illridewithyou  Always.— Mohammed Ansar (@MoAnsar) December 15, 2014 
Australians Reveal Themselves To Be A Class Act, Even In The Face Of Tragedy. #illridewithyou http://t.co/zDwbVIvR0y— Loo (@papiloo31) December 16, 2014

I'm getting emails from American work contacts thanking Australians for #illridewithyou campaign. Widespread knowledge of it— ALDI BIMANTARA'S (@Journaldi) December 16, 2014

The power of social media...#IllRideWithYou. Australia, you guys are awesome.— Noor Tagouri (@NTagouri) December 16, 2014

Thanks @missy_fay on Instagram for this photo. #nowordsneeded #Sydney #MartinPlace #lindtcafe #illridewithyou pic.twitter.com/zLGgIqpoRm— NSW Police (@nswpolice) December 16, 2014

Community leader and Belmore GP Jamal Rifi said the movement showed Australians would stand against bigotry and racism.“I feel with #illridewithyou they have been empowered not to let fear into their movement and they have been humbled by the fact that ordinary Australians are putting their hands up to ride with Muslim girls and ladies to prevent any thugs and racist people from affecting those social cohesions,” he said.“I felt that it impacted very well on their emotions, their well being, and strengthens the glue that binds our society together.”So far, the sentiment has been strong — but is there substance among all this “viral empathy”.If you have an #illridewithyou story,share below, or email your photos to sean.thompson@news.com.au.






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