English town of Southport mourns 9-year-old stabbing victim and calls for an end to unrest

LONDON (AP) — The people of Southport, England, came together Sunday for the first of the funerals for three girls killed during a dance class, remembering 9-year-old Alice da Silva Aguiar’s radiant smile and calling for an end to the unrest that has convulsed Britain since the attack two weeks ago.

Hundreds of mourners packed St. Patrick’s Catholic Church and spilled into the street outside, which had been decorated with pink ribbons and balloons in Alice’s honor. Chief Constable Serena Kennedy was among them and she delivered the parents’ message that no one should commit acts of violence in their daughter’s name.

“I am ashamed and I’m so sorry that you had to even consider this in the planning of the funeral of your beautiful daughter, Alice,” said Kennedy, who heads the Merseyside Police force, which covers the area around Liverpool. “And I hope that anyone who has taken part in the violent disorder on our streets over the past 13 days is hanging their head in shame at the pain that they have caused you, a grieving family.”

Far-right activists have used misinformation about the attack at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class that killed Alice as a pretext for anti-immigrant demonstrations. They descended into riots and looting as mobs attacked mosques, shops owned by immigrants and hotels housing asylum-seekers. The disturbances have been fueled by social media users who spread misinformation about the suspect in the July 29 stabbing rampage.

Rumors, later debunked, quickly circulated online that the suspect was an asylum-seeker, or a Muslim immigrant. The suspect was born in Wales and moved to the Southport area in 2013. His parents were originally from Rwanda.

The violence calmed on Wednesday when far-right demonstrations anticipated in dozens of locations across Britain failed to materialize. Instead, peaceful anti-racism protesters showed up in force.

But on Sunday, the focus was on Alice.

Her parents, Sergio and Alexandra, described Alice as a “perfect dream child” who loved animals and moved through the world with confidence and empathy.

“We feel shocked, unimaginable pain, we miss you,’’ they said in a tribute read on their behalf. “From time to time, the pin drops. When mommy says ‘Good night, Sergio, good night Alice,’ and then it hits us all over again. We don’t hear you back.’’

Jinnie Payne, the headteacher at Churchtown Primary School, remembered that Alice once decorated a teacher’s classroom pointer as a magic wand and outlined the seven “Alice qualities” that she wished every student had.

Those included having a big smile, a genuine interest in others and treating everyone equally.

“This has to be my favorite, how a child at such a young age could not favor one friend over another,” she told the congregation. “Friends, she played equally with them all. That is so hard to do, and she mastered it.”

But she also loved to dance.

On Sunday, her parents released a photo of Alice standing next to a cardboard cutout of Swift as she waited for her last dance class to begin.

“The time has come to say ‘there goes Alice,’” Payne said tearfully. “We are letting you go dancing now, Alice. Teach those angels a few dance moves.”

Danica Kirka, The Associated Press