The corner where Granby Street meets Princes Road seems like an unlikely meeting place - but a smattering of life walks the Toxteth pavements on a Thursday evening.
A man sits on a crumbled wall smoking a cigarette, watching every car crawl past in the nearby rush hour traffic. A dad walks with his three children, carrying the youngest. A woman emerges from neighbouring Ducie Street where she's been cleaning away rubbish. All stop each other and exchange brief but warm words before carrying on with their plans.
On neighbouring Mulgrave Street it's also quiet. The Al-Rahma Mosque is near empty apart from several people busying themselves making funeral arrangements. A mum walks past with several children, keeping them close before ushering them up the pathway and into a new-build terrace.
READ MORE: Merseyside Police say armed stop of innocent young black men was 'justified'
There are hardly any other children out playing on the street, despite it being two hours since the end of school. And from the people who stop and speak with the ECHO , it's clear to see why. Nearly four weeks on the talk of the area is still heavily focused on the events that devastated the Mulgrave Street community.
On Monday, June 27 at around 9.30pm video footage widely circulated showed two young men being stopped in the street, with officers aiming assault rifles at them. Merseyside Police said officers were responding to reports a man had been seen carrying a gun in the nearby area and one of the men matched a description they had been given.
The shaken young men were seen holding both hands up as the police guns remained pointed at them. Nothing was found on either of the men and no further action was taken. The force later insisted the armed stop search was "justified and appropriate".
Hamed Farah is trustee for the Somali community in Toxteth. The 59-year-old, wearing a shirt and rain jacket, tells the ECHO : "Everyone is sad and angry about it. It's been on people's minds since it happened. The boys were absolutely terrified. Thy were just walking to the Mosque minding their own business.
"It was pure coincidence they were there at the time. One of the boys has been stopped maybe three times for fitting a description. It was a horrible experience - they are mentally scared. There wasn't an apology or an acknowledgement of an error. It's been upsetting because they are good boys."
One of the men who was stopped was Mohammed, a 23-year-old in his final year as a business design and management student at Liverpool Hope University. Speaking to the ECHO following the stop search, Mohammed said: "We were on our way to the mosque, and they stopped us with their guns up.
"You don't have any feelings, you just do what they say. I said to them 'I have got nothing on me'. They searched me and told me they were looking for someone who matched my description. I told them I wanted their names and badge numbers."
Following the incident, Kim Johnson, Riverside MP and Liverpool's first black representative in Parliament, branded Merseyside Police "institutionally racist". Ms Johnson said: "Seeing the video of last night's stop on Mulgrave Street, I thought I was witnessing an incident on the streets of America, not Liverpool. The firearms teams, the handcuffing of two young black men who were innocent of any offence.
"Yet another time when 'you matched the description' was used by the police to intimidate and harass black men for being black; yet another time Merseyside police has left young black people scared and traumatised. This is why I say they are institutionally racist and it is this profiling and scapegoating that needs to change, and change now."
In response to Ms Johnson, Merseyside Police said having viewed the body worn footage and given the information received from the public it believed the stop search was "justified and appropriate". The following day, Superintendent Diane Pownall said: "We understand the footage of armed officers stopping men on the street can look quite intimidating, but where we have reports of people armed with guns the safety of the public is our paramount concern.
"I have been in touch with our local councillors and Kim Johnson, MP, who have raised concerns about the armed stop and have invited them to a meeting with myself and area Inspector Dave Uren, so that we can explain what the officers were responding to and why the approach they took was required, whilst at the same time listen to their concerns."
Mo Elmi, a 26-year-old community associate who works closely with a number of communities in the L8 area, walks the streets of Toxteth with the ECHO. Like Ms Johnson, he's angry at the actions of the police and says the scenes on Mulgrave Street reminded him more of America.
"This area has gone through a huge amount of history with the police," he says. "It's disgraceful and I don't think it would happen in any other area. For a moment that was a snapshot of America - that's how the community saw it.
"It's been a massive topic of conversation in the community but there's no point having the conversation if there isn't a solution. We weren't pleased to see Kim Johnson say the police were institutionally racist because that shouldn't be something we should be happy about. But the acknowledgement is the truth. What Kim is doing for the area has been amazing. She spoke for the area."
Isabel O'Rourke is a community artist who first moved to Liverpool in 1989 as a student. She speaks to the ECHO sat in front of a mural painted by herself on Ducie Street. The mural shows a number of people, all different races, stood together with 'Toxteth revival team' written next to it.
"What's happening here?," she asks. "Why has this happy, harmonious community got nothing left? Our community has been broken down and incidents like this are at the root of it.
"Quite a lot of people were saying to ignore it and rise above it. To me everything has become politicised and in fact what you've got is people just trying to live."
Nearby, a white-bearded man smokes while sitting on a wall. He introduces himself as 'Jah man' - a name he goes by around the L8 community. The 62-year-old has lived in Toxteth his whole life and like Isabel, points to a break down in community.
"There's not too much community left here because it's been broken down over the years," he explains. "I wasn't here when the armed police came so I didn't witness it. But you don't like to see things like that in your community.
"I try and keep myself to myself but it's been talked about in the community. This is bad behaviour - but it's serious and something that people are worried about every day."
Everyone explains the most important thing for the community would be for there to be clear conversations with Merseyside Police. Following the incident, Lucille Harvey, councillor for Princes Park, said "police need the trust and confidence of the communities they serve". Cllr Harvey added she and Cllr Tomas Logan had requested a Merseyside Police community meeting where officers could "address the widespread concerns and questions". Cllr Harvey confirmed to the ECHO she met two days after the incident with the police but was waiting for the community meeting.
Following the incident, Superintendent Pownall said: "The force is committed to ensuring that officers are professional and ethical when carrying out stop searches and take the time to explain to those they are searching why it is being done and what their rights are. The force abides by national guidelines and procedures in relation to stop and search and has an established force legitimacy team which has been pivotal in creating the independent public scrutiny panels (made up of members from our communities) for stop and search and use of force.
"These panels have been vital in helping us understand the impact of police use of powers on members of the public. The team uses the feedback to inform and develop organisational learning and to improve the quality of policing in our communities. They have also developed stop search cards, which allow members of the community to understand the law and know their rights in relation to stop and search. The force is committed to being open and transparent and has published its stop and search data on the Merseyside Police website to ensure transparency and to increase trust and confidence.
“We have embedded greater scrutiny of stop and search and use of force with members of the public involved, looking at body worn video of stop and searches conducted by our officers and providing feedback – positive and negative. Any learning for the organisation and positive feedback that should be reinforced is captured and shared.”
A police spokesperson later said they had received two formal complaints relating to the stop search. They added: "We are liaising with the complainant and will update them on the progress of the investigation into their complaint. It would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage."
Walking on the bright, graffitied Granby Street, Mo calls for more conversation regarding the matter, he said: "One thing we have always called for is clear conversation with the force.
"We need to see them more around the community. We don't want lip service - we want action."
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