Mosques and hotels hosting asylum seekers targeted, shops looted, police officers attacked, insults and racist attacks in the street… Around twenty cities in the United Kingdom have experienced riots and racist violence over the past week, according to a count by the British daily. I published Wednesday August 7More than 400 people have been arrested and 120 have already been charged, according to the prosecutor’s office.
At the origin of this conflagration: the circulation of false information about the profile of the suspect in a knife attack in Southport (northern England), which occurred on July 29, which led to the death of three young girls. The 17-year-old, born in Cardiff to parents of Rwandan origin, was falsely presented on social networks as a Muslim asylum seeker. Despite the police denial, violence has since shaken the country.
The Southport mosque was stormed by around 300 people who shouted racist abuse, burned barriers and threw objects at the building. “It was absolutely scary”reported to the Emirati daily The National the president of the establishment, Ibrahim Hussein, who was among eight people in the building. “They tried to destroy the mosque and if they did not succeed, it is only because the police formed a barrier to protect us. Everyone is upset.”
“We had to close the mosques on Friday nights and stop our activities, because we didn’t want our elders to be put in danger”Zaf Iqbal, co-chair of the Sunderland Interfaith Forum in the north-east, whose mosque was also attacked, told the BBC. In London, many shops also closed early on Wednesday, fearing further violence, the media outlet reported. The StandardSeveral asylum seekers’ lawyers and migrant support groups have had to stop their activities due to the threats, he added. The National.
Earlier this week, the Labour government announced that a “army” A reserve force of 6,000 police officers specialising in maintaining order would be set up, and 567 prison places would be available to incarcerate perpetrators of violence. “I will not hesitate to call things by their name: these are extreme right-wing brutalities,” denounced the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer. Without succeeding in reassuring a large section of the population. Many racialized or Muslim Britons, but also asylum seekers and the associations that support them, continue to be afraid of being attacked.
Some have implemented daily protection strategies. “I avoid going out of my area, and I try not to venture out alone too often. It’s frustrating to be afraid, to wonder if the people around me could have gone to the riots.”Tionne Alliyah Parris, a doctoral student in history, of mixed Scottish and black African race, who lives in the south of England, confides to franceinfo. “A friend wanted to organize a hike and we told her to wait a few weeks because we didn’t want to be alone in the wilderness.adds Jamila Kossar, a teacher and veiled Muslim woman in Manchester, to the local daily Manchester Evening News. No matter how brave you are, you don’t want to be alone. It makes you anxious and makes you think twice about your current plans..”
“I am constantly checking in on friends and family members who may be targeted. I fear for the safety of my loved ones. The psychological impact of these riots is already profound.”
Tionne Alliyah Parris, British, mixed-race, black and Scottishto franceinfo
When these people targeted by the extreme right go out into the street, they demonstrate constant vigilance. “Absolute necessity was the only reason I went into town. I took an Uber so I wouldn’t have to park and walk a long distance. I was constantly looking around to make sure there were no unexpected attacks.”another Manchester resident, who also wears the headscarf, also told the daily.
“When I go out, I am very careful. People can judge me because of my skin color and my religion”also worries Azaan, a 13-year-old Muslim boy from Swansea, Wales, to the BBC. Although no riots have broken out in the country in the southwest of Britain, the revelation of the identity of the suspect in the Southport shootings, originally from Cardiff, has led to a feeling of stigma among Welsh Muslims. “It’s really terrible. You can’t judge a whole community based on one person.”laments Nada, 17, in the same article.
This fear affects racialized people, regardless of their status. “I am as Scottish as can be. But to be honest, I don’t know if my future, that of my wife and my three children will be played out here in Scotland.”former Scottish First Minister Humza Yousaf also said in an interview with The Agent News podcast. On the weekend of August 3, riots also broke out in Belfast, Northern Ireland, with protesters targeting businesses owned by people perceived to be foreigners, the BBC reports. “We are now witnessing the culmination of decades of normalization of anti-migrant and anti-Muslim rhetoric.”added the former Prime Minister.
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Like him, many observers highlight the role of political leaders in the current situation, especially those of the Conservative Party. The Tories governed Great Britain for 14 years, before being soundly defeated in the last general election, on July 4. “Interior Secretary Suella Braverman has stoked anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim fears”illustrates to franceinfo Alan Lester, professor at the University of Sussex, specialist in the British Empire. “She called the anti-war protests in Gaza ‘hate protests’ and compared their participants to rioters, even though most were peaceful.”continues the academic.
“The culture war that divides the country, and targets migrants and Muslims, has been at the heart of the Tories’ post-Brexit policies, creating the fractures that neo-fascists are now exploiting.”
Alan Lester, professor at the University of Sussexto franceinfo
Nazek Ramadan, director of the Migrant Voice association, which supports refugees, has also noticed this. He would have liked “to be surprised” by these riots, but for him they are only the result of the political climate of recent years. He remembers in particular “the horrible” slogan repeated by the last conservative government, calling for “stop the boats” (“Stop the boats”) and remarks “dehumanizing” permanent relations with refugees. These same slogans have been chanted by protesters in recent days. “D“People who came here seeking safety after experiencing war and persecution,” are now found “in the midst of the horrors they thought they had escaped,” Nazek Ramadan laments.
The responsibility of the media is also called into question.The tabloids have been constantly running headlines in recent years about the fact that there are fewer white Britons in the UK,” observes Maud Michaud, lecturer in British civilization at the University of Le Mans, on franceinfo. On social networks, a compilation of front pages of Daily Mail testifies to the newspaper’s strong anti-migrant rhetoric. “They have helped to generate this wave of resentment and hatred towards asylum seekers and Muslims, with a constant stream of articles about the ‘problems’ they supposedly cause.”adds Alan Lester.
Despite this extremely violent atmosphere, scenes of solidarity were observed in several cities in England. In Liverpool, on the evening of August 2, many residents came to protect the Abdullah Quilliam Mosque, after rumors circulated about a possible action against the building. “I am here in solidarity with another community, who are my neighbors”Daniel told AFP. In London, Wymouth, Birmingham, Oxford and Middlesbrough, anti-racist rallies also took place to counter the far-right rioters.
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“There are excellent anti-racist initiatives, often organized by young people on social networks”rejoices Waqas Tufail, a British Muslim of Pakistani origin, to franceinfo. “We need to put in place mass mobilizations, especially within our communities to counter the extreme right.” In a statement, Amnesty International UK called on the British government to tackle the “root causes of racism”. “It doesn’t matter how long people have lived in the UK, it doesn’t matter what country they come from or what colour their skin is. Everyone has the right to live in safety,” insists Ilyas Nagdee, director of advocacy for racial justice within the NGO, to franceinfo.
Immigration is the main challenge facing the country for 51% of respondents, a level not seen in nearly a decade, according to a YouGov poll released Wednesday. Despite a strong police response and initial convictions, British authorities fear further outbreaks of violence called for by the far right over the weekend.