Not long after a tragic knife attack resulted in the deaths of three young girls in South Port, the entire Britain came to terms with a wave of violent disorder.
There was nothing new in the bombardment of false information on social media platforms, prompting far-right activists to stir to action against the groups they’ve always viewed through prejudice-tainted glasses–people of colour, Muslims and asylum seekers. Throughout last week, charged mobs rampaged through otherwise peaceful localities on a reckless hunt for any properties owned by immigrants, especially mosques and migrant facilities. That there were just as many who headed to streets to register their protests in retaliation, holding banners to denounce the far-right violence, cannot be denied, but the palpable tension, frantic phone calls and more and more immigrants reporting an unsettling realisation about being afraid in a place they call home all point towards the British leadership playing a perilous game. Though restive for now, the violence forced many Muslims to avoid public places out of concern for their safety.
On one end, the new boss, Keir Starmer, rose to replace the right, deploying police forces, reviewing social media laws and pledging not to let the guard down amidst the first formidable challenge to his authority. On the other, he, or no one for that matter, is in a position to change the collective mindset when it comes to “guarding borders” or “stopping small boats.” This widespread anxiety about asylum-seekers in one of the most economically turbulent periods the country has ever seen has reduced the dynamic to an explosive situation, forever ready for a tiny spark.
Parliamentarian Robert Jenrick’s demand for an immediate arrest of whoever chants “Allahu Akbar” (God is Great) was rightly condemned by his colleagues and civil society as a naked manifestation of Islamophobia. However, dig a little deeper, and one may find many politicians using a trimmed-down version of the same sentiment (increased policing, heightened vigilance and selective scapegoating) during election campaigns. Great Britain might soon realise that it cannot sweet-talk its way out of one of the worst race riots since the 2001 tensions. *