29 June 2016
In the aftermath of a vitriolic referendum campaign in which sections of both sides used dehumanising language about refugees, and migrants became the number one scapegoat for falls in living standards, we are now witnessing a horrific increase in violent hate crimes. Reports of attacks are still coming in by the minute, below is a summary of some of the incidents reported so far.
Hate crimes post EU referendum
1. Reports of hate crime have risen 57 per cent in the aftermath of the EU referendum vote, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council.There were 85 reports of hate crimes to True Vision, a police-funded reporting website, between Thursday and Sunday compared with 54 reports over the same period four weeks ago.
2. The Muslim Council of Britain has compiled over 100 hate incidents that has taken place since the results of the European Referendum were announced on Friday 24 June 2016.
http://www.mcb.org.uk/post-referendum-hate-crimes/
3. The Polish embassy received numerous reports of hate crimes against Polish communities and issued the following statement:
“We are shocked and deeply concerned by the recent incidents of xenophobic abuse directed against the Polish community and other UK residents of migrant heritage.
“The Polish Embassy is in contact with relevant institutions, and local police and already investigating the two most widely reported cases in Hammersmith, London, and Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire.”
“We call on all Polish nationals who fall victim of xenophobic abuse and non all witnesses to report such incidents to local authorities.”
4. Stand up to Racism has received information from African Caribbean people receiving abuse post the EU referendum, such as people being told to leave the country on Friday morning.
5. Notable incidents include:
a) Petrol bomb attack at Kasmir Meat & Poultry in Pleck, Walsall on Monday 27 June 2016. This incident took place yards away from the attack on a Mosque in 2013 by Pavlo Lapshyn the person cherged with the murder of Mohammed Saleem. (Links below include useful footage)
https://www.facebook.com/muslimworldjournal/videos/1142664029133438/
http://www.birminghammail.co.uk/news/midlands-news/molotov-cocktail-thrown-halal-butchers-11535781
b) Abusive graffiti on the Polish Social and Cultural (POSK) centre in Ravenscourt Park, London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.
c) Cambridgeshire Police is investigating hateful notes which were posted through letterboxes of Polish residents in the UK. Police say the leaflets, which read “Leave the EU. No more Polish vermin” were found in Huntingdon on Friday 24 June.
The laminated leaflets, printed in both Polish and English, were posted through letterboxes as well as left on car windows near a school, according to the Hunts Post. (Link below includes pictures of the laminated leaflets)
Anti-Muslim hate crimes in 2015 – before the EU referendum
Incidents of anti-Muslim abuse and attacks in public areas rose by 326% in 2015, with women disproportionately targeted by mostly teenage perpetrators, according to a new report from the monitoring group Tell MAMA.
The vast majority of society, whether we voted to leave or remain in the EU, must unite against racist violence, call on the media and politicians to stop stoking the flames of hatred immediately, and for those guilty of inciting racial hatred to be prosecuted.
Now more than ever, we must stand up to racism.
