Joint statement on racist riots
As organisations working in Greater Manchester, after more than a week of shocking far-right violence, we want to state our support for and solidarity with communities who are under attack. People seeking asylum, Muslims, and Black and brown people are being targeted in their homes, businesses, workplaces and places of worship. We utterly condemn the rioting, violence and hate crimes seen across the UK. It should be named for what it is: racism and Islamophobia.
We must be clear that this is the culmination of years of government policy and rhetoric. A programme of anti-refugee legislation has combined with inflammatory, dehumanising language to embolden the far right. People arriving in the UK to claim asylum want only what we all want: a safe and secure place to call home; to be with family; to be allowed to work and settle in communities. Instead they have been under attack, both from the far right but also from the state that should be protecting them.
The Home Office have failed or refused to make decisions on thousands of asylum claims, and as a result the people waiting have no choice but to live indefinitely in Home Office accommodation. Often this is in hotels – with inadequate support and inedible food – which are hyper-visible targets of far-right action. Phrases like “stop the boats” were used by several political parties, including both major parties, in the 2024 election campaigns –the same language now used by the far-right rioters. Previous government ministers wrongly claimed that people arriving by small boat did not have legitimate asylum claims – and that disinformation spread. Instead of taking responsibility for the dysfunction of the asylum system, the previous government blamed their own failures on people seeking safety. They were warned time and time again that they were putting people at risk, creating the conditions for the violence we saw over the weekend.
For people who are feeling unsafe, scared or have experienced a racist or violent incident:
There are many organisations and individuals who are available to support you. Anti-racist counter-protesters have filled the streets, far outnumbering the far right, and communities have rallied together in the wake of riots to clean up the streets and support their neighbours. The people rioting and attacking are a minority – a very dangerous and noisy minority, but a minority nonetheless, that is overwhelmingly rejected by our communities.
If you are a GMIAU client, you can get in touch with your solicitor or caseworker to talk about any worries you have.
In an emergency or if you are in danger, call 999.
If someone confronts or threatens you, report it. To report a hate crime, call 101 or textphone 18001 101.
What needs to happen next
People under attack, in asylum hotels or elsewhere, must know that we stand alongside them in solidarity and hope.
The police, Serco and other asylum accommodation providers, and the Home Office must do everything they can to keep people safe in this moment.
People must not be evicted from Home Office accommodation into homelessness, especially at a time when heightened visibility on the streets puts them in danger.
In-person reporting conditions should be suspended.
The new government must, as soon as practically possible, end the use of asylum hotels, which make people unsafe, isolate them from community and create targets for the far right. People should be able to live in homes, not hotels or other forms of institutional accommodation.
More broadly the new government must end the immigration policies that create division and demonise people seeking safety. Politicians of all stripes must take accountability for their role in normalising the racist and dehumanising rhetoric that underpins this violence. A total change of approach is needed – one which puts people’s humanity first and unites our communities around shared values of compassion and solidarity.
Signed
Asylum Matters
Boaz Trust
Booth Centre
Caritas Shrewsbury
Greater Manchester Immigration Aid Unit
Greater Manchester Law Centre
Greater Manchester Tenants Union
Macc
Manchester City of Sanctuary
Manchester Refugee Support Network
Migrant Destitution Fund
Refugee Action
Revive UK
Right to Remain
These Walls Must Fall
Women Asylum Seekers Together
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