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Religious hate crimes are on the rise in the UK. The most recent figures show that the overall number of hate crimes reported in England and Wales dropped by 5 percent in the year to last March. However, religious hate crimes leapt by a massive 25 percent.
The worst-hit by religious hate crimes were Jews — who were the victims in 33 percent of cases — and, yup, you guessed it, Muslims, who suffered the most at 38 percent. And last summer’s violent race riots, which were not included in these figures, will probably push the government statistics through the roof.
Peter Hopkins, professor of social geography at Newcastle University, wrote an article for The Conversation website last October, in which he stated that Islamophobic hatred was being fueled by a “prevalence of organizations and individuals, including media outlets, online influencers, far-right think tanks and political figures who promote anti-Muslim messaging and hatred.”
Hopkins also identifies the rise of right-wing politics around the world, but adds that none of this is helped by the “supposedly centrist politicians” who, he says, spread narratives that contribute to Islamophobia and racism. He cites the example of former UK Prime Minister David Cameron, who in 2011 “decried the failure of multiculturalism and this message was repeated by Suella Braverman when she was home secretary.” He said such language “perpetuates the idea that it is not possible for different ethnic and religious groups to live in harmony.”
It is not just Cameron. Many British politicians regularly claim that the country is trying but failing to get migration “under control.” The use of such divisive language plays right into the hands of those who want to sway ill-informed voters. Even apparently innocent language can be used to win over an electorate that has, for the past two decades, shown ongoing frustration at the nation’s leaders.
It seems that Britain — and indeed much of the world — is obsessed with this apparently overbearing sea of foreigners walking the streets, taking “our” jobs, filling “our” hospitals, draining the economy and claiming “our” benefits. There are probably many more things these people have been accused of, but let us spare them.
There is little to no evidence to back up any of these claims. Most towns in Britain remain predominantly white, British and secular. Cities, of course, have a greater blend of nationalities, ethnicities and religion. They are bound to, as they have more people living in them.
Many British politicians regularly claim that the country is trying but failing to get migration ‘under control’.
Peter Harrison
Forgive me for sounding like a stuck record, but while there was a spike in the net migration of non-EU nationals to Britain last summer, the truth is they were not coming to take anything.
According to the Migration Observatory at the University of Oxford, the vast majority of these people were coming to work in the health sector — an industry that is well documented to be short of staff. Many others were students who had been encouraged to study in the UK by the country’s universities, which are in urgent need of finance.
The migrants coming into the UK for humanitarian or asylum purposes were significantly fewer. And, what’s more, the number of those coming into the UK for work or study in the second half of 2024 was already showing a decline by September.
So, the politicians and media networks that claim the country has a migration “problem” are simply wrong.
According to the Migration Observatory, immigration figures are best judged by looking at the number of people living in a country who were born elsewhere. Using this as a gauge, Mexico scores lowest with 1 percent and Luxembourg the highest at 50 percent. Meanwhile, in the UK, the figure is 14 percent, the same as the US and Slovenia.
In fact, the Migration Observatory states that the number of migrants arriving in the UK will probably drop further in 2025. It went on to suggest that, over the past two decades, the average numbers have remained, overall, consistent with the usual peaks and troughs.
The Migration Observatory states that the number of migrants arriving in the UK will probably drop further in 2025.
Peter Harrison
So, it would appear to be clear that Britain’s streets are not filled with vast swaths of immigrants.
Nor is Islam taking over the minds of the nation.
The 2021 census showed that, in England and Wales, 46.2 percent of the population identified as Christian, while a mere 6.5 percent were Muslim — that is significantly lower than the 37.2 percent who claimed no religion at all.
Islamophobia in Britain is not new. Hopkins says it can be traced back to the way the country responded to the 9/11 attacks in America and the subsequent “war on terror.”
Certainly, Muslims seem to be the only people who are expected to condemn attacks whenever they happen or be accused of being sympathetic toward the terrorists.
But let’s be honest, as long as the likes of British MP Nigel Farage continue to blame foreign nationals for many of the nation’s problems, while the mainstream parties respond with a thinly veiled version of the same, it is likely that the hatred being experienced by so many will continue for some time yet.
It is worth noting that Farage is married to a German woman who resides in the UK. And with his Reform UK party possibly holding the balance of power at the next election, it seems likely that the language of hate will continue, as politicians put the lives and reputations of others in the path of prejudice and harm in the hunt for votes.
- Peter Harrison is a senior editor at Arab News in the Dubai office. He has covered the Middle East for more than a decade. X: @PhotoPJHarrison