Standing together We can face down hate with unity

A CAMPAIGN started in August to raise England and Union flags around Bristol has coincided with a spike in racially motivated hate crimes in Bristol.

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A nine-year-old girl was shot three times with an air gun by a teenager shouting racist abuse in Henbury, two men were badly beaten by men shouting racist abuse in Lawrence Hill and earlier this week, a bus stop in Bedminster was sprayed with Islamophobic abuse.

Here, the chair of the Easton Jamia Mosque, Abdul Malik, says the city must come together and act to counter the racism and hate. And he is inviting anyone in Bristol to come to the mosque to talk...

THE Bristol I grew up in was far from perfect, but it was not like this. Racism is becoming more visible, more aggressive, and more damaging than I have ever seen before. And it is being fuelled, deliberately, by the toxic rhetoric of the far right. When Islamophobic graffiti was sprayed across parts of our city, many described it as “shock horror.”

But for too many in our communities, this is no shock. It is becoming an everyday reality one that chips away at our sense of belonging and safety.