To be anti racist is a radical choice in the face of history, requiring a radical reorientation of our consciousness. – Ibram Kendi
Following the murders of three young girls, six year old Bebe King, seven year old Elsie Dot Stancombe, and nine year old Alice da Silva Aguiar, at a Taylor Swift dance party in Southport on the 29th July 2024, the EDL (English Defence League) have been on the rise. After islamophobic misinformation was spread online, misidentifying the perpetrator as an illegal muslim immigrant, the hate group has been terrorising towns and cities up and down the United Kingdom. A 55 year old Chester woman has been arrested ‘on suspicion of publishing written material to stir up racial hatred and false communication’ and has been held in police custody since.
But this traumatic event was not the start of the rise of the EDL. There are several institutional factors to blame for the constant otherisation of minority groups in the UK, and the normalisation of blatant islamophobia and racism. This outbreak of fascist violence may seem to be sudden and unexpected, but in reality, the far-right has been on the rise for many years now.
The role of the media
The UK media has always revolved around the right, with bourgeois owners instructing editors and journalists to put across particular messages to the audience. Messages which ultimately benefit their own personal interests and seek to justify the power and privilege of the bourgeoisie. There are several examples of this which have led to the normalisation of racist rhetoric, and the rise of the EDL. Headlines such as ‘MIGRANTS TAKE ALL NEW JOBS IN BRITAIN’ (Daily Express, 9th July 2014), and ‘MIGRANTS TRY KILL BRIT TRUCKERS’ (Daily Star 1st March 2016), have been written to purposely demonise minority groups.
A report from the Muslim Council of Britain’s Centre for Media Monitoring (CfMM) has analysed over 48,000 online articles and 5,500 broadcast clips from between September 2018 and October 2019 containing key words to do with Muslims and Islam. Their investigation found 60 percent of the articles examined across online publications were identified as associating negative aspects and behaviours with Muslims or with Islam. One in five placed a primary focus on terrorism or extremism.
Otherisation on social media
News content, framing immigrants as ‘the other’, is not the only factor to blame for the rise of the far-right. Online misinformation has had an enormous role to play in the August 2024 EDL riots. In a quote for Time Magazine, Jacob Davey, Director of Policy and Research for Counter-Hate at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue stated that ‘social media is an essential tool for extremist groups to galvanise a “spark to flash,”’ as they share misinformation and used social media to organise the planned attacks. Details of when and where these hate attacks would occur were shared via social media, and social chatting apps like Whatsapp. Both EDL leader Tommy Robinson and Reform UK leader Nigel Farage shared misinformation via social media platform ‘X’ about the Southport attackers identity before details were released to the public. This inevitably prompted crowds to take to the streets of Southport, targeting the local Mosque and looting shops.
Professor Philip Howard, Director of the Oxford Internet Institute, has stated in a 2021 report that ‘social media manipulation of public opinion is a growing threat to democracies around the world. Misinformation has become more professionalised and is now produced on an industrial scale.’ Professor Philip Howard also stated that ‘In 61 countries, we found evidence of political parties or politicians running for office who have used the tools and techniques of computational propaganda as part of their political campaigns. Instances such as this undoubtedly have led to the normality of sharing racist misinformation online – without consequences.
Right wing politicians
Right wing politicians and online figures are also primarily to blame for the rise of the EDL. Robert Jenrick, a frontrunning candidate in the Conservative party leadership election stated that “the police should immediately arrest any protesters for shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’”, a phrase translating to ‘God is Great’ in Arabic, when referring to anti-racist counter protestors. But Islamophobic comments have been rife in British politics for years now.
In 2019 former Prime Minister Boris Johnson compared muslim women to ‘letterboxes’, leading to a 375% rise in islamophobic incidents the week after. Reform UK leader Nigel Farage was not only spreading misinformation online about the Southport attacker, who was born in Cardiff, but has constantly used hateful and manipulative language to demonise immigrants. In 2008 Farage named Enoch Powell as his political hero – stating that he ‘ didn’t think Powell was a racist at all’, despite his ‘rivers of blood’ speech being used to justify racism by fascists. Racist quotes from Farage are all too common. On LBC Radio in 2014, Farage stated “Any normal and fair-minded person would have a perfect right to be concerned if a group of Romanian people suddenly moved in next door.” And when discussing the 2020 Black Lives Matter protests, Farage stated that ‘a new form of the Taliban was born in the UK today.’
Reactionary politicians such as Johnson and Farage lean heavily into far-right themes in order to blame immigrants for the hardships faced by people living in the UK. Hardships which individual politicians, and the Conservative party, are to blame for, due to 14 years of austerity cuts, a lack of affordable housing, the decline in the NHS, and a plethora of issues ultimately caused by Brexit.
Another article you might like: Brighton’s Islamophobic Demonstrations – What you need to know
Brexit
Brexit played a major role in the rise of racism and hate crime, with police figures obtained through Freedom of Information (FOI) requests showing incidents surged by 23 percent in the 11 months after the EU referendum. During the Brexit referendum, misinformation was yet again used by right wing figures to sway voters. Lies such as ‘Britain will be forced to join an EU ARMY unless we leave,’ (Penny Mordaunt), and headlines by the Daily Mail stating ‘No EU can’t have our jobs’ push the false rhetoric that ‘Britain is better’. The impact from political and media discourse is evident in the shifting attitudes towards migrants post Brexit, something which has continued to spiral out of control continuously due to constant right wing coverage.
2024 General Election
After the 2024 General Election, independent news regulator Ofcom received complaints from the general public about the amount of airtime given to Reform UK leader Farage, in comparison to other politicians. The BBC responded to complaints stating that Farage was a ‘prominent figure in British politics,’ and that they will, ‘apply the same scrutiny to Mr Farage and the policies advocated by Reform UK that we will other political leaders and their parties’. Farage’s victory speech was broadcasted by the BBC, whilst Green Party leader Carla Denyer’s historical Bristol win was not, despite both parties winning the same number of seats in parliament.
With so much to blame for the rise of the right, and the rise in right wing violence through groups like the EDL, what can we do to combat this?
What can we do to stop the rise of the right?
Being anti-racist is actively fighting against racism, speaking up, and helping out in your local community. I (the author of this article) am a white woman, and I would like to avoid being the typical ‘white savoir’, as I have never, and can never, experience racism. But I am in a position whereby I can educate and use this newspaper as a platform for good.
Being a good ally is listening with empathy and hearing what others have to say. It is never the responsibility of minorities to educate you, but it is your duty to educate others. As a white person we need to speak up, not over, and actively use white privilege to defend and support others, whether this be at anti-racism protests – or isolated incidents. Join anti-racist groups and political parties, such as the Socialist Workers Party. Attend anti-racist counter demonstrations, and never ever vote Reform. Recognise the privilege white people have, and use that privilege to better your community, and importantly – take down those EDL scumbags.