Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Liverpool leaders urge 'truth and reconciliation' amid rising racist riots

Riots in the Liverpool region followed the killing of three girls on July 29

Liverpool leaders urge 'truth and reconciliation' amid rising racist riots

SHOCKED by violence on the streets of Liverpool as racist riots spread across the country this week, community leaders in the once close-knit city say people need to talk with rioters and disaffected residents, not just punish or shun them.

In a letter addressed to the city's council and politicians, heads of sports and arts collectives called for a local "Truth and Reconciliation Commission" to re-open lines of communication they argue were severed by social media and the Covid pandemic.


The original such commission, set up to deal with apartheid-era crimes in South Africa, included amnesty for those who fully disclosed their role in human rights abuses and recommended reparations payments.

Riots in the Liverpool region followed the killing of three girls on July 29 during an attack at a dance event for children in Southport, 15 miles (24 km) to the north of the city.

False information circulated on social media that the suspect was an Islamist migrant, which led to violent protests in Southport and across England over following days targeting Muslims and ethnic minorities more broadly.

Emile Coleman, who runs the Toxteth EL8TE basketball centre for local young people of varying backgrounds, authored the letter after hearing parents express their concern for the safety of their children.

The project "strives to be a positive force" for Toxteth, a deprived area of Liverpool, but Coleman now hires taxis to collect attendees, as parents worry that the streets have become unsafe for children from ethnic minorities.

Police say swift enforcement, including hundreds of arrests, helped quell the riots but are on alert for more trouble.

"My instinct, personally, would be to deal with (rioters) in a very direct manner - but I know that we have to form a way of having dialogue and engagement," said Coleman.

"We want to sit and engage with everyone, because if you remove that voice you are going to have more issues and more violence."

The young athletes who attend Toxteth EL8TE said they were stunned by the anger directed towards people of colour.

"I never knew something like this could ever happen. And I never knew how people could be so racist. So it's quite shocking," said 15-year-old basketball player Binah Kamber.

Coleman cited a change in Liverpool's fabric after the pandemic, when lockdowns confined people to their homes and some residents found comfort in online conspiracy theories, driving them to acts they would not have otherwise committed.

"The sadness is that they have been misled, manipulated, indoctrinated and radicalised by the far right," Coleman said.

(Reuters)

More For You

Early risers in the UK witness stunning Blood Moon eclipse

The lunar eclipse of Friday may not have been as dramatic as the total eclipses seen in other parts of the world

iStock

Early risers in the UK witness stunning Blood Moon eclipse

In the early hours of Friday morning, stargazers across the UK were treated to a partial lunar eclipse, with many enthusiasts rising before dawn to catch a glimpse. The celestial event, which saw the Earth's shadow partially covering the Moon, began at 05:09 GMT. Although only partial for most UK observers, it still presented a spectacular sight, with western parts of the country and regions further afield, such as the Americas and some Pacific islands, witnessing the eclipse.

For some, like Kathleen Maitland, the experience was magical. Stargazing from Pagham Harbour in West Sussex, she described the beauty of watching the Moon gradually darken and transform into a reddish hue, with the sunrise unfolding behind her. The eclipse gave rise to the so-called "blood Moon," a phenomenon that occurs when the Moon moves into the Earth’s shadow, turning a dusky red as sunlight is refracted through the Earth's atmosphere.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sangam Foundation celebrates Women's Day

From L - Reetu Kabra, Sudha Sanghani, Parul Gajjar,Maya Sondhi,Shobu Kapoor, Meera Syal,Piyusha Virani, Sadhana Karia and Shobhna Shah during Sangam Foundation's Women's Day celebrations.

Sangam Foundation celebrates Women's Day

HUNDREDS of women gathered for the International Women's Day celebrations of Sangam Foundation last week. Prominent actresses Meera Syal, Shobhu Kapoor and Maya Sondhi have attended the event, a statement said.

The British Asian celebrities shared their experiences of breaking into an industry rife with misogyny and prejudice. The industry veterans also talked about challenges they faced in a male-dominated field.

Keep ReadingShow less
Asian tycoon Sudhir Choudhrie  backs Liberal
Democrats with £23,000

Sudhir Choudhrie

Asian tycoon Sudhir Choudhrie  backs Liberal Democrats with £23,000

BUSINESSMAN Sudhir Choudhrie has emerged as one of the biggest British Asian donors to the Liberal Democrats in the last quarter of 2024, according to the latest data from the Electoral Commission.

Choudhrie, currently an advisor on India to the leader of the Liberal Democrats, contributed on six different occasions to the party between October and December 2024, totalling more than £23,000. He contributed in a similar fashion in the previous quarter as well.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sunak is ‘content in his MP role
and has no desire to move to US’

(From left) Rishi Sunak with wife Akshata Murty, and parents Usha and Yashvir Sunak

Sunak is ‘content in his MP role and has no desire to move to US’

RISHI SUNAK “loves being an MP” and has no intention of flying to California to begin a new life in America, as his enemies alleged during the general election campaign last year.

And, unlike Boris Johnson, he is not striving to be prime minister again, even though he is still only 44.

Keep ReadingShow less
LEAD Amit 1 INSET Rishi Sunak GettyImages 1258681655
Rishi Sunak
Getty Images

'I am English': Sunak asserts as ethnic minorities debate identity politics in Britain

FORMER prime minister Rishi Sunak has made cultural and sociological history by becoming the first prominent personality to say a brown person can be not only British, but also English.

He dismissed as “ridiculous” the suggestion from his former home secretary, Suella Braverman, that Englishness “must be rooted in ancestry, heritage, and, yes, ethnicity” – in other words, the person has to be white.

Keep ReadingShow less