It’s racist to stand outside a hotel and intimidate refugees.

It’s racist to claim refugees are a ‘threat’ to local communities.

It’s racist to tell people to ‘go back to where they came from’.

It’s racist to blame a lack of local resources on people seeking sanctuary.

Demonstrations outside hotels accommodating refugees are increasing. We must acknowledge the role of Islamophobia and racism in creating and sustaining anti-migrant sentiment.

The majority of people in Home Office accommodation are from majority Muslim countries and are People of Colour, often from the SWANA region (South West Asia and North Africa). These communities were once painted as a ‘threat’ in order to justify colonisation, and these same narratives are now being used as a means to subject these communities to hostile immigration policies.

The Government is using refugees as scapegoats for their policy failings. They are fueling the flames with inflammatory language, and offering the far-right fodder in order to incite disenfranchised working class communities to hatred.

Working class communities have more in common with refugees and migrants than they do with those in power. It’s time they realised this.

Photo: a placard from the Knowsley riot (Liverpool Echo, 2023)