Britain’s panicked take on ‘Islamists’ has enabled the spread of racism and emboldened the far-right UKIP party, argues Rachel Shabi.
Stand Up to UKIP holds protest against Farage
Australia’s far-right fringe groups must not be allowed to become mainstream
Far-right groups, inspired by their European counterparts, remain on the fringes but show signs of steady growth. We have to remain vigilant, argues Antony Loewenstein.
Fascists desecrate Meximieux mosque
The Collectif contre l’Islamophobie en France reports that the Islamic Cultural Centre at Meximieux in the Rhône-Alpes region of eastern France has been defaced by fascists.
A swastika and a Celtic cross were sprayed on the front of the building.
The CCIF notes that this is the fifth desecration of the Meximieux mosque since 2012.
Le Progrès adds that over recent days a number of such far-right symbols have also appeared in l’Ain, Belley, Châtillon-la-Palud and Pérouges.
Graffiti attack on Pont-de-Beauvoisin mosque
The Comité 15 Mars et Libertés reports that a mosque in Pont-de-Beauvois, in Isère in eastern France, has been targeted in a graffiti attack by fascists.
Swastikas were sprayed on the wall, along with the slogans “Death to Algeria”, “Fuck the Arabs” and “Vive la France”.
Via the Collectif contre l’Islamophobie en France.
See also “Tags injurieux et croix gammées sur la mosquée de Pont-de-Beauvoisin en Isère”, France 3, 5 May 2014
Reports and comment from Islamophobia Watch 28 April‑4 May
Reports and comment from Islamophobia Watch 28 April-4 May 2014
- Most people believe UKIP contains racists, poll finds 4 May 2014
- ‘Non-racist’ footballer who was jailed for anti-Muslim tweets arrested over racist Facebook comments 4 May 2014
- Brentwood Conservative candidate David Bishop resigns over ‘inappropriate’ tweets 3 May 2014
- Halal search option removed from Subway website over staff safety fears 3 May 2014
- Prague: Hundreds of Muslims protest police mosque raid 3 May 2014
- Tory activist: ‘Every single Muslim should be expelled’ 3 May 2014
- Farage dissociates himself from Harry Perry, but why no action against Magnus Nielsen? 3 May 2014
- New Statesman warns of threat from Islam 3 May 2014
- Man jailed for four years for mosque fire in Bletchley, Milton Keynes 3 May 2014
- Scottish Defence League members guilty of throwing bacon into mosque 2 May 2014
- UKIP election candidate probed over ‘disgusting’ homophobic and anti-Islamic Twitter messages 2 May 2014
- Dublin: Vandals tape bacon to posters of candidate with Turkish background 2 May 2014
- ‘No such thing as a benign Muslim’ says UKIP candidate 2 May 2014
- Texts read out to Edinburgh Central Mosque bacon attack jury 1 May 2014
- Is the far Right setting the Daily Mail’s agenda? 1 May 2014
- Football fans fined for tearing pages out of Qur’an at match 1 May 2014
- Merseyside mosque bomb plotter Ian Forman jailed 1 May 2014
- UKIP condemns candidate James Elgar’s ‘deplorable’ tweets about Muslims and women 1 May 2014
- Macy’s customer falsely charged with theft forced to remove hijab 1 May 2014
- Stop the Islamification of…Subway?! 1 May 2014
- Dutch Jewish groups speak out against Wilders 1 May 2014
- Camden UKIP candidate stands by anti-Islam comments 30 April 2014
- BNP to demonstrate against non-existent mosque application 30 April 2014
- Racism troubles French Muslim footballer 30 April 2014
- California: State asked to investigate religious discrimination claim 30 April 2014
- Teenagers ‘terrorised’ Muslim community in Cradley Heath 30 April 2014
- Israel: Mosque targeted in hate crime 30 April 2014
- NHS seeks cure for terrorism 30 April 2014
- ‘Ban Islam and knock down all the mosques’, urges UKIP candidate who accuses Muslims of ‘ethnic cleansing’ 30 April 2014
- Wikipedia edit from government computer added Muslim insult 30 April 2014
- Secularists assist right-wing anti-sharia hysteria 30 April 2014
- Israeli forces demolish West Bank mosque as peace talks deadline passes 29 April 2014
- Greater efforts needed to prevent and respond to hate crimes against Muslims, say participants at OSCE meeting in Vienna 29 April 2014
- The 9/11 museum’s Muslim problem 29 April 2014
- Baroness Cox tells Israeli audience that ‘Islam is using the freedoms of democracy to destroy it’ 29 April 2014
- Yet another Islamophobe standing for ‘non-racist’ UKIP 29 April 2014
- Muslim leaders denounce police over raids in Czech capital 29 April 2014
- Florida Senate OKs bill banning use of foreign law in family court cases 29 April 2014
- Gilligan recycles 7-year-old anti-Muslim story as new shock-horror revelation 29 April 2014
- Plymouth Islamic education centre hit in £10,000 arson attack 28 April 2014
- Paul Weston arrested on suspicion of religious or racial harassment 28 April 2014
- Edinburgh: Security guard ‘found bacon in mosque’ 28 April 2014
- Australia: Far right targets Muslims with hate campaign 28 April 2014
Most people believe UKIP contains racists, poll finds
The UK Independence party has a three-point lead for this month’s European election – but most people think the party contains racists, according to an opinion poll.
Nigel Farage’s party is on 29%, ahead of Labour on 26%, the Conservatives on 23% and Liberal Democrats on 10%. But 27% of those surveyed thought Ukip was a party with “racist views” and “many racist members”, while 35% thought that, while the party was not racist, it did “seem to attract some candidates or supporters with racist, extreme or odd views”. Some 26% said Ukip was not racist and their “more controversial candidates are just saying the things ordinary people actually think”.
The poll came as Ukip suspended another would-be councillor for expressing extreme views on Twitter. Harry Perry posted comments on Twitter describing the prime minister, David Cameron, as a “gay-loving nutcase”, Muslims as “devil’s kids” and homosexuality as “an abomination before God”.
Farage accepted there were “some idiots” in the party as he condemned Perry’s comments as “entirely inconsistent” with remaining in Ukip.
‘Non-racist’ footballer who was jailed for anti-Muslim tweets arrested over racist Facebook comments
A footballer jailed for saying mosques should be “gassed out or bombed” following the murder of Lee Rigby has been arrested for a new ‘racist’ outburst.
Shaun Tuck, 27, who plays for Warrington Town FC, was sentenced to 12 weeks in prison after he admitted using Facebook to call for mosques in the UK to be “gassed out or bombed” after the Woolwich attack last year. The former Marine FC striker’s drink-fuelled online tirade also referred to beheading Muslim children and called for a riot in response to the tragedy.
Now Merseyside Police has confirmed Tuck, of Mollington Avenue, Norris Green , has been arrested again, this time over comments posted on his Facebook account at the end of March.
An initial post made on the Facebook account, which was later deleted, described how Tuck had been attacked by an “orang-utan” in a pub who punched him in the face. The comment, seen by the Liverpool Echo, read: “If you know who you are or know who it was who done that tonight then inbox me an I will come an see u first thing tomorrow an watch ye ****house ur nan is getting set on fire!”
Subsequent responses from the user account saw the man referred to as a “monkey” and said “its a good job he bailed an I couldn’t get him or I’d be on a murder charge!” Comments were also posted saying “I hope his families banana boat sinks” and “if I see him or I find out who he is then an if he has got kids there getting acid in there face”.
Police confirmed Tuck was arrested for an offence of Racially Aggravated Section 4 Public Order last month. He was interviewed by officers and released on bail until next week, pending further enquiries.
Brentwood Conservative candidate David Bishop resigns over ‘inappropriate’ tweets
A Conservative candidate in the upcoming Brentwood Borough Council elections has resigned over anti-Islamic and homophobic Tweets.
David Bishop posted “It’s good to be anti-Islam” two days before he was cemented as the party’s candidate for the Brentwood South ward in the Brentwood Borough Council elections later this month.
The tweet included a link to controversial ‘comedian’ Pat Condell who has attracted criticism in the past for the inflammatory nature of his online rants.
In the video a clearly animated Mr Condell accuses Islam of the sexualisation of young girls, “aggressive separatism, “phoney grievance mongering” and a “psychopathic level of misogyny”.
Two days after being named the Tory’s candidate the Zero Radio DJ reposted a Tweet made from another account which cites the arrest of four Muslim men over the rape of a 14-year-old girl before adding “’#Islam ‘the religion of peace’ & rape”.
Halal search option removed from Subway website over staff safety fears
This week, Subway revealed that around 185 of their stores are serving halal only meats with ham and bacon being replaced by turkey based products.
One of these stores is located in New Bedford Road, Luton and until today you could select halal only stores from the website to find out where your nearest was. However, today the company have removed this option from their website due to concerns over staff safety.