The Director of the Jesuit Refugee Service UK (JRS UK), Sarah Teather, calls for the government to ensure safety for people seeking asylum following riots across the UK:
“Communities across the UK are reeling today from criminal violence that has threatened people’s lives, injured emergency service workers, and destroyed public facilities.
“People of colour, members of the Muslim community, and people seeking sanctuary have been deliberately targeted. Many of the refugees we serve and others in our communities are living with deep fear and insecurity following these attacks.
“It is imperative that the government takes urgent steps to ensure the safety of all those being targeted, including people in the asylum system, who in many cases have already fled violence and experienced profound trauma.
“At the same time, every one of us has a responsibility to challenge the disinformation and racist, divisive rhetoric fuelling this hostility. Too often, people fleeing danger and searching for a chance to rebuild their lives here have been dehumanised by politicians and others in a position of influence.
“But scenes of people coming together in the hours following rioting, to care for those affected and repair the physical damage, show the kind of society that we can and truly want to be.”
