Why The UK Far-Right Riots Should Matter To Sikhs
Why The UK Far-Right Riots Should Matter To Sikhs
"[The] current societal breakdown impacts Sikhs too, even if thus far, luckily, no Sikh individuals or places of worship have been targeted..."
Jasveer Singh
August 8, 2024 | 5 min. read | Analysis
Over the last week, the UK has descended into scenes of racist violence which are comparable to only a few periods in the last 100 years.
A horrific act by a British born youth of African and Christian background in murdering three young girls triggered a wave of Islamophobic attacks, which are part of a wider spree of violence and abuse towards people of colour in a movement some in the media have called “anti-immigration protests.”
Counter-protests by Muslims underscore the target of the far-right in what is clearly the ongoing historical fallout of post-9/11 rhetoric. Knowing this helps us understand how this current societal breakdown impacts Sikhs too, even if thus far, luckily, no Sikh individuals or places of worship have been targeted in the recent spate of UK tensions.
It is worth recalling that the first fatal victim of a hate crime in relation to September 11, 2001, was a Sikh man, Balbir Singh Sodhi, and not a Muslim. In fact, the well-known American advocacy group, the Sikh Coalition, came into being in this environment to, in part, protect Sikhs from hate and discrimination in a post-9/11 world.
The Wisconsin Oak Creek Gurdwara massacre in 2012 reaffirmed the extreme levels of hateful ignorance that still existed over 10 years later. And in case Sikhs thought that time had passed, last year anti-Sikh attacks in the New York area showed the hostility had even transcended beyond white supremacists and the far-right.
Even in Canada, where Sikhs have achieved great success, from the political to social, the World Sikh Organization of Canada has just launched a new online portal to track hate crimes and incidents, as Anti-Sikh rhetoric has reached all-time heights amongst and beyond far-right ecosystems.
The idea this issue is limited to North America has been discarded by countless British Sikh testimonies of experiencing abuse along the lines of being called “Bin Laden” and probably topped off through the infamous Tesco’s beheading attempt of 2015, which saw “white power” fanatic Zack Davies nearly murder a Sikh doctor in the aisle of a supermarket in Wales.
The thought that people no longer conflate Sikhs for Muslims has also been proven wrong by senior government officials in recent memory. One of the areas most impacted by the riots – Middlesborough in the North East of England – has a history of Anti-Sikh and Islamophobic attacks. Just last year, one of the most viral posts from the far-right group Britain First was an Anti-Sikh tweet about the Southall Nagar Kirtan.
Yet, some are adamant that Sikhs do hold a different and better status in the UK, even among the far-right community. They argue that there are Sikh war memorials across England and that the general ability of Sikh communities to adapt, succeed, and give back in the West has been celebrated in the UK. Even the current king of the far-right Tommy Robinson, once led chants of “Sikh” among his followers.
It is also true Robinson interviewed three Sikh figures in the UK between seven to nine years ago as a Rebel Media reporter covering the UK’s grooming gang epidemic. However, some of these Sikh groups later came out with statements clarifying that the single meeting with Robinson did not represent a stand with the far-right or an alignment with his general political philosophies.
Anyone holding onto the idea that Robinson’s agenda will not impact Sikhs will be disappointed to learn that he is growing ever more prominent within the “Godi" media ecosystem, with now regular appearances on Indian Hindu Nationalist portals. This act has, of course, come with the standard condemnation of Khalistan from Tommy, a sort of pre-requisite to be welcomed onto media platforms from the world’s 159th-ranked country on RSF’s global index on press freedom.
Proudly boasting of this association, Robinson revealed he is to visit India in December.
Hindutva plans to foster right-wing-led unrest in the West deserves additional research for anyone really interested in Tommy Robinson’s current role as an agitator. It is no secret that Indian accounts have been amplifying and pushing Anti-Sikh rhetoric online, using their IT Cells to feed impressions and clicks to far-right accounts that have increasingly learned to engagement farm from that ecosystem.
The presence of pro-India provocateur and self-proclaimed “Sikh” Herman Kapoor as Robinson’s newest standout cheerleader has ironically shown that the far-right will not hesitate to direct hate at Sikhs, even if they are supporting the EDL agenda. Kapoor received a torrent of racism online despite his clear allegiances to Robinson. Kapoor is a known Indian nationalist online agitator who previously worked to target Sikh sentiments.
The belief that racist rampages will likely spread to other vulnerable minority groups is an obvious reason the far-right violence should matter to Sikhs, and the growing obviousness of the Indian state's desire to support such movements will force attention on transnational influences too.
As an aside, even the response of the authorities, led by the newly elected Labour Party, may impact Sikhs.
Amid his declarations to clamp down on the violence, Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said that “facial recognition technology” will be expedited to be used against rioters. Whilst the imprisonment of the thugs breaking into the homes of random minority families will be welcomed, there is no doubt this technology will remain in place to be used against legitimate protests, and that could include Sikhs.
With Jagtar Singh Johal’s ongoing arbitrary imprisonment, the #FarmersProtest2024 in full motion, and a reoccurring theme of demonstrations regarding India’s treatment of Punjab, more UK Sikh protests are likely.
Recent history shows UK police data on Sikhs has been suspiciously leaked to Indian media, whilst even clear unprovoked police violence towards Sikh protesters has gone unaddressed too. Thus the idea of UK authorities getting more power to survey protesters with “shared intelligence” in mind should worry Sikh groups, especially keeping in mind Labour’s proud boasting of a “new relationship” with India, which has historically come with pressure to clamp down on Sikh dissenters.
Can the far-right violence be tackled without such drastic government overreach? The answer to that may vary from person to person, but with potential bigotry on the streets and concerns of Anti-Sikh Indian state influence, the 2024 UK far-right riots should matter to Sikhs.
Jasveer Singh hails from Southall, UK, and is the Senior Press Officer of The Sikh Press Association, a position he has held since 2015. In this role, Jasveer works across all sectors of media supporting Sikh organisations and individuals on Panthic endeavours. Jasveer previously worked as a freelance journalist which included stints with Sky News, Super Fight League, and more. You can find Jasveer on Twitter at @Jazzthejourno.
Baaz is home to opinions, ideas, and original reporting for the Sikh and Punjabi diaspora. Support us by subscribing. Find us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok at @BaazNewsOrg. If you would like to submit a written piece for consideration please email us at editor@baaznews.org.