Londoners urged to challenge prejudice and hatred
Londoners have been urged to do their bit to challenge prejudice, ahead of Holocaust Memorial Day later this month. The call came from London Assembly Member, Nicky Gavron AM, who spoke at today’s Mayor’s Question Time (MQT) at City Hall about her own family’s experience at the hands of the Nazis. Questioning the Mayor of London, Ms Gavron also cited recent incidents of anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim acts in London, and asked how City Hall could help Londoners in understanding how to go about tackling hatred. In response, Sadiq Khan said the incidents had “made me sick to my stomach” and said his new Shared Endeavour Fund would work with communities to give people the confidence and tools to challenge hatred.
London has recently seen several high-profile anti-semitic attacks and other racist incidents. In November, a Jewish family were filmed being racially abused on the Tube. Today, Ms Gavron paid tribute to Asma Shuweikh, a Muslim woman who intervened to try and stop the abuse.
In December, and Orthodox Rabbi was punched and pushed to the ground by two attackers who shouted anti-Semitic abuse. This was followed on 29th December by anti-Semitic graffiti appearing on shops in Belsize Park and Hampstead, and on the South Hampstead Synagogue, during Hanukkah.
This forms part of a wider rise in racist and religious hate crimes in London. On New Year’s Day anti-Muslim graffiti was found on buildings near the North Brixton Islamic Cultural Centre. Meanwhile, the number of racist and religious hate crimes recorded by the Met hit 18,376 in 2019, up from 7,989 offences in 2011 – a 130% increase.
Holocaust Memorial Day takes place on Monday 27th January. At today’s Mayor’s Question Time, Nicky Gavron shared her own family’s history and urged Londoners to recognise the importance of standing together against prejudice. She told the Mayor how some members of her own family were rounded up and deported to Auschwitz. Not all of them survived, but that her grandparents, who were both school teachers, were tipped off by ex-pupils every time there was a round up.
The theme for this year’s Holocaust Memorial Day is “Stand Together” and explores how genocidal regimes throughout history have deliberately fractured society. 2020 also marks 75 years since the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau and 25 years since the genocide in Bosnia.
This week, the Mayor announced that London would donate £300,000 to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation. City Hall has also joined forces with Google to invest £800,000 in a Shared Endeavour Fund aimed at fighting intolerance and extremism in the capital. Ms Gavron welcomed Google’s contribution, but said that tech companies like Google, Facebook and Twitter had been implicated in the spread of extremism online and urged the Mayor to go on challenging those companies to take responsibility for the content they post.
Labour London Assembly Member, Nicky Gavron AM, said:
“London is a city where our differences are celebrated and we stand in solidarity with our fellow citizens. It’s absolutely vital we don’t take that for granted.
“We’ve seen some truly awful anti-Semitic and anti-Muslim crimes recently, that have brought shame on our city. I know Londoners will stand with me in condemning those hideous acts.
“My own family’s history is demonstrative of the difference that can be made when people stand up to prejudice. If it weren’t for those brave Germans who tipped-off and hid my grandparents during the round ups, I would be telling a very different story here today.
“We need to equip Londoners to stand up to prejudice, but it can’t stop there. Many acts of hate now take place online and the big tech companies hold the power to do something about it. I welcome Google’s contribution to the Shared Endeavour Fund. I urge the Mayor go on challenging tech companies to take responsibility for the content they host.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
- A webcast of Mayor’s Question Time can be found here.;
- In November 2019, a Jewish family were filmed being racially abused on the Tube. Asma Shuweikh, a Muslim woman, intervened to try and stop the abuse. More information about this incident can be found here;
- In December, and Orthodox Rabbi was punched and pushed to the ground by two attackers who shouted anti-Semitic abuse. Information about the incident can be found here;
- On 29th December anti-Semitic graffiti appeared on shops in Belsize Park and Hampstead, and on the South Hampstead Synagogue. More information can be found here;
- On 1st January 2020, anti-Muslim graffiti was found on buildings near the North Brixton Islamic Cultural Centre. More information can be found here;
- Further information about Holocaust Memorial Day, which is due to take place on Monday 27th January, can be found here. City Hall will mark Holocaust Memorial Day with a ceremony on Monday 20th January;
- Details about City Hall’s donation to the Auschwitz-Birkenau Foundation can be found here;
- More information about the Shared Endeavour Fund, in partnership with Google, can be found here;
- Nicky Gavron AM is a Londonwide Assembly Member