The Ealing story

Community cohesion in Ealing

Community cohesion site
For information, your legislative duties, Ealing guidance on community cohesion and government guidance on the duty to promote community cohesion.

Effects of media reporting on race and religious hate crime

Whenever there have been media reports labelling or stereotyping groups belonging to a particular ethnic background or religious affiliation, the national figures for racist incidents and harassment have shown an increase in incidents targeted to that group. Since 9/11 there has been a significant increase in Islamophobic incidents. In schools, staff have been aware of the need to monitor what is happening and there have been some examples of good practice in work with pupils. Staff will need to continue to be vigilant.

Ealing communities experiencing increased levels of harassment

The Metropolitan Police confirmed that hate crime has soared following the events in London on 7 July and that there has been a steep rise in faith hate incidents, with figures catapulting from 41 in 2004 to 273 in 2005 between the 6 July and 1 August, although this is now going down to previous levels. Ealing police figures show one of the highest levels of faith hate reports in the weeks since 7 July, and there are continuing reports of harassment.

Staff in schools should note the following points:

that all members of a particular community can be stereotyped or targeted by racists for the actions or alleged actions of a few
that those who perpetrate race and religious hate crime often do not distinguish between different communities. Intended Islamophobic attacks have not been confined to Mosques, but there have been attacks on Sikhs and other communities, and Sikh Gurdwaras as well. In Ealing individuals have been subject to harassment, but there have not been the serious attacks on places of worship that have taken place elsewhere
media reporting of arrests after 21 July identified members of the Somali community, although not all those arrested were actually Somali. Following this, stories have been emerging from the Somali community in Ealing of harassment in the street, in shops, in the bank. Some Somali women have been distressed that these have taken place when their children were with them

Effects on children

Pupils will have seen the media reporting and heard discussion on events throughout the summer holidays. They may have experienced racial or religious harassment directed at them or at adults they were with, or witnessed such harassment carried out by peers or family. They may have taken part in the harassment themselves.

Staff need to bear in mind that pupils could be experiencing distress, fear or stress on various levels.