Thanks to TikTok, the chaos and upheaval of the Harehills riots in Leeds on 18 July 2024 were captured and relayed to thousands of people in real-time. I was one of them. Never before had I witnessed such wanton violence and vandalism play out in front of me live, all from the comfort of my bedroom. This personal observation provides a unique objective perspective, one that will prove crucial as wrong, misinformed narratives begin to surface. The unrest and the responses elicited reveal entrenched issues plaguing British society.
The unrest erupted at around 5pm, when police and social services took custody of five Roma children from a family in the area. This was met with large civil anger. A police car was upturned before being set ablaze. Whilst the situation remained localised, by 9.30pm police were forced to retreat amidst flames and projectiles. This emboldened the crowd and reinvigorated the destructive streak that came with it. I was shocked when I witnessed a bus set upon by bricks and rocks, before individuals began trying to set the bus alight.
Their efforts were successful. Members of the community turned out in their droves to watch the bedlam unfold. The actions of the rioters are inexcusable. Setting buses on fire, vandalising property, destroying emergency vehicles, and engaging in violent clashes with the police are behaviours that have no place in Britain. Such actions only, and always, serve to exacerbate existing tensions and undermine the rule of law that is so often taken for granted in this country.
These riots reflect also a significant disenchantment within our civil society and a blatant disdain for authority. You cannot justify this behaviour but, you can understand it. The events of last night demonstrate an acute loss of faith in the institutions existent to protect and serve the people who felt this was the appropriate way to express their grievances. This disenchantment is perilous. It highlights an erosion of the foundational trust necessary for a functioning democracy. We must not foresight this.
It also shows an erosion of societal cohesion and respect for public authority and order. When individuals take it upon themselves to cause wanton carnage and destruction, it reflects upon a broader issue of societal disintegration, where community bonds are weakened and mutual respect is diminished. Whilst it could be argued that this was a display of community unity, coming together to support a family in the community, the second it descended into violence was the second any moral high ground evaporated. There is never an excuse for what unfolded last night.
However, we must remain vigilant. The responses from far-right and national populist figures such as Tommy Robinson and Nigel Farage were deplorable. Instead of condemning the violence and calling for calm and civility, they seized the opportunity to further their divisive agendas. Farage’s tweet about the ‘Subcontinent’ playing out in Leeds was particularly egregious. Such comments are not only lazy and parochial but also exacerbate existing tensions. I wrote after the general election that, with seats in Parliament, Reform UK needed to detoxify and professionalise. Alas, it appears, disappointingly, that they have opted for the opposite. The rhetoric of Farage is harmful as it shifts the focus from the real issues of localised anger and frustration and instead stirs up racial and cultural animosity nationwide.
The narrative blaming the unrest on Muslims, in the case of Tommy Robinson, or likening it to the politics of the Subcontinent, for Farage, is both dangerous and irresponsible. The reality, as personally observed from the livestreams, was a multicultural protest triggered by the removal of Roma children by police and social services. The crowd was diverse, reflecting the multicultural demographic of Harehills, rather than any single ethnic or religious group.
The common denominator of the rioters? Socioeconomics. Harehills is a deprived inner-city suburb of Leeds. The riots reveal a community angry and disenfranchised. They were symptomatic of deeper economic and social issues, not a racial or religious disposition. Many people feel left behind, ignored by those in power, and frustrated by their lack of opportunities. This was attested by Cllr Mothin Ali in his impromptu interviews.
Mothin Ali, the Green Party councillor for the ward, received national attention after the 2024 local elections for celebrating by saying his electoral win was ‘for Gaza’, accompanied with the cry of ‘Allahu Akbar’. Far-right pseudo-sleuths on social media were quick to implicate Ali in the riots, as he was photographed at the earlier disturbance. I witnessed first-hand how Cllr Ali quelled the violence with calls for calm, physically holding rioters off from chucking bins and pallets onto the blazing remains of the bus. It was scary to see how quickly such disinformation and skewed narratives were engaged with and supported on social media.
The far-right is always waiting in the wings, ready to capitalise on such events. Their goal is to use these incidents as ammunition to stir up hatred and division, further fracturing our already divided society. Contrary to the far-right narratives being perpetuated across social media, the unrest was a reflection of the multicultural reality of Harehills. The community came together in response to a perceived injustice. Neverthrless, I vehemently deplore how this response manifested itself.
With the rioters and the reactionaries taken to task, it is important to also place fair blame on the emergency services. The chaotic withdrawal of the police left the community vulnerable and allowed the situation to escalate unchecked. The image of a bus engulfed in flames, bellowing toxic fumes high into the twilight sky, is a stark symbol of this failure. The absence of emergency services to control the fires and unrest further compounded the issue. It was shocking to see the community having to extinguish the flames themselves and restore some semblance of order. This lack of a timely response undermines public confidence in the ability of the emergency services.
The implications of this failure on public trust are profound and must not be ignored. When people see that their calls for help go unanswered, it fosters a sense of abandonment and further fuels the disenchantment that catalyses such disorder. This erosion of trust in public services and authority is a dangerous trend that needs urgent, considered attention.
The events in Harehills last night show a divided, broken Britain. People are angry. People are disenfranchised. Some wait callously in the wings to capitalise on strife and discord. We must strive for unity and understanding to heal a fractured nation. This should serve as a serious wake-up call.
Image: @benonwine / Twitter
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