Islamophobia Has Surged in the UK — Here’s How You Can Help Fight It

Islamophobia is sadly nothing new in the UK, but the last 12 months have seen a surge in violent and threatening behaviour towards the country’s nearly 4 million Muslims.

The escalation of the Israel-Palestine conflict, and the riots that shook the nation over summer, emboldened the far-right and saw them spurred to often violent action by fake news and hateful rhetoric circulated on social media.

In response, Islamophobia Awareness Month (IAM) has been launched this November with a campaign called Seeds of Change, which hopes that small, collective efforts can lead to large, systemic changes.

“Islamophobia is not an abstract concept but a pervasive reality affecting countless lives daily”, IAM says.

The statistics are shocking — a Government-funded monitoring group recorded 4,971 incidents of anti-Muslim hate from 7 October 2023, through to 30 September 2024.

That’s an average of nearly 14 every single day, and is the highest total recorded since the group was founded in 2012.

Of these cases, 63% were abusive in nature, and the remaining 27% involved threatening behaviour. 

And the issue is country-wide — most of the reported incidents occurred in London, the Midlands, Yorkshire, and the north-west of England.

“This sharp rise demonstrates the disturbing reality that geopolitical events have a direct impact on the safety and well-being of Muslims in the UK,” IAM says.

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Events both global and domestic have fuelled the rise. The escalation of the Israel-Palestine conflict in October 2023 saw an increase in cases of 365% compared to the same month in the previous year, the Islamophobia Response Unit (IRU) reported.

Hundreds of cases of physical assault, vandalism, and threats were recorded, with Muslim women being the victims in two out of every three incidents.

In London, one Muslim woman’s car was daubed with a Nazi swastika, a Muslim family’s home was graffitied with the word “Hamas”, and across the UK, numerous cases of Muslim women being called “terrorists” in the street were recorded. 

Compounding the issue further are domestic events, most notably the riots that rocked the UK in the wake of the Southport knife attack in July, when three children were killed, and 10 other people were injured.

False claims immediately circulated online that the offender behind the attacks was an asylum seeker named Ali Al Shakati, leading to a wave of anti-Muslim hate.

Mosques were targeted, and hotels housing asylum seekers set alight in some of the worst violence seen on the UK’s streets in modern times, prompting the mother of one of the murdered children to make an emotional plea.

“This is the only thing that I will write, but please stop the violence in Southport tonight”, Elsie Dot’s mother said. “The police have been nothing but heroic these last 24 hours and they and we don’t need this.”

But louder and more notorious voices were egging it all on — “You’re about to see the roar of the British lion“, Laurence Fox said, while Andrew Tate urged people to “wake up“.

Nigel Farage pondered if “the truth is being withheld from us”.

“For Muslims in the UK, these incidents are not just statistics but painful reminders that their society struggles with racism and prejudice”, IAM says. 

“The rise in hate crimes is a symptom of deeper, systemic issues, exacerbated by political rhetoric and media portrayals that so often paint Muslims in a negative light.”

While it may seem a monumental task, IAM has launched Seeds of Change, a campaign to tackle Islamophobia in the UK which asks people to consider what they can do to help.

“This could mean challenging a friend’s prejudiced comment, learning more about Islamic culture, or attending events that celebrate diversity”, it says. 

“Each of these actions is a seed, and when combined, they have the potential to grow into a robust movement that can transform society.”

IAM hopes that by making small everyday changes, a collective effort can address the systemic roots of Islamophobia in the UK.

“Together, we can build a future where everyone can practise their faith without fear. In a world where hate often makes headlines, let’s make the stories of hope, resilience, and unity stand out even more”, it says.

“Let this month be a reminder of the power of small actions, and the monumental impact they can have when we all stand together.”

To learn more about how you can get involved in Seeds of Change, visit www.islamophobia-awareness.org.