London Diary: Britain's autumn of xenophobia

There are dog-whistles and then there is plain, unvarnished xenophobia. That’s what Britain is witnessing at the moment. Barely weeks after one of the most vicious race riots in the country’s recent history of race-relations that saw asylum seekers’ hostels bombed and mosques attacked, undisguised racism is on display again.

And this time in the genteel environs of the Conservative Party that is in the midst of a leadership election campaign to replace Rishi Sunak after the party’s humiliating defeat in July’s general election under his premiership.

Contenders are vying with each other to spread scare stories about how mass immigration is threatening social cohesion.

So we have the front-runner in the race Robert Jenrick, a former immigration minister, claiming that the unchecked influx of foreigners is turning many British cities with large immigrant population such as Birmingham into ‘segregated communities’.

“It’s not the country I want my children and grandchildren to be growing up in. And I think illegal migration cuts to the most important question. The biggest duty of the British state [is] to keep you safe and to defend your borders. And so we should take the most robust action,” he told a gathering of party activists.

He then went on to accuse immigrants of “undercutting the wages of British workers, exacerbating the housing crisis and making it harder for people to access GPs and dentists”. He added, “It is making us a more divided country. Those of you who live in Birmingham have seen that yourself, with intercommunal violence, with segregated communities, with diminishing public trust; and we’ve got to change this.”

While all leadership contenders are promising a ‘crackdown’ on immigration on the basis that it is one of the top concerns of the voters, Jenrick’s remarks are the most incendiary yet and have made many of his own colleagues uncomfortable.

“This divisive language only alienates the public and it is a real glimpse into what life would be like with Jenrick as leader,” one party insider was quoted as saying.

Apparently, Jenrick’s comments were prompted by ‘No whites allowed’ slogans spray-painted in some places in the Birmingham region. Asked to expand on the comments, he told the Times: “We must confront the uncomfortable truth that integration is failing in too many parts of our country. Politicians need to confront big challenges like community cohesion, not bury their heads in the sand.”

The race has just begun and coming weeks are likely to see more such manifestations of xenophobic hysteria.

Flying the flag for Urdu in Bloomsbury

Not long ago when one thought of Bloomsbury, what came to mind was Virginia Woolf and the famous literary salons of the Bloomsbury group, not a site for Urdu enthusiasts gathering to split hairs over Mir Taqi Mir’s poetry.

A group of literary aesthetes from South Asia who are working quietly to introduce Urdu to new audiences chose Bloomsbury Studio and Theatre as the venue for a seven-hour marathon event featuring poetry readings, discussions and musical performances to mark the launch of a new platform called the Voice of South Asian Art and Literature (VSAAL).

It brought together leading voices from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal on one platform. These included Iftikhar Hussain Arif, poet and scholar from Pakistan; Salman Akhtar, Indian-American academic and writer; Francesca Orsini, an Italian scholar of South Asian Literature; and noted Pakistani actor and director Saba Hameed.

The people behind the initiative, who are from different walks of life — media, law, political and social activism — took time out from their day jobs to stage what promises to be the start of a new annual feature to look forward to.

To sing or not to sing the national anthem

In an echo of the nationalist culture wars in India, England football manager Lee Carsley’s refusal to sing the national anthem in a match against the Republic of Ireland has sparked a political row, with Conservatives accusing him of a lack of patriotism.

Victoria Atkins, the shadow health secretary, said it was about “patriotism”. “I’m very, very happy and proud to be singing the national anthem,” she said. Carsley, however, insisted that it was a personal choice. “It is something I’ve never done but I fully respect both anthems,” he said.

He was a backed by the Labour Party and other liberals. “It’s up to him… what he does in terms of singing the national anthem or standing there quietly,” said Wes Streeting, a Labour cabinet minister.

Carsley, who has previously identified as Irish, said he never sang either the English or the Irish national anthem before a game. “I don’t think it makes me or anyone else who doesn’t sing any less committed,” he said. Try telling that to pseudo-nationalists.

And finally...

Britain’s policing minister Dame Diana Johnson had her purse stolen during a conference for senior police officers called to highlight what she described as “an epidemic of antisocial behaviour, theft and shoplifting” sweeping the country.