I was asked by a journalist to answer a few questions about what is happening in Belfast and Northern Ireland and, as I am not sure how much they need or will be published, I thought the full discussion might be useful.
How would you classify the current unrest in Belfast in political and social terms?
There is no doubt that the events in Belfast and Northern Ireland more widely are racially motivated. The perpetrators have made their motivations very clear as have those who have poured fuel on the fire such whether it is the British or American far and extreme right or reactionary tech billionaires. In fact, it has been termed pogroms by some commentators and I believe that this is not an inaccurate description considering the clear threat to safety racialised communities targeted by these attacks have been under.
Have racist attacks in Northern Ireland become more socially normalized in recent years?
What we are seeing is the result of decades of mainstreaming of far-right politics which have led to the emboldening of extremists on the ground. This is not simply the results of the actions and discourse of far right parties, but the failure of mainstream politicians and the media to deal with the threat seriously. Instead, they have participated actively in this mainstreaming by euphemising far-right politics as ‘populist’, treating them as ‘legitimate grievances’ or providing bad faith actors with disproportionate access to public discourse. This is despite the fact that these politics are supported by a minority of the population (albeit a concerning, potentially growing and increasingly emboldened minority).
The UK government announced on Wednesday that it’s going to “intensify” its crackdown on so-called illegal migrants living in Northern Ireland. Is that a smart reaction amid racist riots as the open border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland has been an ongoing political issue – or might it be more fuel to the fire of right-wing extremists?
This is a terrible reaction and that will only serve to strengthen the far right and embolden them further. We know that trying to appease or mimic the far right does not work. Countless studies have shown that this always ends up legitimising its politics without moderating its demands. The Labour party has been complicit in the situation since taking power and it continues to go down a road it knows only serves to fuel the far right. Doing so, it puts at risk countless communities who will be victims of the emboldening of far-right actors on the ground as well as democracy more widely.
What role do social media play in the escalation of and mobilization against migrants?
It is not so much social media which has played a key role as social media as it exists. What leads to the spread of misinformation and far-right politics is the fact that these platforms are owned by reactionary actors with clear ideological goals and that too little is done to counter them and protect democracy. It would also be mistaken to ignore the role of mainstream media which has actively participated in the mainstreaming of far-right politics and whose owners often share similar ideological goals. Therefore, if we are serious about countering the far right and protecting democracy, we need wide scale radical reforms of our public space and of our media ecosystem.
Who benefits politically from a worsening of public sentiment against migrants?
As always, those who benefit from the rise of the far right are the reactionary elite who seek to protect their interests and privilege. They turn our attention onto scapegoats who have little voice and power to fight back and distract us from the roots of the polycrisis and what is making people’s lives increasingly insecure. These reactionaries do not speak for the people, but for themselves.