Mum couldn't take kids to park over fears she'd be targeted for wearing hijab during North-east riot

Riots linked to the far-right movement throughout the summer have caused refugees and migrants in the North East to feel “hunted” and “scared”, according to a refugee charity.

The Action Foundation has raised concerns about the lasting impact of anti-immigration demonstrations that occurred in towns across the country in August. These events caused disruption on the streets of places including Middlesbrough, Hartlepool and Sunderland.

Individuals speaking with the Newcastle-based organisation for its latest report, released on Monday, shared feelings of being "scared, lonely, sad and angry" after witnessing the violent disorder. Bridget Stratford MBE, who heads the charity's Young Lives programme, informed that one child experienced a physical attack due to their ethnicity, while numerous others reported racist incidents and demands to "go back home". She recounted how one family's windows were shattered and another had evidence of neighbours exhibiting antisocial behaviour towards them.

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Ms Stratford commented on the psychological aftermath: "Even months after the events, they could vividly articulate how they had been emotionally affected and how this led to heightened anxiety as they returned to school in September." Malali, an asylum seeker who escaped the turmoil of Afghanistan with her family, has shared her harrowing experiences since arriving in Tyneside.

Speaking to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, she revealed that fear of being targeted for wearing a hijab prevented her from taking her children to their local park, reports Chronicle Live.

The 33-year-old, who settled in the area in July, shortly before the riots, recounted how she resorted to wearing a hat or hoodie instead of her traditional headscarf for mundane tasks like shopping or taking her son to the dentist. She compared the necessity of stockpiling supplies in anticipation of the unrest in Newcastle on August 10 to the perils back in her homeland, where she once worked to educate girls.

Malali, not her real name for safety reasons, expressed the difficulty in shielding her children from reality: "The children were asking why and I didn't want to explain to them. Even in Afghanistan when there was an explosion and my daughter would ask what it was, I would say it was a car tyre bursting. I didn't want to let them know that this was their life."

She added: "To know that even here this can happen and we can have that feeling of not going outside or being free to walk in the street... it was scary. Fortunately it stopped and now I feel completely free wherever I go. I have that feeling of peace inside me now."

Malali remarked that the distressing reverberations of the riots are now just a "drop in the ocean" compared to the warmth and welcome they've experienced since arriving in Tyneside, insisting they "won't stain our memories of the North East". A survey by the Action Foundation, which offers housing assistance, English classes, and other migrant support in Tyne and Wear, revealed that out of 38 refugees and asylum seekers, 58% felt personally impacted by the riots and 32% reported feeling frightened. Over half altered their daily routines due to safety concerns, opting to stay indoors, live with relatives or friends, avoid certain places, or delay appointments.

One woman with refugee status shared: "I didn't go out for two weeks. I went out one day with my baby, a teenager screamed at me: 'Go back to your country!'" Another expressed: "My wife was crying and wanted to go back to Iran. Scared of being attacked."

Some individuals have reported lasting effects from the harrowing incidents, with difficulties sleeping and feelings of being "hunted" or "living in a hidden war". However, there has also been a sense of encouragement due to the support shown by the North East towards migrant communities.

Action Foundation CEO Duncan McAuley commented: "The deep impact of the riots on those who contributed to this report and the scale of support shown for migrants following the civil unrest exposes the need for a genuine, meaningful and constructive conversation about immigration. The violence and racist attacks last summer should be a call to dialogue and change across our communities in the North East."

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