British Muslim communities have come together on Saturday 23 November in an unprecedented gathering to address the alarming rise in anti-Muslim hatred following the devastating Post-Southport Attack Riots of Summer 2024.

The violence we saw in Summer 2024, triggered by Islamophobic disinformation and resulting in targeted attacks on mosques, Muslim communities and others across 27 towns and cities, represent a watershed moment that demands immediate and decisive action. These events occurred against a backdrop of increasingly emboldened far-right rhetoric, fuelled by the return of Donald Trump to the US presidency and the subsequent normalization of anti-Muslim sentiment and racism more broadly in mainstream political discourse across the Western world.

The landmark National Islamophobia Strategy Meeting, convened by the Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), brought together community activists, organizations, grassroots representatives and academics from across the country to develop a unified response.

This critical initiative comes as Home Office statistics reveal nearly 40% of all religious hate crime being targeted at Muslims, in the year ending March 2024.

“The events of Summer 2024 have made it clear that we must move beyond words to decisive action,” said Zara Mohammed, Secretary General of the Muslim Council of Britain. “Our communities face unprecedented challenges, but we are responding with unprecedented unity and determination.”

The meeting identified three key areas requiring immediate attention through dedicated taskforces:

• Development of practical measures for comprehensive recording of Islamophobic incidents
• Creation of accessible support networks for victims
• Implementation of localised reporting mechanisms
• Regular analysis of trends to inform targeted interventions
• Special focus on isolated communities and gender-specific experiences

• Documentation of lived experiences within Muslim communities
• Development of research capacity to understand systemic issues
• Analysis of institutional impacts on Muslim communities
• The real-world impact of our toxic social media landscape
• Creation of partnerships with civil rights organisations and human rights groups

• Strengthening grassroots networks and initiatives
• Building educational and awareness programmes
• Developing interfaith and wider community engagement
• Supporting cultural and artistic initiatives to challenge misconceptions

This community-led initiative builds on the Prime Minister’s recent recognition of Islamophobia as a serious issue in Parliament on 13 November. However, words must now be matched with concrete action. The meeting called on the Government to formally recognize and combat Islamophobia by adopting the All-Party Parliamentary Group on British Muslims’ definition and establish funded, independent monitoring mechanisms that maintain Muslim community confidence.

With a 25% increase in religious hate crimes compared to the previous year – the highest since records began in 2012 – the communities gathered last Saturday have called on all sections of British society to support these initiatives and join in the work of creating a more inclusive Britain.

Working groups will develop detailed proposals within these areas over the next 6-10 months.

Source: Muslim Council of Britain