Is Islamophobia the major blind spot in London’s fight against discrimination?
That’s the warning issued by Hina Bokhari, a Liberal Democrat member of the London Assembly and the first woman from an ethnic minority to lead a political group within the institution.
Despite repeated pledges from Mayor Sadiq Khan, no specific training on Islamophobia has yet been implemented for staff at the Greater London Authority (GLA), she laments.
The elected official, who is herself Muslim, says she has repeatedly been the target of racist abuse: “I’ve been told on a train to go back home, that I’m not welcome, that I’m not British.” She points to a growing normalization of anti-Muslim hate, which she believes has reached a critical level, especially after last summer’s riots and ongoing tensions related to the war in the Middle East.
Plenty of Promises, Few Concrete Actions
Responding to these concerns, a spokesperson for Sadiq Khan noted that mandatory training on racism, prejudice, and unconscious bias is already in place across the GLA. The mayor has also invested £15.9 million in combating all forms of hate—including Islamophobia—through the Shared Endeavour Fund, which has reached tens of thousands of young Londoners.
But for Hina Bokhari, these measures are too general: “There has still been no specific training on Islamophobia, not from the GLA, not from the Metropolitan Police, and not from the London Fire Brigade.” She stresses the severity of this shortcoming: “For many Muslims in London, this isn’t about perception or political debate—it’s about real and immediate safety.”
Statistics Misaligned with Lived Reality
Official figures from the Metropolitan Police show a 16% overall decrease in hate crimes in 2024 (22,300 offenses), including a 2% drop in Islamophobic crimes (1,350 recorded cases).
However, independent organizations like Tell Mama paint a much darker picture: the group reported 6,313 anti-Muslim incidents in 2024, a 43% increase compared to 2023. More alarmingly, physical assaults and verbal abuse in public spaces have surged by 72% over the past two years.
According to Iman Atta, the organization’s director, underreporting to the police is a key factor: “Victims often prefer to contact us directly, in full confidentiality.”
A Tense Climate and Normalized Attacks
The rise in Islamophobia has been fueled by several recent events: the October 7, 2023 attacks carried out by Hamas, retaliatory strikes in Gaza, and the spread of misinformation regarding the perpetrator of a triple murder of three girls in Southport, which sparked riots.
Hina Bokhari recounts a period when she was afraid to leave her home for fear of being attacked in the street because of her faith or skin color.
She has also been verbally assaulted during public engagements and at London Bridge station: “A woman shouted at me that all Muslims should die,” she recalls. “This kind of language has become so normalized that people feel entitled to say it to your face.”
Training to Understand and Prevent
Ironically, after the October events, Bokhari says she benefited from a training session on antisemitism. She now calls for equal treatment: “Understanding what a Jewish person experiences taught me a lot. We need the same for Muslims.”
In response to this demand, City Hall emphasized that Mayor Sadiq Khan has worked to build bridges between Muslim and Jewish communities, and that fighting all forms of hatred remains a priority.
But Bokhari insists: “It’s not because the mayor is Muslim that he should act. It’s because he is the mayor.” She believes only a proactive awareness policy and mandatory training on Islamophobia will help curb this scourge.
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