OPINION – Baroness Williams: Our hate crime action plan
by Baroness Williams of Trafford, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Communities and Local Government.
There are 8 million people who identify as being ethnic minority in Britain today.
Some live in tight-knit communities, others don’t; but each adds to the rich cultural diversity our country is famous for.
The UK has some of the strongest laws to protect people from violence and bigotry, and for the most part we all get along. And yet the scale of hate crime remains a serious concern, especially for Jewish communities.
Earlier this month I visited Stamford Hill’s Charedi community and met some of the people who work so hard to make their local area a better place. The visit was arranged by Chaya Spitz, the Director of the Interlink Foundation which works to help disadvantaged people in the area.
Interlink are just one example of great work being done in Stamford Hill. I met Elliot Hambling’s team at Hatzola who provide a medical first responder and ambulance service to those in need, and Raizy Nieman and her Ezra Umarpeh company that loans free medical equipment to local hospitals.
I also met Rivky Weinberg and Rabbi Abraham Pinter who are providing the next generation with the tools to get on in life at the brilliant Yesodeh Hatorah Senior Girls School.
But alongside these great servants of their community I also met those who had suffered at the hands of people of hate.
People like Ita Symons who shared her own personal Holocaust history, about how she was saved from death alongside so many other Jewish boys and girls by Rabbi Solomon Schonfeld.
Tragically in 2015 in London there are still Jewish people suffering abuse and intimidation. It is unacceptable. No one in modern Britain should live in fear because of who they are.
One way in which you can help is through reporting hate crime.
In the Jewish community you have the Gold-standard organisation for reporting hate crime – the Community Security Trust (CST). Their accurate data and twice-yearly reports give us a real insight into the problems faced by Jewish communities.
We want the same quality of reporting for all of Britain’s different faith and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, and my department is doing its part to make this happen.
We set up and continue to fund the first dedicated organisation to monitoring anti-Muslim hatred in Britain, Tell MAMA. They provide valuable insight into some of the issues faced by British Muslims as we look to counter the voices of division.
My Department also funds True Vision – an online resource which allows people to report hate crime of any sort directly to their local police. It’s quick, easy to use and effective.
Last week I met with members of the government Hate Crime Independent Advisory Group and reinforced how important getting people affected by hate crime to use one of these resources.
Alongside this I discussed our commitment to fully shaping the new Cross-Government Hate Crime Action Plan, which will set out a number of different ways in which we can both stop hate crime happening before it occurs, and offer the right support to those that are victims. Over the coming months I will report back on how this action plan is shaping up.
In my early years I experienced the height of the Troubles in Northern Ireland, so I know the pernicious consequences of hate crimes. Make no mistake: I and this government are determined to put end it.
We are One-Nation. What matters most are not our differences, but what unites us. We are joined together by our shared British values, and everyone has a responsibility to ensure they are never undermined.
Baroness Williams responsibilities include integration and faith, women and equalities, and race equality.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
