2005 Birmingham riots

The Birmingham riots of 2005 occurred on two consecutive nights on Saturday October 22 and Sunday October 23 2005 in the Lozells area of Birmingham, England. The riots were derived from racial tensions between the Black British and British Asian communities, with the spark for the riot being an alleged gang rape of a teenage black girl by a group of Asian Pakistani Muslim men. The rape allegation has never been substantiated. No evidence has been found to support the rumour nor has any victim come forward (further rumours asserted that this was because the victim was present in Britain unlawfully and feared deportation). The clashes involved groups of African-Caribbean and Asian men committing serious acts of violence against various targets from both communities. The riots were connected to the deaths of two men, 23-year-old Isiah Young-Sam and 18 year old Aaron James.

Background

The majority of the British Asian population in the area are Muslims of Pakistani and Bangladeshi origin. The black population is predominantly Christian of Caribbean origin. The respective religious ideologies should not be taken as an indicator of great significance when trying to understand the cause of the riots; although they obviously aid in the distinction between the two communities, the animosity that preceded the rioting appears to have been largely based on local economic rivalry combined with possible agitation from opposing criminal gangs [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4373040.stm] [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4368994.stm] .

During a 2004 documentary titled "Who You Callin' a Nigger?" writer and broadcaster Darcus Howe picked up and commented upon a backdrop of mutual ethnic minority racism both in the West Midlands and the rest of Britain. It should be noted that his documentary did not focus solely on the differences between the African-Caribbean and British Asian community but also included tensions between the African-Caribbean community and recent African immigrants as well as inter-Asian racism. The problems specific to the Lozells area appear to be centered on the prevalence of Asian-owned businesses, the 'unfair treatment' and 'derogatory attitudes' of each community to the other.

The alleged rape

There has never been agreement on the date the alleged rape occurred and the exact circumstances remain unclear: descriptions of the event change dependent on source. The earliest news items concerning the issue seem to begin with the BBC reporting a 'Stop traffic' protest on October 18 2005 [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4354554.stm] .

The rumours involved a 14 year old girl of Jamaican heritage attempting to shoplift from a branch of 'Beauty Queen Cosmetics'. When caught by the British Pakistani owner, she either offered herself sexually or he proposed to her that in exchange for sex she would be free to go. The girl is further raped by a group of eight to nineteen men. Afraid of being deported due to her illegal immigrant status the girl refused to provide a statement to the police. The police appealed for any evidence of the event occurring and stated at the very least her immigrant status would not be an issue until after the allegations had been dealt with. Despite the appeal, forensic searches and questioning of several individuals, the allegations have never been substantiated and no witnesses have come forward.

Rumours and riot

Local pirate radio stations, most notably Hot FM and one of its DJs 'Warren G' discussed the details of the alleged rape and a picket was set up outside the premises of the shop in question. There were also calls for boycotts of other British Asian businesses. Ajaib Hussein, 33, the shop owner denied the event ever occurred and blamed business rivals for starting the rumour. A public meeting was held on Saturday October 22 at the New Testament Church of God. At around 17:45 the meeting ended and violence erupted outside. Gangs of men fought running battles and at 19:15 Isiah Young-Sam, who later died, and another person were stabbed. As the night progressed the police recorded 80 offences occurring. Rioting also occurred to a lesser extent during the night of October 23. Between 30 and 50 individuals were thought to be involved in the most serious incidents [http://www.guardian.co.uk/race/story/0,11374,1599126,00.html] . Three men, Azhil Rashid Khan, Waqar Ahmed and Afzal Asraf Khan were convicted for the murder of Isiah Young-Sam. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4992966.stm] . Dowaine Maye plead guilty to the manslaughter of Aaron James. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4932116.stm] In July 2007 six people were convicted of various offences related to the riots. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/6903078.stm] [http://icbirmingham.icnetwork.co.uk/mail/news/tm_headline=&method=full&objectid=19472252&siteid=50002-name_page.html]

In the aftermath of the riots a solidarity march for unity was conducted by African-Caribbean, white and British Asian women and children. [http://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/content/articles/2005/10/26/one_community_vigil_feature.shtml] . On November 5, 2005 graves in the Muslim part of a local cemetery were desecrated. Vandals who pushed over and destroyed several grave stones left behind leaflets insulting Muslims. The leaflets were signed by a group calling itself 'Black Nation'. There is no previous history of any such organisation and it is not known whether it does in fact exist [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4406760.stm] . Dr John Sentamu, the first African archbishop in the Church of England strongly condemned the desecrations [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4409886.stm] .

Press reports

On February 21, 2006 the Press Complaints Commission censured "The Voice", the leading Black newspaper in Britain, for reporting the alleged rape in terms which suggested it was unchallenged fact (the newspaper had headlined "Gang of 19 rape teen").

ee also

* Urban riots

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4373040.stm BBC News article: "Fear and rumours grip Birmingham"]
* [http://www.ligali.org/article.php?id=351 Ligali Media article: "Rape, lies and auntie beeb"]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/west_midlands/4369814.stm BBC News: "'80 crimes' in night of violence"]
* [http://observer.guardian.co.uk/focus/story/0,6903,1604591,00.html Observer (UK) newspaper: "The new colour of British racism"]
* [http://scotlandonsunday.scotsman.com/uk.cfm?id=2133762005 Scotland on Sunday report]
* [http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5478,17009672%255E663,00.html Herald Sun (Australia): "Racial riots over rape claim"]
* [http://news.independent.co.uk/uk/crime/article321662.ece The Independent (UK): "One dead, ten injured in 'rape' riot"]
* [http://www.digitalhandsworth.org.uk "Photographs of the 1985 Handsworth riots"]
* [http://www.newstatesman.com/200510310010 Darcus Howe bids farewell to Rosa Parks]
* [http://politics.guardian.co.uk/columnist/story/0,9321,1604830,00.html Politics of the Ghetto (Nick Cohen)]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/your_community/bham_riots/ Local BBC coverage]