Good morning.
In an age of social media, the shocking disturbances seen across a number of British towns and cities over the last few days, required little by way of organisation beyond a shout out to rally at a particular place and time. The numbers gathering may be a tiny proportion of the UK population, and their violence merits condemnation more than publicity, yet to tackle it, we need to understand who is responding to the call, and why?
I’m struck that whilst the images of the protesters show them to be almost exclusively white, and largely male, they are not confined to a younger demography. Many could pass as my own age. Their common factor appears to be a claim that the Britain they now live in does not accord them the opportunities, status and prosperity to which they feel entitled. One person put it to me succinctly a few years ago, after I spoke out against far right marches in my time as Bishop of Dudley, “This place used to belong to people like me, it respected men like my grandfather. Now it’s been taken over by someone else”. The recurrent chant of this week’s protesters, “Whose streets? Our streets!”, echoes that sentiment.
My own theological research is focussed on what it means to belong, particularly the part religious faith plays in enabling people to feel included. Jesus Christ didn’t just create a set of beliefs and dogmas, he formed a community, one which rapidly reached out to encompass disciples drawn from every part of the Roman Empire. People from all walks of life felt they belonged together as brothers and sisters. What’s more, they learned to express that belonging through acts of charity and generosity, both within and beyond the church family. I see the same when I observe Manchester’s other religious communities, and I celebrate it.
That’s why expressions of belonging grounded in the rejection of others are anathema to the very core of my faith. It’s why banners and shouts that demand a return to a lost white, male hegemony, not least ones that clothe themselves in Christian symbols, disgust me. There can be no moral equivalence between racism and anti-racism, between inclusivity and bigotry, between hatred and love. The Britain we need to build must be one where all are accepted, where everyone can find space to grow and flourish, a Britain that respects our diverse constituencies and cultures, in everything from how communities dress to their right to build distinctive places of worship. The answer, when protestors shout “Whose streets”, is not “Our streets” but “Everyone’s streets”.