Following the recent riots which took place around the country, Frome ARC (AntiRacist Communities), a local group which is working to make Frome proactively anti racist, say they want everyone to feel safe and welcome in the town.
Frome ARC said, “Witnessing the recent racist riots, if only on TV, has been shocking and hard to believe for everyone. But we know many in the Frome community will be deeply personally affected by feelings of fear and anxiety and isolation. Our group hopes to help.
“We are a small culturally diverse group of Frome residents; born here, moved here, raised or are raising children here, work, study or are retired here. We came together in recent years to face up to the harmful reality of racism in our society and support each other when it personally hurts one of us or our children, as well as to help change things for the better in town so that everyone, especially children, feels safe, welcome and treated with dignity.”
A spokesperson for the group describes their own feelings last week in the wake of the riots.
“At the moment I feel upset every day, with butterflies in my stomach,” they said. “I’m aware I’m a potential target. I have brown skin and a Muslim name. When I walk out of the house, I feel scared. I’ve never ever felt like this before as an adult, but I did as a child growing up in 1970s London.
“On my way to the pub this evening I felt there was a potential situation when I saw a group of young people on the street. It went through my head are they going to say something, am I safe? They didn’t notice me, so I was nervous to ask them to let me go by.
“Nothing happened, it was just a feeling. But I thought if I felt like that, how would someone more traditionally dressed feel and anyone for whom English is not their first language?
“Instead of celebrating our multilingual society we have members who hold back from speaking to their children in their mother tongue when out on the streets for fear of hostility, which sadly some have experienced in Frome’s streets and parks. I am walking around in Frome where I’ve lived confidently for many years but now with anxiety about my family, friends, especially people who are more outwardly Muslim.
“I want people to know that in our small town we have people feeling scared and vulnerable. We have people who arrived as refugees and asylum seekers who escaped violence, persecution, in some cases torture. Our town is made up of people from many different backgrounds and nationalities and what has been happening nationally has triggered very painful anxieties for many.
“Parents are worrying about their children. Children are worrying about their parents. In recent months in Frome members have reported a bubbling of racist hate incidents around town and in schools. Even if only a tiny minority, they cause pain and fear that lasts.
“In more diverse cities like London there is more recognition of the everyday experience of racism and community knowledge for dealing with it. In Frome, racism is a difficult thing to talk about – as if you’re creating the situation, or as the person suffering it you have to come up with the solution. It’s hard. Frome ARC wants to help change that, so no one is isolated and instead we treat racism as a community problem to deal with and ensure everyone is protected from.
“We are looking forward to the Multicultural Frome Festival on October 13th, supported by Frome Town Council and Somerset Diverse Communities, an annual celebration of the many diverse heritages, nationalities, languages and cultures that make Frome the home that it is for us all today.”
Support and further information:
· Frome Town Council is open, welcoming and accessible to all and offers signposting through the Community Hub and organisations such as Citizens Advice and other supporting groups. They can be contacted at info@frometowncouncil.gov.uk
· For support with specific incidents, contact SARI – Stand Against Racism & Inequalities at www.saricharity.org.uk
