Dabinderjit Singh of the U.K. Sikh Federation has claimed the Sikh community had seen a “huge increase in hate crime” since the trial and criticism of legal allowances for the Kirpan have also come from the owner of ‘X’ – Elon Musk.

No doubt such calls will lead to Sikh communities demanding better recording of Sikh hate crimes and we support calls for this. Sikh communities have been targeted on the basis that they are assumed to be Muslim, and also because they are Sikhs. Attacks have usually come from perpetrators espousing racism, anti-Muslim hate and anti-Sikh sentiment which may have been generated because of political issues in India.

Under current legislation, Section 139 of the Criminal Justice Act (1998) says that there is a plausible defence for a person charged with having an article with a blade in a public place, as long as they can prove that they had the article with them for religious reasons. This dispensation allows initiated Sikhs to carry the Kirpan which is usually covered by their clothing. However, if the Kirpan is used in an offensive action, then it can be deemed to be an offensive weapon and the law is therefore clear that it cannot be drawn with the aim of harming anyone or anything.

After the Digwa verdict last week, the Sikh Federation said that the blade that was used by Digwa, “was not the normal Kirpan worn by fully practising Sikhs”. There was also ample evidence in the trial that Digwa was fixated on weapons and that his comments during the attack on Nowak, demonstrated him to be a man who was highly aggressive. For example, the prosecution barrister – Nicholas Lobbenberg KC said that Digwa was “a man who likes weapons” and who had been “training with weapons since he was 12”. He had also made numerous searches for them online.

We believe that calls for the Kirpan to be outlawed do not take into account the clear boundaries and limitations that are placed on the use of the Kirpan in the United Kingdom. Currently, it can only be carried for symbolic purposes and the vast and overwhelming majority of Sikhs have never drawn on the Kirpan. Indeed, cases such as that of Digwa involving Sikh men rarely have come up.

Acknowledging the Life of Henry Nowak

We acknowledge the pain that the family of Henry Nowak are feeling and the immense loss that they are enduring. A young man with so much to live for has lost his life and his future. The loss of young lives is even more impactful since the future of our society rests on their shoulders.

The sad reality is that so many young men are losing their lives to knife crimes and in this instance, Henry Nowak had the misfortune to come across a violent and troubled man who had a fixation on weapons. Remembering his life and his name are important; he mattered.

What also matters is that Sikhs should be allowed to carry the Kirpan and practise their faith. Much of Sikhism is based on honour, pride and selflessness and Sikhism must always have a place in Britain’s cultural identity. It is a part of the country and we should acknowledge and celebrate it. This means continuing to allow Sikhs to have a core element of their faith identity, whilst recognising the responsibility that goes with it.

Read More: Rapist admits anti-Muslim attack on Sikh female stranger he targeted on a bus.

The post Religious Symbolism Like the Kirpan Should Not be Outlawed appeared first on TELL MAMA.

We are concerned though, by what we are seeing within the cases being reported to us. This means a greater level of aggression towards British Muslims in cases and we are receiving more discrimination cases.

Tell MAMA has documented year on year rises in anti-Muslim hatred that can be found here. We have also noted the rise of aggression in street based anti-Muslim hate cases through our reports.

We remained committed in seeking justice for victims of anti-Muslim hate and in ensuring that policies can reflect this growing problem going forward.

If you are affected by any of the issues raised in this article, please do not hesitate to contact us and you can also report in through this link.

The post Rise in Anti-Muslim Hate Continues to be an Ongoing Social Issue appeared first on TELL MAMA.

The post highlights the issue of anti-Muslim and racist graffiti that sometimes become interchangeable and therefore we would encourage anyone who knows about this incident to report in through the Greenwich local authority link below. You can also contact us here in Tell MAMA on 0800 456 1226 and we will endeavour to work with the local authority in getting this information through to them and to the relevant police authorities.

Greenwich local authority said:

“We strongly condemn the racist graffiti recently sprayed outside Greenwich Islamic Centre. Hate and intolerance have no place in our borough.

“As we approach Ramadan, a time of celebration and community, this is an intolerable act. Thank you to our Caretaking Team for removing it swiftly.

“We are working closely with police and community leaders to ensure those responsible are held accountable, and our Community Safety Enforcement Team have increased patrols in the area. The Royal Borough of Greenwich stands united against racism and Islamophobia.

We strongly encourage residents to report any incidences of hate crime HERE“.

Photo: From Greenwich Local Authority

Read More: How Police Stopped a Far Right Terror Attack on a Scottish Mosque

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Between June to September 2025, we have noted that there have been 17 cases reported to Tell MAMA that have involved attacks on mosques or Islamic institutions. This makes on average, 4 institutions that have been targeted each month over 4 months. The graphic listed above, shows the scale of the issue that we are dealing with, whilst this Government tinkers round the edges,  and generally is clueless and politically driven in who it works with. This Government has been in place for more than 15 months now and there has been a political vacuum, where there should be have been a clear plan to tackle levels of hate and specifically, anti-Muslim hate. Discussions about a ‘definition of anti-Muslim hate’ have wasted time, resources and generated more mistrust in this work, when the laws are clear and when better enforcement should have been the strategy. Whilst Government has been talking about a ‘definition of Islamophobia’ – it has led to a greater belief in some communities of a two-tier set of principles in relation to different communities and has not helped the work of countering anti-Muslim hate in any way.

Details and Statistics of Cases

Since June to September 2025, we have recorded the following in Tell MAMA:

• 913 cases that have targeted Muslims in the United Kingdom for anti-Muslim hate with many of those being people who were not born in the country and who are visibly different to the majority population.
• 17 mosques and Islamic institutions have been targeted which we have mapped out in the previous graphic. This is deeply alarming since attacks on mosques and Islamic institutions send a much wider message to those who use the mosque, that they are not safe. It creates greater fears within communities who use the faith institutions.
• Victims of anti-Muslim have reported to us comments that have included, “Leave the U.K” and ‘go back to your country“. These comments are very similar to ones that were targeted at British Muslims and African Caribbean and African communities post the Brexit vote. This points to some association with the political discourse around migration and whilst these are topics of national debate, we are flagging the fact that they are having real-world impacts on the lives of people going about their daily activities. This targeting of individuals because of their perceived faith or their race, or around perceptions as to whether they ‘could be a migrant or asylum seeker’ is toxic to community relations, local trust and social cohesion going forward.

Commenting on the release of this data, the Director of Tell MAMA said:

“It is shocking to see the volume and the high numbers of cases that we are receiving into Tell MAMA. We have diligently documented, over the last 13 years, year on year rises in anti-Muslim hate and this year, we may well have the highest numbers surpassing the 2023-2024 figures of over 6,000 cases reported to Tell MAMA. This comes at a time when real political leadership is missing.”

Read more: “I was terrified”: Islamophobic Incidents up by 600% in U.K. since the Hams attack.

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Correspondingly, we have seen anti-Muslim sentiment on some social media platforms, notably ‘X’, where disagreement with such a day, has led to anti-Muslim tropes and sentiment. Sadly, in today’s world, discussions about Hijab and Muslims in general, leads to the circulation of toxic tropes about Muslims. It has become a tedious cycle where themes and topics of discussions about Muslims, turn into racist and anti-Muslim tropes.

Tell MAMA does not take a public position on the ‘World Hijab Day’. Our work is fundamentally based on supporting the victims of anti-Muslim hate, whether that be online or offline, and in monitoring and mapping anti-Muslim hate in the U.K. This work also involves working with police forces across the United Kingdom so that victims can receive access to justice.

We are also mindful and aware that Muslim women who do not wear the Hijab and those perceived to be Muslim, also suffer anti-Muslim prejudice and hate. It is also to be noted, that many of the cases that we received from British Muslims, are from individuals who are visibly Muslim and who wear the Hijab, the Niqab, Muslim prayer caps and cultural clothing such as ‘thobes’.

What we wanted to add is that the volume of anti-Muslim sentiment on platforms such as ‘X’ has worryingly grown and is taking a sharply upward trend. Ultimately, what Muslim (or any) woman wants to wear, is not of anyone’s concern and it is up to the woman’s choice as to how she covers her body – or not.

We are also mindful that some Muslim women in other countries in the world may feel political and social pressures to wear the Hijab, such as in Iran. However, Britain is not Iran and Muslim women in the U.K by enlarge have a choice as to whether they wear the Hijab or not. Which goes back to our central point, that what women choose to wear, or not, is their choice.

Sadly, armchair pundits who sit on platforms like ‘X’ fail to see this basic tenet and some in their defence of ‘saving women’ from wearing the Hijab, spread anti-Muslim tropes and prejudice. We just wish that people think and take a step back before posting comments on social media platforms.

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Though the guide has a focus on anti-Muslim hatred and antisemitism, its advice can, and should, be used by anybody who has suffered any kind of hate crime, which can occur due to race, religion, sexuality, age, disability, gender or any other characteristic.

Tell MAMA, the CST and many other agencies have repeatedly stated, that as levels of reported hate crime continues to grow in the UK, collaborative efforts to educate and inform those affected by it are increasingly important.

Introductory statements within the guide include:

Iman Atta OBE, Director Tell MAMA

We have seen a rise over the last five years in the reporting of anti-Muslim hatred. Tell MAMA has been at the vanguard of supporting victims of anti-Muslim hatred, whilst collecting evidence and mapping, monitoring and measuring incidents across the United Kingdom. Through partnership work in the production of materials such as this guide, we hope that we can collectively make it easier for people to report, take charge and feel confident when they report hate incidents. We stand together with other communities in working to counter hatred, intolerance and bigotry.

David S Delew, Chief Executive, CST

Despite our best efforts to combat all forms of hate crime and hate incidents, levels of antisemitism and anti-Muslim hatred in the UK are unfortunately on the rise. CST works hard to protect, support and inform victims of antisemitism. This collaborative guide will be an important tool for all those affected by hate crime in understanding their rights, and how to navigate the complicated criminal justice system.

Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP, Communities Secretary:

Hate crime against any community is entirely unacceptable. Everyone in this country has a right to live without fear of abuse or attack and we must, as a nation, firmly condemn hate crimes and all other forms of bigotry. It is vital that victims have the confidence to report crimes to the Police. This Government is committed to making sure that those who perpetuate hate are subject to the full force of the law – but we cannot do this alone. This guide is an example of how we can work together to stamp out hate crime and support victims in bringing their cases forward so that justice can be served.

Alison Saunders CB, Director of Public Prosecutions, Crown Prosecution Service:

We want communities and individuals to have the confidence to come forward and report these offences, no matter how minor they may appear. This guide is an important way of ensuring that victims can make informed decisions about the most appropriate course of action, taking account of their particular personal circumstances. Hate crime divides communities and the CPS has an absolute commitment to bring perpetrators to justice and support victims and witnessed through the criminal justice system.

The post Launch of Guide on Hate Crimes Demonstrating Strong Partnership Working appeared first on TELL MAMA.

The individual took time to cut out words from a newspaper and at the side of the document is a picture of a person with ‘Allah bastards’ written across it.

Emblazoned across the document are the following words,

“Get Out. You Paky (sic) Muslims, pig faced murderous cowardly bastards. Murdering young children. Watch out I will come and kill your family.”

The post Threatening Letter With Anti-Muslim Abuse & a Hanging Person Sent to Post Office appeared first on TELL MAMA.

“Islamophobia is awful and you know my sister was abused at a street corner.”

“I saw a young sister have something thrown at her from a passing car.”

“I was spat at on the tram and no-one helped me.”

These are actual comments from victims of anti-Muslim hate who have been targeted because of their faith and the abhorrent actions of the perpetrators should be wholly condemned by right thinking people in our country. Time and time again, we have come across such cases that have been reported into us and where we have assisted victims and ensured that evidence has been collected and passed onto law enforcement. Longer term casework support has also been provided to victims.

Sadly, we have also come across statements that have promoted homophobia and take this statement.

“I have been attacked so many times for being Muslim, but for gays and those who are against Islam, they (the Government), will do anything for these people who are against God.”

“These ‘homos’ are the ones that are trying to break Islam and bring their evil into our communities. When we get attacked, they are behind it in Government and they want to change us. We will not change because of their evil.”

Or take the fact that we have collected further evidence of harassing and intimidating texts being sent to colleagues and staff members, harassing them with homophobic comments. These are people who readily (and rightly), talk about how anti-Muslim hate needs to be tackled, whilst targeting people with homophobic statements and comments. It is truly bizarre and sad that they cannot see how twisted their logic is.

We have collected these statements and texts and where we come across them, we will publish who is behind them and any campaigns that are run against people because they are gay or perceived to be from LGBT communities. Such homophobia needs to be stamped out and we will give it no quarter. That also goes for anti-Muslim prejudice, which must be tackled with vigour, focus and determinism. There is no moral relativism in our work. If we tackle hatred, it is working to challenge all forms of hatred.

The post You Simply Cannot Tackle Anti-Muslim Hatred Whilst Being Homophobic appeared first on TELL MAMA.

In light of this, very rarely do women who wear the veil have the chance to speak about the impacts of people’s prejudices against them. How many newspaper reports, when reporting on political developments about the Niqab, have then interviewed women who choose to wear the veil. Very few have and in fact, we can’t recollect seeing a Niqab wearer being approached by news outlets when discussing the topic recently.

We want to highlight the other side of the coin – the fact that women who wear the Niqab are subject to prejudice, aggression and open hatred at points. It is also important to note that over the last 4 years of work within Tell MAMA, it is clear that women who wear the Niqab suffer more incidents of anti-Muslim hatred and more aggressive incidents of anti-Muslim hatred, including assault.

These are the words of a Muslim woman who wears the Niqab and who recounted her experiences for us.

“I’m worried about the day my very young daughter suddenly tunes into the daily abuse, realises it’s her mother that these respectable-looking strangers – maybe parents of her schoolfriends during pick-up or drop-off, maybe the people behind us in the supermarket queue – are talking about / to.

“And what do I tell her? I’ve brought her up to believe people of all faiths are equally worthy of respect; the majority of her schoolfriends are Hindu or Christian. How can I explain to her that these people hate me because of the visible clues to my faith – particularly my outfit? Me, who taught my little girl that she should never care what other people thought about her appearance, to be proud of her mixed-race looks and unique dress sense.

“What if she’s ashamed to be seen with her mother? What if she’s angry with these strangers for hating on her mother, starts believing non-Muslims are abusive bad people who hate Muslims? What if she develops a fear of white strangers instead of her beautiful trademark confidence and friendliness? What if she’s present when the trolley-shoving, the jostling, the swearing, escalates into a more vicious kind of physical violence? There’s only so much verbal abuse and sly jostling/ shoving I can take passively before I turn round and tell them to have some manners.

“I’ve had women my mum’s age making explosion sounds at me and calling me ISIS, men my age telling me I’m disgusting, women younger than me telling me to f*** off back to Saudi. I’ve been called terrorist, dirty scum, f***** freak, Islamic whore, brown c********, Arab f****, Jihadi b*****…… All in front of my 7-year-old daughter. I had a trolley rammed into my belly when I was pregnant; it was after a bunch of skinheads made knife gestures at me that I stopped going out by myself until I gave birth and no longer felt like a walking target as a pregnant niqabi. I’m pretty confident that I could defend myself but I couldn’t risk the life of my unborn baby.

“If I’m out with my husband I get dirty looks and hissed insults at most; people only become audibly abusive or openly confrontational when I’m out without my husband – unfortunately the presence of my little girl doesn’t seem to silence them in the same way.”

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