AN anti-racism campaign group will hold a protest in Edinburgh this evening against the hate campaign urging people to “punish a Muslim”.
The Stand Up To Islamophobia Day event organised by Stand Up To Racism Edinburgh is one of a series of similar demonstrations taking place across the UK.
The protest aims to counteract the social media and letter hate campaign which awards “points” for committing crimes against Muslims.
Among the speakers at the event on the Mound between 5.30pm and 6.30pm will be Scottish Trades Union Congress president Satnam Ner and Leith Labour councillor Gordon Munro.
The Muslim Women’s Association is encouraging people to get involved with their Love A Muslim Day campaign on the same date.
A spokeswoman said: “We are asking supporters to post positive messages to Muslims on social media throughout the day. The perpetrator of the hate letter is inciting hatred and violence and this act must be prosecuted as a hate crime.
“Sending poison pen letters has always been a very serious crime precisely because of the distress it causes, and the fact that the author is anonymous is disgusting cowardice.
“To counter the negative and distressing effect on Muslim friends in England receiving the hate letter we are focusing on bringing our communities together on April 3 by inviting everyone to combat Islamophobia online using hashtags #NoToIslamophobia [and] #RageAgainstRacism.
“We call on our political representatives to support anti-racist campaigns and make sure 2018 is the year we stamp out such bigotry.”
Munro said: “We are fighting on a new front. Our friends and neighbours are being attacked in their own homes. We call on all arms of the state to act to prevent this abuse and to use their substantial powers to identify and prosecute the culprits.”
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon condemned the hate campaign after Labour’s Anas Sarwar raised it at Holyrood, saying Scotland will “stand united” against it.
Police have advised people to go about their daily lives but remain vigilant, and have committed a “substantial” response to dealing with the campaign.
No letters have been sent to anyone in Scotland, police say, but Muhammad Adrees, convener of the Muslim Council of Scotland, said the campaign has triggered Islamophobic incidents. They include a schoolboy allegedly asking a girl if he could pull her hijab off and film it.
Other incidents are said to include a woman allegedly being punched in the face outside a supermarket, and another woman who was allegedly racially abused by three men and assaulted on a train.
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