English man shows solidarity with Poles in UK
PR dla Zagranicy
Roberto Galea
28.06.2016 12:14
A young Englishman has shown solidarity with Poles following racist attacks after the Brexit referendum. These attacks also have been slammed by PM David Cameron.
One of the cards posted through the front doors of Polish families in Huntingdon. Photo: Twitter.com/@howgilb
On Saturday, police launched an investigation in the town of Huntington in the southeast of the country, where laminated cards reading “Go home, Polish scum” and “No more Polish Vermin” were put through the mailbox of local members of the Polish community on Friday morning.
A 20-year-old Huntingdon resident, Thomas Norman, wrote on social media: “To counter what has been posted through certain doors in Huntington. I thought I would start this off. Polish People Welcome Here!”
“Please note any other people from any other country this applies to aswell [sic.]. Other than that please share to get this message out there!,” Norman wrote.
The UK’s National Police Chiefs’ Council said that following the referendum where Britons voted to leave the EU, reports of hate crimes increased by 57%.
These included racist graffiti sprayed on the building of a Polish cultural centre in London.
In the early hours of Monday, graffiti saying “F**k you,” and “Go Home” was sprayed on the front entrance of the Polish Social and Cultural Association (POSK) in Hammersmith. London’s Hammersmith district is home to a large Polish population.
Police are treating the incident as a racially-motivated crime. The graffiti is believed to be linked to Britain’s vote to leave the EU.
In an address in the British parliament on Monday, Prime Minister David Cameron condemned the attacks: “In the past few days we have seen despicable graffiti daubed on a Polish community centre, we’ve seen verbal abuse hurled against individuals because they are members of ethnic minorities.”
“Let’s remember these people have come here and made a wonderful contribution to our country. We will not stand for hate crime or these kinds of attacks, they must be stamped out.”
Cameron added that he had spoken with his Polish counterpart Beata Szydło to express his concern, and “to reassure her that we are doing everything we could to protect Polish citizens in our country.” (rg)