Demonstrators attend the Pink Ladies protest at Glasgow Green on September 12 in Glasgow Green.
Photo: Jason Fong / Strathclyde Telegraph

Students have been cautioned on the dangers of anti-immigration protests in the run-up to freshers’ week, with another major demonstration taking place this weekend at Glasgow Green and across Scotland. 

The university’s secretary released an email on Friday, addressing concerns of new and returning students. 

Dr Stuart Fancey said: “Following the concerning unrest in Glasgow earlier this week, I understand that many of you may feel worried. 

“The University stands firmly against racism and discrimination and is working closely with Police Scotland to understand any risks associated with Saturday’s event”. 

The advice comes after several attacks were documented and reported on by regional and national news this summer. 

Just last Tuesday, the BBC reported that two men – Liam Murphy aged 19 and Brian Lawrie, 20, received a combined sentence of 16 and a half years for a series of racially aggravated attacks on a group of Chinese students in Glasgow’s city centre last September.   

This years’ summer has witnessed continued trends of aggravated far-right violence towards minority groups in the city.  

The attack on delivery driver Muhammad Jawad Yaqoob, who was pelted with a traffic cone by a far-right mob in Glasgow in July, brought national attention to the nature of randomly targeted attacks against minority ethnic individuals, committed by violent extremists. 

The extent of attacks in Scottish cities is largely down to the fact that Scotland’s prevailing socioeconomic problems are being blamed on “economic migration”, which has spurred the narrative of politicians such as Reform’s Scottish leader, Malcolm Offord and deputy leader Thomas Kerr, who was present at this weekend’s protest.  

Such narratives are also attracting online vigilantes to the city, and it is believed that notorious far-right influencer and former Scottish sea merchant Charles Veitch was behind the camera inciting the attack on Muhammad Yaqoob.  

When asked to address this urgent and prevalent issue, a spokesperson for the University of Strathclyde said: “Strathclyde is proud to be a welcoming, inclusive and international university, in a friendly and welcoming city. The safety and wellbeing of our students is a priority, and there is no place for racism, intimidation or harassment in our University community or in the city. 

 “Any student who feels unsafe, experiences abuse or witnesses an incident should report it to Police Scotland and contact the University so that support can be provided. Students can access help through Student Experience, Strath Union Advice Hub, University security services and Strath Union’s Safe Taxi scheme with Glasgow Taxis. 

“We continue to work closely with Strath Union, Police Scotland and city partners to help ensure students feel safe, supported and welcome in Glasgow.” 

The month of June witnessed unprecedented violence in Belfast, where arson attacks were perpetrated against minority ethnic communities. Both the Times and the Irish Times, as well as several other reporters, described the propensity of violence carried out by extremists in Belfast and Southampton as “spontaneous” and “race-based pogroms”. Similar attacks were also reported in Glasgow and Edinburgh during this time.  

Rising instances of these attacks are no doubt symptomatic of the ennoblement of right-wing parties, who have hijacked online media to project a populist narrative of blame predominantly on immigration.  

Students should be made aware of the various support networks available at the university, including StrathSafe360, where students can issue anonymous reports within operational hours.  

University security services can be contacted over the weekend in the event of an emergency on campus, and students should always dial 999 in the event of an emergency when off campus grounds.