Irish Black Friday: The World Is Going Mad, and I’m Scared

This isn’t about discounts and deals — it’s about growing anti-immigrant rhetoric taking ever more space all over the world

Today is Black Friday. The economic frenzy fabricated in modern times to make consumers spend even more money leading up to the end-of-year celebrations. But this morning, Black Friday took on a new meaning for me. I woke up to fretful news of riots in Dublin city centre last night. The unrest was instigated by anti-immigrant sentiments following a devastating incident involving school children earlier in the day.

I’m not Irish, I don’t sound Irish, and even more worryingly, I don’t look Irish. Neither do my girls, despite their half-Irish father. I’m scared for myself; I’m scared for my children. I’m scared for our future in a land where we may become unwelcome.

I’ve been living in Ireland for almost a decade now. In all this time, I’ve felt welcomed here. Well, at least until very recently. I had my baby asleep in the buggy while I walked home when this older guy on a bike called me scum. I felt scared for the first time in Ireland. Deep within my heart, I knew that wasn’t an isolated incident never to be repeated. It was the perfect example of a growing anti-immigrant sentiment spreading around Ireland. It isn’t something I just heard about; I experienced it first-hand.

The far-right is gathering more and more support

To be fair, it’s not only Ireland, though; it’s around the world. Brexit wouldn’t have happened without the anti-immigrant rhetoric. Neither would Trump have succeeded without his “build that wall” chant. Argentina and The Netherlands recently elected far-right governments, a sign that something is brewing worldwide. It’s a bitter soup stirred by the unheard blaming the voiceless.

Yesterday, a man attacked a school teacher and three kids in Dublin. The police are still investigating the incident, and not many details about the case are known at the moment. The man is not Irish-born; he’s a naturalized Irish citizen who has lived here for over 20 years. That marks him as a foreigner attacking Irish children, and this horrendous incident was used as fodder for last night’s riot.

I didn’t see the news until this morning. But my husband did. He was hoping I would, somehow, miss it. I wouldn’t feel scared and unsafe. He said he had never seen something like that in Dublin. I hadn’t either.

But photos and videos of the riot were everywhere — on social media, news outlets, and even in messages on WhatsApp. I saw the burning buses, cars, and even the local tram, the Luas. All on fire. People breaking windows and looting shops.

The riots didn’t fix the violent crime that happened earlier in the day. The man was stopped by another man, a Brazilian Deliveroo driver, who used his helmet to hit the assailant and prevent further stabbings. Another passerby took away the man’s knife and threw it away. Other people held him down. Moments before, a school-care assistant used her own body to protect the children — she’s still in hospital, her condition considered serious. One of the girls stabbed, only five years old, is in critical condition, her life hanging on a thread. I’ve heard rumours that she might be Brazilian, too.

It doesn’t seem like the terrible knife attack was a hate crime — but the riot last night was undoubtedly spurred on by hate. A spiteful, dark, bubbling hatred against all immigrants indiscriminately. Hate towards me, even if indirectly. To say I’m shocked and fretful isn’t enough.

“Yesterday we experienced two terrible attacks — the first was an attack on innocent children; the second was an attack on our society and the rule of law. Each attack brought shame to our society, and disgrace to those involved, and incredible pain to those who were caught up in the violence. As Taoiseach I want to say to a nation that is unsettled and afraid — this is not who we are, this is not who we want to be, and this is not who we will ever be.” — Leo Varadkar, Irish Taoiseach (head of the Irish government).

We can’t be dismissive any longer!

I see the people involved in the riots called thugs all over social media. Leo Varadkar, the Irish elected leader, says “this is not who we are”. But it is. I’m not trying to claim that all Irish people think like the rioters — I know they don’t. But dismissing the riots as something that won’t happen again and thinking the sentiment of very few isn’t shared by a considerable many is to feed oxygen to the fire in an attempt to stop it. It doesn’t work; it’ll make it even stronger.

There is a growing anti-immigrant sentiment in Ireland. It can’t be denied and dismissed anymore. It can’t be labelled something that doesn’t happen here. I felt it on my skin a few weeks ago. It mustn’t be disregarded — it must be dealt with face-on. Otherwise, it’ll grow and grow until it takes over.

Last night’s rampage was blamed on a “lunatic, hooligan faction driven by far-right ideology”, according to Garda Commissioner Drew Harris. And it was. In a WhatsApp voice message originally sent by an account called “Kill all immigrants” and shared widely through groups, you can hear:

“There isn’t any guards in this group. They can’t control us all. Seven o’clock be in town, everyone, bally up. And any fucking jippo, foreigner, anyone, just kill them. Just fucking kill them. Let’s get this on the fucking news. Let’s show the fucking media that we’re not a fucking pushover. No more foreigners are allowed in this country, no fucking more. Enough is enough.” — Transcription from an unknown Irish man sending a message from account called “Kill all immigrants”.

I don’t know if the audio recording above is real. In a world of fake news, it could have been fabricated. But the sentiment isn’t manufactured — many Irish people feel that foreigners are “scumbags”. Hearing this message spoken by an Irish guy in an accent that until now I connected to friends, to home, is harrowing.

The world is going mad. Far-right politicians are gaining power all over the map. Regular people in the streets spit out hate. If we just dismiss this as something that won’t happen again, these people as just “thugs”, we’re missing the point. Most importantly, we’re missing the opportunity to deal with it before it gets out of hand.

“Those involved brought shame on Dublin, brought shame on Ireland and brought shame on their families and themselves. These criminals did not do what they did because they love Ireland. They did not do what they did because they wanted to protect Irish people. They did not do it out of any sense of patriotism, however warped. They did so because they’re filled with hate, they love violence, they love chaos and they love causing pain to others.” — Leo Varadkar, Irish Taoiseach (head of the Irish government).

Over thirty people have been detained after the riots, and it’s estimated that 500 took part in the disturbances. I hope Leo Varadkar and the Gardai will do more than throw a handful of people in jail and consider the job done. There’s something awry, and I fear for the safety of my family in this country that once embraced me with open arms.

The far-right isn’t fringe any more. It’s right here, and it’s growing. As an immigrant, I’m scared. Very scared.