I wasn’t sure whether to send another message out so quickly, but felt I needed to provide an update on the work the council is doing to reassure our communities and calm tensions this week. I also want to talk about the context of the disorder that we have seen across the country over the last week.
Council officers continue to be out and about across the borough and working with our local policing teams to offer communities any support that they may need. They’re meeting with local faith sector representatives, as well as the voluntary and community sector to provide information, advice and practical support.
This isn’t purely in response to events on Sunday and more widely – they are always out building relationships and supporting harmonious interactions between people and communities across Solihull, but they have stepped it up during this time so that we can be sure we are doing all we can as a council.
We’re also being proactive in other ways, doing things like monitoring any changes in levels of anti-social behaviour or graffiti to make sure that we have a clear picture of what is happening across Solihull.
What is clear though, is that much of that picture is not out in the streets, it is online.
Social media disinformation has provided the catalyst for many of the protests and much of the violence and the disorder we have experienced across the nation.
It encouraged the violence in Southport, as people believed the Islamophobic lies being spread about the identity of the perpetrator of the terrible attack that claimed the lives of three young girls and left many others in intensive care.
Even where things are not entirely fabricated, when and where they took place can be deliberately misrepresented to suit an agenda, appearing and reappearing in people’s facebook and twitter feeds long after the event.
This is most egregious when done by those with large followings. People who choose to ignore the responsibility this carries in order to further their own ‘careers’ by chasing ever greater levels of engagement. It is wilful, it is damaging, and the effects are felt by real people, in real communities like ours.
Yesterday there were some videos shared which purportedly show an assault taking place in Solihull and someone seemingly admitting to carrying out the act. The video is categorically not from Solihull, so those linking the two either don’t know our town or have chosen to lie to suit their agenda. In neither case should they be spreading lies about our town and our residents.
Children are taught at school not to trust what they see on social media, but those of us who left school long before social media existed didn’t have that benefit and must instead apply common sense.
As I said earlier in the week, everyone in Solihull must be free to live without fear and we must not follow the path seen in other parts of the country where we have seen violence, thuggery, Islamophobia, and xenophobia.
The police have been clear that there will be arrests for violent disorder.
Think for yourself, be cautious, and don’t get swept up in the torrent of misinformation. Remember the people who are scared and worried because of what they are seeing on their social media feeds.
Thanks, I’ll provide further updates as and when I have them to give.
Councillor Ian Courts.