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| Cornwall a Safe Haven for one and all? |
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Page 2 of 6 However, one might logically deduce that if a culture remains relatively unexposed to another for a considerable amount of time, there is no reason for prejudice and negative attitudes to develop. In other, more diverse areas of the country, racism often progresses as a direct reaction to the threat of a racial minority obtaining what is perceived to be a disproportionate amount of influence over a racial majority; the Cornish have never experienced such threat. So why then do we now see such acts of blatant bigotry? The incidents in question have been reported in national newspapers such as the Independent and even international bulletins in Pakistan and the Middle East, as well as causing outrage in the resident Muslim community. Over a period of three weeks, the slate-roofed church, situated in an idyllic location near Carnon Downs, was subject to repeated attacks defaming Islam. Graffiti supporting Cornish nationalism was inscribed onto the building’s exterior. In earlier incidents, perhaps most disturbingly, a pig’s head was nailed to the entrance doors and ‘KKK’ – Ku Klux Klan – was painted in red gloss by its side. The most recent wave of attacks involved BNP slogans. Some believe that these attacks were mere expressions of a faction that has been gathering momentum for decades. The National Civil Rights Movement (NCRM) has stated that racist violence and abuse in Cornwall has been ‘ignored by too many for too long.’ Indeed, reports of some attacks in the Cornwall have made online news since the late 1990s, with the website Indymedia.org having an archive devoted entirely to racially motivated assaults in Cornwall, part of a widespread online campaign to quash such incidents. In 2000, Devon and Cornwall police released figures that detailed 149 incidents of reported racial abuse. This number had increased to 802 by May of 2008, an augmentation of over 500 per cent in 8 years. I contacted the equality and diversity department of Cornwall Council regarding the recent problems in Quenchwell. |
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