Breaking the Mould of Race Riots

C and M church image The horrific scenes of people being dragged from their homes and their houses burnt down in Belfast has shocked the world.

Race riots are a terrifying ordeal for the victims who are unjustly targeted for no fault of their own. A spirit of mob-madness takes control of normally sane people and drives them to do unspeakable atrocities.

All the inequalities and injustices of living in an urban industrial society which are throbbing beneath the surface of many people’s lives are suddenly triggered by some unexpected action of a ‘foreigner’, which releases all the safeguards and constraints of sanity and allows the suppressed tensions to break loose.

It only takes two or three people armed with their mobile phones to trigger a riot in some inner-city area and soon people from outside the area come to join in and happily face their common enemy – the police – who represent all the forces of law and order that oppress the poor, the weak, the deprived and the statusless in society.

I thought that we would never have such terrifying scenes of uncontrollable madness again in Britain. However, I was wrong.

It is a terrifying experience to be there, as I was in the Notting Hill riots of 1958. I moved from West London to Tottenham, and 50 years later I witnessed the same thing in the Tottenham race riots of 2011, but I thought that we would never have such terrifying scenes of uncontrollable madness again in Britain. However, I was wrong – it is there in Belfast. Why is this?

An island mentality

Race relations have frequently been on a knife edge in Britain since the arrival of the ‘Empire Windrush’ with the first West Indians in 1948. Before that, there were virtually no black people in Britain. I was born in London in the 1920s and I never saw a black man until the Second World War, when some came with the American army. We are an island people who have defended our land against all invaders for a thousand years.

When I was a boy, a common weather forecast would say: “FOG IN THE CHANNEL: EUROPE CUT OFF”. We believed ourselves to be in the centre of the universe and all maps of the world showed Britain in the centre, with the British Empire straddling the world. We proudly owned or controlled one-third of the world’s land surface and we dominated much of the seas with our Navy, and we were prepared to use gunboat diplomacy to settle disputes.

Of course, in those days there were no boat people arriving on our shores. If anyone attempted such an entry, their boats would have been sunk before they reached Dover! We were a proud people and we did not welcome those from outside our shores, in the main. I am ashamed to admit it, but we used to say, “The Wogs start at Calais!” We were different, and we loved our island home which we would defend against all comers.

The Windrush Generation

The West Indians broke the mould with the advent of the ‘Empire Windrush’ in 1948. They were not foreigners – they were from the British Empire and they had British passports. They spoke English, they attended the same churches as we had in Britain and their education had been British. In history lessons, we did not teach them about colonial slavery – we taught them about English kings and queens! So, when they came to Britain, they said they were ‘going home’!

The one thing they did not have was a white skin. We tolerated them to drive our buses and underground trains so long as they did not date our sisters or daughters. But we never really accepted them as one of us.

The children in our schools, however, were usually colour-blind, playing with each other regardless of race. Gradually, more and more people welcomed them as neighbours, but an undercurrent of social exclusion remained in many areas.

The people of Ulster, however, have had very different cultural tensions – but migration from outside of the British Isles has been very limited there until very recently.

Sorry – No Coloured!

My first church was in West London where the first West Indians settled and I warmly responded to their needs, helping them to find jobs and accommodation even when most of the local adverts said, “No Coloured”. My home became locally known as the ‘Jamaican Labour Exchange’ and I married them, christened their babies, visited their homes, and I even had one homeless young Jamaican couple whom I married spend their week’s honeymoon in my home!

We were attacked by the British National Party (BNP), who painted the words ‘NIGGER LOVER’ on the pavement outside our house. They meant it as an insult, but we took it as a great compliment.

When we moved to Tottenham, we had the largest multifaith congregation in Britain and we were attacked by the British National Party (BNP), who painted the words ‘NIGGER LOVER’ on the pavement outside our house. They meant it as an insult, but we took it as a great compliment.

An issue of deprivation

There have been race riots in many areas of Britain such as Brixton, south London, and the St Paul’s area of Bristol and many other inner-city places of deprivation. These are typically the areas where migrants come to live because, with a few exceptions, they would never be able to afford to live among the middle and upper classes in Britain. The only place they can find accommodation is among the poor working-class Brits who do simply not have the clout to keep them out. They come to live in the areas where the residents already feel deprived, and oppressed. The middle and upper classes who control the legal system hand down savage penalties to those who are caught in the riots, but that does not solve the social issues that have led to the riots.

The middle and upper classes who control the legal system hand down savage penalties to those who are caught in the riots, but that does not solve the social issues that have led to the riots.

Of course, there have been a few professional people who have tried to make major social changes, but in my experience very few have actually lived and worked among the poor and the deprived to be able to present creative solutions to those in decision-making positions of authority in the nation.

Five-o’clock Shadow

In the 1970s, when we lived in the East End of London, Monica and I and a few other clergy were the only middle-class people living in Newham.

The Director of Education lived in Sevenoaks,
The Director of Finance lived in Guildford,
The Director of Social Services lived in Leigh on Sea
The Director of Housing lived in Leamington Spa!

We used to say that the East End of London suffered from ‘Five- o’clock shadow’ – all the directors left at 5 o’clock on Fridays and were not seen until Monday morning. They did not have to send their children to local schools or live in the social housing they controlled.

I have spent much of my life trying to deal with the issues of deprivation that lead to riots – so, it causes me great sadness to see the same issues that we have faced breaking out now in Belfast.

Tackling social deprivation is a necessity

The central issue is that the British middle and upper classes in every part of the United Kingdom do not really care about the working classes and they never have cared, since the days of the Industrial Revolution when they annexed common land and built walls around their own properties, erecting hidden social fences to guard their security.

We never will solve the problems in our inner-city areas that generate the riots, until we are prepared to tackle the social class and differential value system issues that control British society.

We never will solve the problems in our inner-city areas that generate the riots, until we are prepared to tackle the social class and differential value system issues that control British society. The majority of immigrants end up in these deprived areas which are already facing significant challenges. It is no wonder that tensions become high, especially when some of the more recent arrivals come from differing cultures and warzones. So, it is deeply saddening, but not surprising, to see another outbreak of violence among the poor and the deprived whose existence we choose to ignore.

Future Hope

It is no good expecting the churches to solve the problems – because they too are usually middle-class institutions! That said, there are individual churches who are doing fantastic work in deprived areas, but they are still few are far between.

I am sorry if this all sounds like the rambling of an end-of-life disappointed old man. But what I am saying, you may hate to hear – but it is truth. And as Isaiah and Jeremiah both said – “Truth has stumbled in the streets” of our cities.

But it is my urgent prayer before the Lord that someday some brave little group of believers – true followers of the Lord Jesus – who was crucified for our salvation – will come together in the Name of the Lord and really tackle the big issues in our society.

Notes
Image above taken in 1962 when Clifford and his wife Monica were ministering at that church.

Clifford's books on this topic include, "Black-and-White in Harmony" which was published in 1958 at the time of the Notting Hill riots, and "FREE AT LAST? – The Tottenham Riots and the Legacy of Slavery.” (2015)

Rev Dr Clifford Hill, 12/06/2026

Feedback:

	Peter Morrow (Guest)	15/06/2026 19:06
Thanks for your question, Jonathan First of all it depends what you mean by “hijack” - the PSNI said there was no evidence of paramilitary involvement on this occasion, but that wasn’t my point. My point relates to the Christian response - especially those in Britain for whom street protest seems now to be all the rage (if you’ll pardon the pun). I’ve already acknowledged that concerns exist, but there are others: educational underachievement among working class white boys for example - in NI that means Protestant/Loyalist boys - but I see no-one rushing onto the streets in support of that reality. Wouldn’t it be better to hand them an education rather than a petrol bomb, or close their schools? And this brings me to the response I’ve seen among some Christians to the violence on our streets: the repudiation of it seems less than clear: like a forbidden curiosity, although maybe I'm wrong... but the dangers seem not to be realised. Can’t people see where this leads? How do we respond to pro Hamas rallies or endemic Antisemitism if we are wooly in our response to violence? Have we no better answer? Is the Jesus just another preference among us, another identity marker among the many which have divided endlessly the Western world? I’ve watched attitudes harden in Britain: from the jolly flag waving during the Brexit campaign, through support for MAGA Christians, to street protest, each invoking Almighty God to a flag and a cause of our own making. And I've seen it all before. It’s the one road, and it's the wrong road. We should know better.
	Jonathan Holbrook (Guest)	15/06/2026 10:56
Thanks for your reply, Peter. I accept that there was hijacking of the protests in Belfast, whether by paramilitaries or other groups, but would you not say there is still genuine anger and distress in communities at what they perceive as unchecked immigration and the effect it has on them? The difficulty comes in trying to separate the two.
	John Shipton (Guest)	15/06/2026 01:15
My family on my mother's side lived and were born in Canning Town, East London. Her brothers were dockers as were relatives. When the Black Shirts of Oswald Mosley tried to intimidate the Jewish community in the late 1930s, the East London dockers and local residents stood together to oppose the fascists marching through the area, Like the Nazis of Germany who hated the Jews and wanted their extinction, the British Union of Fascists supported Adolf Hitler and his policies. Having visited Northern Ireland in its troubles, I met members of the catholic IRA and the protestant UDF who hated one another. I saw the devastation caused on both sides, one calling for a united Ireland and the other vividly voicing no surrender. I witnessed the bullitt holes fired from guns onto church buildings and was on the way in visiting an owner of a cafe whose premises were not far from the Europa Hotel in Belfast. The frontage of the hotel was hit by a car bomb while the cafe was completely destroyed. The job situation then was run by discrimination with protestants favoured more rather than catholics. It has taken years for communities living there to come and work together forgetting the past of division. The problem now arising is migrants who have arrived in the UK and Northern Ireland without checks and ID, some of which are involved with crime and using various weapons they are accustomed to. Hence the stabbings as reported. Many folk in the UK are afraid and concerned about the immigration situation which politicians seem to ignore. The riots seen on the streets have been caused by balaclava extremists who have taken the law into their own hands to fan the violence seen. In Belfast, they are using this as a weapon of hatred and division. Until those in authority listen and take heed, anarchy will show its ugly head again, and again, without forewarning. May it be suggested too by using the phrase "pay attention, because what you are doing might cause problems which could lead becoming out of control." Common sense!
	Peter Morrow (Guest)	14/06/2026 22:28
Jonathan, if those commentating here had the slightest knowledge or understanding of the experiences of living in a part of the United Kingdom influenced and controlled by paramilitaries both in and out of government, and what that actually means, they might be less inclined to seek to ‘understand’ riots, withhold condemnation of violence, or speak so casually about warfare and casualties. That, and Ulster’s Loyalists and Unionists (of which I am one) who so suddenly seem to be in vogue because it suits some who have never otherwise had any particular concern for them, will be dropped again and betrayed again in an instant should it suit the British government be it one led by Labour, the Conservatives, Reform or Restore. It isn’t funny and it isn’t a misjudgment. Some of the views here are playing with fire.
	Jonathan Holbrook (Guest)	14/06/2026 15:14
Funny, I know I should be condemning the riots in Belfast but I find myself siding more with the views of the unnamed Guest, whose gist is (I believe) that we need to understand the frustrations and despair of the white working class on whom the failings of our much-vaunted multicultural society have been largely foisted. Perhaps we have to hold both these views together and not push one to the exclusion of the other. My frustrations are aimed more at those politicians whose knee-jerk condemnation of the violence conveniently blinds them to the fact that it is largely their policies of uncontrolled immigration which has brought this situation about.
	Margaret Wiltshire	13/06/2026 08:45
I value the comments made by the un-named Guest, who has written that the issues of the ordinary people need to be taken into account, by those who hold themselves in authority. But the comment that I want to make is in reference to Dr Hill's last paragraph, in which he writes: it is my prayer ... that a brave little group of believers ... will come together in the Name of the Lord and really tackle the big issues in our society. I would say that is happening today. We have Bishop Cei Dewar, Revd Chris Wickland and Rev Brett Murphy, all of the Confessing Anglican Church, speaking out bravely. Last Wednesday evening they led 1,000 people in prayer for a peaceful solution to the problems. Whenever they speak out, they also make evangelistic calls, for people to give their lives to Christ. These and a few other brave men are standing in the gap, against the evil brought into this country by out of control immigration and an evil religion. In warfare, it is inevitable that there will be casualties; there were in both World Wars. But as Christians we are called to stand strong for righteousness and justice for all.
	Thomas Dallyn (Guest)	12/06/2026 22:54
Thank you for your response. What I still cannot understand is why so much effort is being spent explaining the anger of the mob rather than condemning what the mob actually did. Yes, people can be angry. Yes, people can feel ignored. Yes, politicians can fail. But since when has anger become a justification for attacking innocent people? History is full of examples of where this thinking leads. In Rwanda, people were encouraged to blame an entire group for society's problems, with horrific consequences. In the American South, racial hatred and mob violence were often justified by claiming people had legitimate grievances or fears. Looking back, we rightly reject those arguments. Anger did not justify violence then, and it does not justify it now. I live on a large council estate. I know people who have had difficult lives, suffered poverty, crime, and neglect. Yet the overwhelming majority do not burn homes, threaten families, or target people because of who they are. You seem to be arguing that because people are angry, we should spend our time understanding why they behaved this way. Of course we can understand the causes of anger. But understanding something is not the same as excusing it. As Christians especially, we should be asking a simple question: does anger justify harming innocent people? The answer must be no. It was no in Rwanda. It was no in the racial violence of the American South. It is no today. People are responsible for their actions. Anger may explain behaviour, but it never makes evil right.
	Thomas Dallyn (Guest)	12/06/2026 22:41
Thank you for your reply. I agree that there are genuine concerns about immigration, social deprivation, and political leadership that need to be discussed honestly. Ignoring those concerns helps no one. However, I do agree with Clifford Hill's main argument. While there may be a number of factors behind the unrest, it is difficult to deny that race and ethnicity have been part of what has happened. There have been reports of lists circulating that identified properties occupied by foreigners and ethnic minorities, with some of those homes subsequently being targeted. Many of those affected were ordinary families who had nothing to do with the issues being protested about. That does not mean that everyone who is concerned about immigration is racist, nor does it mean that every person involved was motivated by race alone. But when people are singled out because they are foreign, black, or from a minority background, we should be willing to acknowledge that race and ethnicity are factors in what is taking place. As Christians, we should be able to hold two truths together: there may be legitimate concerns that need addressing, and at the same time violence, intimidation, and attacks on innocent people are completely wrong. I believe that is the point Clifford Hill is making. Whatever our views on immigration policy, Christians cannot justify burning homes, terrorising families, or targeting people because of their nationality, ethnicity, or skin colour. We are called to a different standard, one shaped by the teaching and example of Christ. My concern is that some people seem so determined to avoid calling this racial targeting that they end up downplaying what is happening to innocent people. We should be able to condemn criminal acts committed by individuals while also condemning the targeting of entire communities. Blessings.
	Peter Morrow (Guest)	12/06/2026 22:19
Dear Guest, thanks for your response. I reply only to say that my most recent comment quoting the Belfast pastor was added before reading yours.
	Peter Morrow (Guest)	12/06/2026 22:15
The senior pastor of a Pentecostal and evangelical Church in inner city Belfast, has reported on how the events of this week have affected his congregation. Some members of his church "who have been with us for 20 years" were "getting put out of their home, had their house attacked, windows smashed, houses beside them burned". "They're good Christian people and they're getting put out just because they're black."
	(Guest)	12/06/2026 22:14
This response is much more helpful than the sarcasm and wilful misjudgments first put out. I agree with much of what you say, however yet again no one is asking why these men are so angry? What has led to this violence, which of course is unacceptable. This is crucial in moving forward as a society. Condemning the violence is easy. What we need is to look beyond this. Grapple with the real issues. Otherwise we do no better than our miserable politicians, who apportion blame every time onto the white people of this country who are justifiably fuming with what’s happening to their towns, to their people. I feel strongly this article and attitude is out of touch with the reality of these issues in Belfast and also across the UK. The more I talk to Christian’s the more I understand why we are in this mess. We truly are the most judgemental group of people. Blessings to you, we will agree to disagree on this article and continue to pray for mercy upon us all.
	Peter Morrow (Guest)	12/06/2026 21:16
Dear Guest, my sarcasm, while perhaps a little pointed, was deliberate and entirely helpful, and it makes an important point in a way that sometimes straightforward debate can't. Of course, no one wants a return to the kind of trouble we had in the past, and yes, that absolutely should not have to be said on a Christian forum. No one wants violence on the streets. And that's where the statement needs to end, with a full stop, not a statement followed by a 'but'. Pointing out that riots, which indiscriminately target innocent people, both migrants and locals (you do know that a local lost his home, that schools were closed at the peak of the exam season, shops, supermarkets and offices were closed, workers were sent home early, trains and buses were cancelled, roads were closed, masked men set up checkpoints at the entrance to the main motorway, a foreign nurse was attacked on her way into hospital, and that this happened in towns across the province?) Maybe you live in NI, maybe you know what that's like - I certainly know what it's like up close and personal - but pointing this out does not mean that people are ignoring the problems caused by illegal immigration or any other social ill in any part of the country. There is another difficulty as well, and it is this: failure to stand against the kind of street rioting/burning/looting in the same way as rightly opposing attacks like the one in Belfast on Monday night contributes to the problem. There is nothing good in any of it: nothing good about grooming gangs, attacks by migrants, and no justification whatever for the burning of innocent people from their homes: it is all wrong. Another problem follows: it is entirely impossible to call out organisations like, for example, Sinn Fein in Ireland, for their past violence (yet current hypocritical condemnation of it), and it is entirely impossible to call out any the riots or civil disruption we have seen on our streets, if we explain away the riots in Belfast this week. It really shouldn't be that difficult to say a number of things at the same time: rape is wrong, knife attacks are wrong, and riots are wrong. This article does not blame white British people (if anything this website has been waving the Union flag quite a lot over the past few years); it does not ignore the other problems; it does not shift the blame - it says that the problems are many, varied and complex, and it says violence is wrong. Full stop.
	(Guest)	12/06/2026 20:44
This discussion is beyond frustrating. It’s no wonder we’re in such a mess. Huge assumptions, misinterpretations and completely wrong judgements are being made. These men rioting are clearly not believers so why Thomas would you expect them to behave any better? Obviously believers do not riot and commit violence like this. I certainly did not suggest this. No one here is trying to understand WHY they are at this level of rage. The inference in this article is it’s because they're racist and it’s all about race. It’s really not. You can’t go on ignoring a whole swathe of the British population and expect them to sit down and take it. We must start taking their concerns seriously, at the very least give them a voice. Perhaps they wouldn’t then resort to violence. Stop patronising, judging and condescending these men. We’re at boiling point in our nation and you’re offering sarcasm, assumptions and utter misjudgments. God help us. BTW I’m not a gentleman, I’m a woman. Again another very wrong assumption.
	Thomas Dallyn (Guest)	12/06/2026 20:10
Thanks for that article. It was really good, and I think it sums up much of what is wrong in this country at the moment. What happened in Northern Ireland was terrible, and I think it should serve as a warning to all of us. Once we start going down the road of nationalism and excusing sinful behaviour because politicians have failed, we lose sight of how Christians are called to live. We are meant to be salt and light. You do not see this kind of behaviour in the early church. I think we need to move away from this mentality. The gentleman who disagreed with what Clifford Hill was saying really needs to reflect carefully and seek a biblical understanding. Whatever our views on immigration, very few people would support undocumented migrants coming into the country and causing problems. I certainly do not. However, that does not mean I support attacking innocent people, burning homes, or targeting people because of the colour of their skin. Many of those involved in these disturbances cannot distinguish between an asylum seeker and someone who may genuinely be involved in criminal activity. The issue of Islam is another discussion altogether, but that does not justify burning mosques or attacking Muslim people. How can we claim to be different if we behave in exactly the same way as those we criticise? As Christians, we are called to a higher standard. I think people need to wake up, return to the Scriptures, and allow God's Word to shape their attitudes and actions. Many thanks. Cheers.
	(Guest)	12/06/2026 20:09
Peter your sarcasm is unhelpful in this crucial debate that must be had. Obviously no one wants a return to the troubles in NI, nor to see any more violence on our streets in any form. I should think that goes without saying on a Christian forum. Calling these race riots is utterly disingenuous and moves the spotlight and blame away from the real perpetrators. It’s exactly what Starmer did after Southport, after Henry Nowak and after this. Mr Hill’s response is no different. How long can people be ignored for? What does a society do when voting, protesting, debating, petitioning gets you no where. No one wants violence but the flippant attitude towards the real concerns and rage of the communities in Belfast shown in this article is partly why we saw the mob riots in the first place.
	Peter Morrow (Guest)	12/06/2026 19:19
Dear 'Guest'. I too wish we could return to the peaceful days I remember in the 70's and the 80's. The peaceful car bombs; the peaceful paramilitary checkpoints; the peaceful shootings; and the peaceful way in which we were evacuated from shops, cinemas and leisure centres. Riots were peaceful then too; indeed it was so peaceful that because unattended parking was not permitted in town centres due to the bomb threat, parents left their children in the back seat while they went shopping - it was safer and more peaceful that way. BTW, no one, but no one is anything except horrified by the barbaric knife attack in Belfast or elsewhere; but people also oppose burning innocents out of their homes.
	(Guest)	12/06/2026 18:02
Yet again it is the native white British people who are beaten over the head, and blamed for these atrocities we see as a daily occurrence now- rape of children, sexual assaults, knifing, even beheadings in our country. You were completely out of touch and wrong about the COVID pandemic and you’re out of touch and missing the whole point of these riots. You’ve not even mentioned the barbaric attempt by the Sudanese migrant to saw his neighbours head off and gouge his eyes out. This man had only just helped him move in a few days earlier. No you choose to open the article with the horrific riots, which were clearly in response- not to race, to an attempted beheading. It’s beyond exasperating, most church leaders seem no different to our political class.
	Jock Stein	12/06/2026 14:15
Excellent article. For Cliff's books on race, add: 'Shades of Black: The Origins of Colour Consciousness in the Caribbean' (2022) https://handselpress.org.uk/?s=Shades+of+Black
	Gail McNeill (Guest)	12/06/2026 13:33
Dr. Hill, I agree with Peter Morrow's comments regarding your article. You know what you are talking about - you have "lived" experience where I do not. The world seems to be on the brink of civil war which is (probably) by design and yet, our hope lies in the opportunities this presents to us to get out there and share the gospel. My love of intercession goes hand-in-hand with evangelism and I am seeking the Lord's guidance in regards to how someone like me can possibly make a difference - an indentation - in the days we are living in. You are all in my prayers.
	Peter Morrow (Guest)	12/06/2026 10:49
This is far from “the rambling of an end-of-life disappointed old man”, it is one of the best articles I have read on this or the pervious Prophecy Today website. That it is written from experience and intimate knowledge of the issues makes it all the more worthwhile. But I would say one more thing. A few weeks back and in connection to references being made to the street protests and large gatherings in Britain I wrote this: “It reminds me of 1980's Northern Ireland: the thrill of street protest; the holy patriotism; and the invocation of Christ's Name to our own cause. It'll end it tears, though; it always does.” I knew my comment was true, I just didn’t expect it to come true so soon. But whether we like it or not, the events in Belfast are connected to the protests in Britain and to the rhetoric which has linked the Name of Jesus not only to a romanticised notion of a British Christian heritage and past, but to the cause of anti-immigration. And the Church is in very real danger of hollowing out the Name of Christ leaving it as nothing more than the impotent punchline of a nationalist rally. I live in Northern Ireland, have done all my life, and I’m as patriotic and British as anyone in Britain, but I also know the dangers of wrapping Christ and His Kingdom in a flag of our own. Perhaps those dangers are obvious now. But thank you Dr. Hill for your excellent article.