Jewish Londoners deserve to live without fear – we are taking action to ensure their safety | Sadiq Khan

During dark times, we must stand by our Jewish neighbours as generations of Londoners have done before us Sadiq Khan is the mayor of London Jewish people are living in fear – a fear that has been building for years but has become acute in recent weeks. It now seeps into every part of daily life: the school run, a walk down the high street, a meal in a restaurant, attending synagogue on Shabbat. Jewish friends and colleagues have spoken to me about how they now find themselves looking over their shoulder in public and worrying about their children wearing religious symbols. It is utterly unacceptable that Jewish people are having to live like this. Continue reading...

Sadiq Khan During dark times, we must stand by our Jewish neighbours as generations of Londoners have done before us J ewish people are living in fear – a fear that has been building for years but has become acute in recent weeks. Jewish friends and colleagues have spoken to me about how they now find themselves looking over their shoulder in public and worrying about their children wearing religious symbols. It is utterly unacceptable that Jewish people are having to live like this. The horrific terror attack in Golders Green was just the latest in a series of antisemitic acts of violence that have targeted Jewish people, synagogues, homes and charities. Understandably, many Jewish people are angry.

However, this will not be enough to deliver the step-change in policing that Jewish communities expect and deserve. This includes permanently growing neighbourhood and firearm policing teams in areas with large Jewish populations; creating a new community policing hub near the centre of the Jewish community in Barnet; and adding another investigative team to ensure hate crimes are dealt with swiftly and effectively. I know that many Jewish Londoners also want to see more action against those who promote hatred at protests. The right to protest is fundamental to our democracy, but anyone stirring up hatred against Jewish people should be more readily arrested and prosecuted. We must always ensure that antisemitism carries real consequences.

Even if there is uncertainty about which chants cross legal thresholds, if it causes distress and is offensive to Jewish people – if it makes our fellow Jewish citizens scared – it should not be used. Respect for one another must remain the foundation of London life. The history of antisemitism in London sadly stretches back a thousand years, but so too does the resilience of London’s Jewish communities and the solidarity of Londoners from all backgrounds. This has seen dockers standing with Jewish tailors on strike in the late-19th century, Irish Londoners building barricades alongside Jewish neighbours during the battle of Cable Street and British families taking in Jewish children arriving on the Kindertransport. During many dark times, Londoners have offered a thread of hope by choosing to stand with their Jewish neighbours.

And I will not rest until Jewish people feel safe, secure and able to live without fear once again. Explore more on these topics Share Reuse this content During dark times, we must stand by our Jewish neighbours as generations of Londoners have done before us Sadiq Khan is the mayor of London Jewish people are living in fear – a fear that has been building for years but has become acute in recent weeks. Jewish friends and colleagues have spoken to me about how they now find themselves looking over their shoulder in public and worrying about their children wearing religious symbols. It is utterly unacceptable that Jewish people are having to live like this. Jewish Londoners deserve to live without fear – we are taking action to ensure their safety | Sadiq Khan