Away from the fury, the violence and the speculation that has engulfed Southport, one thing matters more than all else: three small girls were killed this week. They were aged six, seven and nine. Eight more children were injured, and two adults. They went out on Monday morning to a Taylor Swift-themed dance event, with the whole of summer and their lives stretched out ahead of them. Then there was a horrific knife attack.
The families and friends of those three girls, and of the others who were left injured and traumatised, face a long period of grief and trauma. Yet, rather than being allowed to heal, the suffering of a small seaside town has been exploited by chancers, grievance merchants and the far right. Using social media and other internet platforms, they spread misinformation and pet theories and flyers, calling on others to come to Southport. A name for the attacker was circulated, along with allegations of motive. “Mask up,” the messages advised, with an address of where to meet and a map showing a mosque nearby.
The result is now front-page news. A peaceful vigil was hijacked by a riot. The police, who had acted with speed and courage, were attacked by thugs. Just hours after losing her daughter, one of the mothers posted a message on social media pleading for peace.
The days and weeks ahead must see time, space and resources provided for a thorough investigation of what happened both to those children and to the entire town. We also hope that further protests, such as at Downing Street last night, do not yield more violence.
What this week suggests again is that a section of the public has been encouraged by self-serving elements on social media not to trust police officers or journalists to provide an accurate account of events. Both the law and the editors’ code of practice provide reason not to identify suspects early in police investigations, especially if they are under 18.
As a long-time politician, Nigel Farage surely knows this, which makes all the more reprehensible his rapid publication of a video asking, in mock-innocence, “if the truth is being withheld from us”. The leader of the UK’s third-most popular political party has been accused by one of our leading counter-terrorism experts of inciting violence, and it is apparent that the conspiracy theorists who used to congregate in the corners of the internet now have a voice within the Commons.
Similarly, the social media platforms where many of the conspiracies and the inflammatory language play out – from Facebook to TikTok – cannot be allowed to act as the incubators of hatred and misinformation. Yet the prominent far-right activist Tommy Robinson is back on X (formerly Twitter), where he is a very active poster. Much more responsibility has to be taken by the tech companies, and tighter regulation is needed from government.
Whether on Merseyside, in Dublin or across other sites of unrest, similar themes emerge: a distrust of those in power, a willingness to blame economic and social ills on outsiders, on migrants and, in particular, Muslims, and the willingness of the cynical and the shameless to use these situations for their own profit. Politicians and the press also have a responsibility to think about the language they use in relation to migrants and multiculturalism. In Southport, families and neighbours are mourning the deaths of three small girls and rebuilding their town. Across this country, we would do well to see what lessons can be learned.
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