SPECIAL REPORT: Radio Aire lifts the lid on hidden Islamophobia in Leeds

Radio Aire's launching an investigation into the hidden rise of Islamophobia in Leeds.

Our exclusive figures reveal the number of cases - including violence, arson and criminal damage - has trebled in just 2 years.

West Yorkshire Police recorded 111 Islamophobic hate crimes between August 2016 - August 2017.

In the year that followed to August 2018 that number jumped up to 373. It's an increase of more than 200%.

In Leeds alone officers recorded 170 anti-Islam incidents.

In June this year a mosque in Beeston was targeted in an arson attack that caused deep upset with the community.

Police were called to the Jamia Masjid Abu Huraira Mosque in Hardy Street where the main door had been deliberately set alight.

Firefighters managed to stop the flames from spreading and the damage was confined to the door and surrounding brick work. Investigators found a flammable liquid had been used to start the fire.

Speaking at the time, Inspector Ian O'Brien from West Yorkshire Police said: "These incidents will cause an understandable level of concern in both the Muslim and Sikh communities."

"Hate crimes that target particular communities and have the potential to cause divisions and tensions cannot and will not be tolerated."

'My safety came first'

Our special report is taking a look at the impact Islamophobic abuse has on individuals and communities, including those who are being directly targeted and the communities who fear it.

Mariam, 22, originally from Alexandria in Egypt, tells why she made the decision to remove her hijab – the head-covering worn by many Muslim women - after living in the UK for more than two years.

"In the time frame of seven days, my whole life turned around. People now smile at me in the street, they’re not ‘afraid’ of sitting next to me on the bus, they don’t give me that death stare when I walk into the pub with my friends, and one or two guys may have flirted a little – mum and dad, you can scroll past this part."

"I took my scarf off because at one point I started fearing for my life, yep, my actual life, because of wearing it down the street."

"I was threatened, screamed at, had people gang up on me, and etc, etc… all kinds of racism you can think of. It only made sense that I finally reached my breaking point."

"This has been by far the hardest decision I have ever had to make in my entire life. It’s left me emotionally shattered to pieces."

"Taking off the hijab has not changed who I am, I’m not suddenly a different person, my faith has not changed and my beliefs remain strong."

The hidden side of Islamophobia

Young people in Leeds are telling us Islamophobia can often be subtle and indirect.

Ambassadors at the Leeds Muslim Youth Forum in Harehills reveal they've experienced people refusing to sit next to them on the bus, not entering an empty lift because they're standing in it and being treated differently when wearing traditional Islamic clothing such as jubbas and hijabs.

They say it's all enough to make people feel vulnerable and alone.

Hamad says: "when you see an Islamophobic attack it awakens something inside you that you are not safe within your community".

"There are people out there that do not feel the same way that I do towards them. They're ignorant to a person like me."

"If I was to walk into Tesco in a jubba people would look at me more than if I was in jeans and a shirt."

'Early signs of hatred'

Qari Asim, Imam at Makkah Mosque in Leeds, describes the rise in attacks as worrying.

He wants to see people talking about the issue instead of shying away from it, adding: "some people argue this is a self-sustained myth. It is not a myth. It's a reality. We see people who are being threatened online and offline as well."

"We're not saying that this is an apartheid. What we're seeing is early signs of hatred which if not checked it can lead to consequences that we do not want to see in our society."

West Yorkshire Police tell us they're "committed to engaging with communities to increase the under-reporting of hate crimes and hate incidents. West Yorkshire Police employs specialist Hate Crime Coordinators across districts in order to assist investigating officers in identifying perpetrators, providing after-care support for victims and to work with communities to increase awareness of hate crime and reporting mechanisms."

Throughout the week on 96.3 Radio Aire and on our website our investigation will look at what's fueling the rise and what authorities in the city are doing to tackle it.