As night fell on Peterborough the threat of a far right protest had all but disappeared leaving hundreds of mainly Muslim young men to celebrate or at the very least pass time harmoniously.
Far right elements had seemingly put Peterborough on a ‘target list’ of towns and cities to mount protests tonight but in the event it came to nothing. Social media can on occasions be a benevolent friend but as a platform for scaremongering and spreading hateful intent can be lethal.
The damage, in a sense, had been done already with many workers scurrying home early, shops fearing attacks to those seen in other parts of the country at the weekend, and businesses opting to close early.
The collateral damage extended to a day long fear by some travelling to Peterborough to shop or simply visit and even Stagecoach felt obliged to make service changes.
“Peterborough service 1 (Werrington) update,” Stagecoach tweeted.
“We will be remaining on diversion for the rest of the evening, normal route will be resumed 1st thing in the morning. Thank you for your understanding and patience.”
Anecdotal evidence emerged throughout the day of the ramifications for some of the threatened disturbance in the city tonight.
As I tweeted earlier today my own knowledge included that of a young female health worker at Peterborough City Hospital working a 12-hour shift today.
She was scared to go home tonight “because of my colour” as Peterborough had been ‘chosen’ for a Far Right rally. You can read my thoughts on this on X.
One other woman tweeted “How is the situation in Peterborough right now? I have been inside the house since morning never went out. I’m scared.”
Hate doesn’t get to win.
We are a better country because of the collective compassion we stand for.
Civic pride, public service and community.
— Andrew Pakes MP (@andrewpakes_) August 7, 2024
There was a widespread feeling not only of relief in Peterborough but a belief that far right thugs – bluff or not – had been found out and maybe that was because of the prison sentences being doled out for those involved in weekend rioting elsewhere.
Cllr Nicola Day, leader of the Green Party Group on Peterborough City Council and councillor for Orton Waterville, summed up the day for many, however, with this thought.
“So proud of Peterborough today,” she wrote. “Our local community came out in numbers in an anti-racism/ anti fascism unified counter demonstration. Peaceful, calm and felt very comfortable to be there and get home safely. Well done everyone. Peterborough unity.”
Across Peterborough, 30,000 live peacefully and Abdul Choudhuri, the chairman of the Joint Mosque Council, had appealed to them to stay “vigilant” but “not to take the law in their hands”.
He told the BBC: “The situation and targeting is deeply concerning. Especially as it did not relate to the Muslim community. For us safety of our mosques and community is paramount.
“Mosques are always open for anyone to walk in – for prayers or support.
“But now we are going to lock them and open only half an hour before the designated prayer time. It’s not an ideal situation but in these difficult times we have to ensure they are safe.”
Cambridgeshire police, either by choice or because they had little to report, stayed silent for the main part.
The most recent post by police in Peterborough was of officers on patrol in the city earlier to combat anti-social behaviour (ASB) when they were “challenged by some children to show off our football skills. Unfortunately, they didn’t seem too impressed, but it was great to stop and chat with them! We blame it on the boots.”
Tonight wasn’t totally without incident, with one motorist describing “minor disturbances caused by someone setting off fireworks in the crowd.
“Someone threw a fire cracker at my car while driving past people in the road, which wasn’t very clever”.
But even didn’t find the situation too threatening or too disturbing.
“Fortunately, my car is already an old banger!,” he added after describing the incident on social media.
In a sense another social media post summed up an evening of mainly peaceful preparedness and, good nature.
“Peterborough riots are so peaceful it’s just showing y’all what’s community spirit,” wrote one man.
“Even Lincoln Road is like one big family BBQ feast right now – Big up, we safe here”
