The placement of hundreds of Palestinian flags across street lights all over Tower Hamlets is clearly a move to threaten and intimidate Jewish residents in this area. We are a minority and we are living in constant fear. Public spaces should be safe for everyone and should not be abused by a council to promote a particular agenda. The flags are accompanied by hundreds if not thousands of posters calling for “intifada” and violence against Jews. There is no escape from this antagonism when it is plastered across every part of the borough.
There is no other borough in London where this kind of open discrimination is permitted. Flags and propaganda have been removed elsewhere, and the police have acknowledged the distress that has been created by the presence of these flags everywhere in our borough. People have been threatened, doxxed and physically assaulted for even questioning the presence of the flags. These are hate crimes. How is this happening in a western, democratic country in 2024?
If residents of this area claim to support minorities, then the flags and content should all be removed immediately so this can once again feel like a safe place to live for everyone. We cannot continue living in an atmosphere of fear and distress every time we walk out of our homes. This is not right.
James Henry