“Preston is a city of sanctuary”: Statement of support to those affected by protests

Traffic was stopped in Church Street as police dispersed the protest Pic: Carl Stein/Blog Preston

An organisation dedicated to providing support as asylum seekers in Preston has condemned the violent protests seen across England.

Preston City of Sanctuary said in a statement that while they are thankful events in Preston have been low key, they are anxious and vigilant as a result of attacks on ‘sanctuary seekers’, as well as Muslim communities and their properties.

Preston city centre saw small scale incident on Saturday (3 August) with police saying one Monday they had made one arrest in the city. Around 20-30 protestors had gathered and chanted anti-immigration slogans.

Their statement said: “The thugs perpetrating this violence, do not represent the people of Preston. Preston is a city of sanctuary, it is a welcoming, tolerant place where people of all faiths, backgrounds and cultures have lived peacefully together side by side, for many years.

“What we are seeing are not the actions of Prestonians. The racist words they scream as they destroy the very infrastructure that they claim to support, as they attack our emergency services (so often staffed by hard working dedicated people who came to this country as refugees), and as they undermine law and order are not the words of the people of Preston.”

The most recent statement from Lancashire Constabulary acknowledged that people have been left concerned and vulnerable with concerns over further protests and disruption.

It has been widely reported that there are further protests planned this week, although Blog Preston has chosen not to publicise the date, time or location ahead of time.

Phil Davies, assistant chief constable at Lancashire Constabulary, said: “We are monitoring information at a local and national level around possible disruption, enabling us to have the right level of resources on duty to respond to any incidents safely and robustly in Lancashire, where required to do so. Additional officers have been identified and are on standby if required.

“We will not stand by if disorder begins, or vandalism takes place. Arrests will be made either immediately or retrospectively. To those seeking to commit these offences, let this be a message to you: we will identify you, we will find you, and we will bring you to justice.”

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