LAST UPDATE | 23 Dec 2023
On this day one month ago, Dublin city centre was engulfed in chaos as rioters burned buses and a Luas, intimidated the public, attacked gardaí and looted shops. The rioting was stirred up online after a tragic event earlier in the day on Parnell St. Gardaí fought four hours to regain control of the city centre and several people have since been charged and have appeared before the courts over the riots. Here, Adeniyi Olarewaju, who has lived in Ireland for a short time, describes how he, as a foreign national, felt on the night and since then…
AS THE VIOLENCE and destruction in Dublin’s inner city took place a month ago today, I received numerous calls and messages from loved ones who were following events on social media and were concerned about my safety.
From their perspective, the immediate concern was that I should avoid any proximity to the epicentre of the riots, with everyone urging caution concerning my movements. My apprehension multiplied as information filtered through on social media that the riots may be connected with anti-immigration sentiments. I was not sure if people were also the subject of attack, but as a racially visible foreign national myself, it was difficult not to have that feeling of vulnerability at the time.
For the first time in my short sojourn in Ireland, I felt genuinely worried about my wellbeing. I decided against going to the city centre altogether and went home via Heuston Station instead. I ensured to sit at the back of the bus, just so I could have a good view of an oncoming illusory danger. Such was the palpable trepidation, heart palpitation and feeling of isolation that captured my being that fateful evening.
Assuredly, no danger came my way because Dubliners and the Irish in general are some of the friendliest and most welcoming in the world. Still, I soliloquised when I got home, “Wouldn’t it be safer for me to remain indoors for a few days and monitor events as they unfold”?
Although the riots may have been prompted by the rhetoric on social media, in my moment of vulnerability, it was the messages I received through social media and technologically enabled platforms that became a lifeline and gave me the assurance I needed. As I stepped out the next day (my worries were unfounded), I felt strongly that there must be a frank conversation about the issues that led to the riots.
Countries, societies and communities can grow and behave as one, they can respond to crises in fear or strength. Ireland as a nation is at an interesting and challenging point in its growth. As a small island state with a history rooted in conflict and oppression, Ireland finally found her voice as a global player in the last few decades: both economically with noted development and culturally with a strong global diaspora and seats at the international table.
The world has changed fast in the early years of this century, however, bringing economic storms, a pandemic, war on the doorstep of Europe, and the spectre of a global climate meltdown. Combine this with creaking public services in Ireland, the worst of which is the provision of housing and the mass movement of people due to climate and conflict, and you have a recipe for political and socio-economic instability.
Not since the turn of this century has there been a greater need in Ireland for dialogue and political courage in the face of all these challenges.
As a teenager, the phrase I dreaded the most from my high school girlfriend was “I need to talk with you in person”. My mind would spin with wild speculations — was this it, the impending doom of a breakup, I wondered. It would always turn out that I was being melodramatic in my mind and so as the “serious talks” ended up being about nothing major, I’d feel so relieved. Many decades later, it appears we are at the exact juncture in Ireland that requires sincere conversations about immigration policies and the future of multiculturalism.
In the aftermath of that despicable knife attack in Dublin on Thursday 23 November, there was understandable panic circulating, especially on Twitter (now called X). The hysteria and violence that erupted in the hours after these events have been well documented and analysed at this stage. We’ve had many a national conversation about policing, the far-right, inequality and the role of social media in stoking fear and hate.
What we haven’t truly addressed, I believe, is the need to stop, take a deep breath, and begin to listen to the fears of people around immigration. This is the only way to stop the rise of racist hate.
Before the attack that day, there had been concerns expressed – whether correct or not – about the Irish government’s immigration policies. Ireland’s demographic composition has gradually transformed in recent decades. According to the Central Statistics Office (CSO), a survey of the Irish population in 2016 showed that Irish society is changing.
In 2022, statistics showed that the percentage of people living here who were not born in Ireland had risen to 20% and from all indications, the rise may continue because of displacements of persons in Europe due to regional conflicts. In the last year alone, Ireland has admitted more than 141,600 immigrants, including the ongoing intake of war refugees from Ukraine. This represents a 16-year high in the admission of non-citizens into the Republic.
The trigger of the Dublin riots was a knife attack but there are underlying issues which must be addressed. There is an urgent need to tackle far-right extremism, however, referring to contrary views about immigration as a far-right ideology is not helpful in the long run.
The far-right has always had the same Modus Operandi, the most effective of which is to find a scapegoat for all the world’s ills. By whipping up anti-immigrant sentiment and pushing an anti-establishment narrative, far-right operators can stir up anger and hate in an instant, as witnessed on 23 November.
But the November riots didn’t happen in a vacuum, they were the crescendo of a creeping, insidious resentment and frustration of a fraction of Irish society. Anti-immigration protests started in Ireland in 2022 after the country created temporary refugee shelters in office buildings to accommodate asylum seekers. This noble gesture irked some citizens who felt foreign nationals were being given preferential treatment in the quest for accommodation.
What started as silent murmurs about the increasing number of alleged undocumented non-citizens, homeless migrants, and housing asylum seekers and refugees soon developed into full-blown demonstrations at several locations across Ireland. As observed on 23 November, we now have a problem (perceived or real) on our hands. Unfortunately, we cannot wish the problem away by ignoring it, declining to discuss immigration at Christmas dinner tables, or refusing to address it in the media.
Addressing the rising tide of anti-immigration sentiments requires a fundamental shift in our approach to immigration discourse. Listening through community engagement could be the one recommended strategy that may yet lead to fostering understanding and mitigating fears.
Examining successful models in other countries underscores the efficacy of this proposed approach.
In Canada, for instance, the government builds its relationship with citizens, especially with Indigenous people and the First Nation, through consultation and community engagement activities in every province.
These activities help to develop better informed and more effective policies and programmes for Canadians. The engagement expands to important issues such as safe drinking water, housing reforms, and the transformation of education. It appears that increased engagement with citizens and all stakeholders leads to increased trust. In a survey, 84% of Canadians agreed that government should consult regularly and reported feeling better if they knew that the government sought informed input from average citizens on a regular basis.
Similarly, the Nordic countries have demonstrated the value of inclusive dialogue. Sweden’s integration policies, founded on an ethos of active listening to citizens and immigrants alike, have promoted social cohesion.
By understanding and addressing the fears surrounding immigration, these countries have effectively put in measures to counter the rise of xenophobia and racial prejudice.
Community dialogues on immigration will allow individuals to express apprehensions but also allow policymakers to tailor inclusive and informed immigration policies. The lesson is clear: a genuine commitment to listening, acknowledging concerns and crafting policies that reflect the collective voice can pave the way for a more tolerant and inclusive society, offering a potent antidote to the venom of racist hate.
We must learn to listen to the other side, no matter how puerile the arguments are. We must go from county to county and listen to people’s genuine concerns and fears about immigration. Politicians should learn not to kick the can down the road until the next round of elections. Both sides of the divide must speak with and appreciate each other’s perspectives now. If we do not even understand the problem, how can lasting solutions be implemented? This is exactly what Ireland needs!
In all the analysis of the November riots, very little has centred around the years of austerity and the damage that the financial crash did to Irish society. The funding cuts to most social and public services and the devastating housing crisis that ensued have been a blight on the country.
I suspect it was easy to gloss over the effects of these cuts in a political sense, while the economy somehow appeared to ‘bounce back’ on the back of the country’s corporation tax offerings. Whether you put Ireland’s success down to ‘leprechaun economics’ or not, there’s no denying that despite all this money the country now has, Ireland’s body politic has just not invested enough in public services to stave off inequality truly.
Get the basics of equality wrong in a country, and you have a recipe for disaster.
Ireland is now a nation of five million residents and it’s struggling to build sufficient housing for everyone, including students who come to Ireland annually to pursue various programmes. This puts additional demand on available housing, thereby driving up prices. If one accounts for the cost of living crisis and the increased inflationary pressure on the average resident’s purchasing power in Ireland, then it becomes clearer to see the origins of the frustrations about immigration policies.
There have no doubt been external factors pushing against society that were out of the control of the Irish government in recent years. Putin’s war in Ukraine and the Covid-19 pandemic are two such forces. It’s hard to prioritise the rebuilding of frontline services when you’re fighting fires elsewhere. But, complacency in the face of the current challenges is no longer an option here.
What the riots on 23 November did, if anything, was to illustrate clearly just how angry and disaffected some people are. In the aftermath, if Ireland’s political leaders don’t start listening, and fast, then those who feel disconnected and discarded will find their leaders in other quarters. As already noted, immigration and law and order will be germane issues on voters’ priority list, along with housing, healthcare and the economy.
I have lived in several countries and visited many others but there is something distinctly special about Ireland. The Irish hospitality is second to none and makes you feel just at home. The greetings by the bus drivers and the smiles on everyone’s faces have been reassuring but what could lead to a more enduring reassurance is the political courage to engage with all stakeholders.
There is no denying that Ireland’s perceived increase in inequality, social exclusion and worsening socioeconomic conditions may have contributed to the growth of anti-immigration ideologies. The riots did not merely expose some citizens’ insecurities; they provided a wake-up call to us all to have that dreaded conversation now. As with my girlfriend many years ago, the conversations may just be an opportunity to quell non-existent fears.
Adeniyi D. Olarewaju (Ph.D.) is a Lecturer of International Business and Strategy at the Maynooth University Business School, Ireland.
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