TikTok removes channel full of AI-generated violence towards politicians and migrants

October 31, 2025 Article

TikTok has removed an account full of AI-generated violence towards politicians, refugees and migrants following a Tell MAMA investigation.

That investigation began after a member of the public flagged an AI-generated video of a white man in a Union Jack t-shirt punching London Mayor Sadiq Khan in the face at a restaurant. It accrued 12,000 likes before its removal. One of the most popular comments read: “One day this will come true”, gained hundreds of likes.

The AI-generated violence in this video depicted a white male in a Union Jack t-shirt violently assaulting Sadiq Khan, gaining thousands of likes and comments wishing for real-world racist violence.

TikTok did not initially remove the content, only doing so after we flagged various concerns about the harmful content across the channel.

The TikTok channel boasted over 17,000 followers and posted a dizzying amount of AI-generated content that reinforced racist tropes about refugees and migrants (linking them broadly to criminality) alongside demographic conspiracies about Muslims, with despicable content linking Muslim men to bestiality, and broadly, to terrorism or as violent cultural threats.

The individual behind the account had links to an earlier banned account that used AI to generate AI materials that depicted the murder of refugees and migrants, including the sinking of dinghies or boats. That channel had created another infamous video of machinery destroying such a boat and leaving those aboard at risk of drowning. In Tell MAMA’s previous report, we drew attention to this example, which appeared on a self-styled “comedy” page, with the video gaining over one million views, which the platform declined to remove. That report also found how AI-generated materials reinforced racist tropes about Black and South Asian men, linking them to rape and violence and directly as a threat to white women and children.

Both pages shared another violent AI-generated video of an assault rifle indiscriminately murdering refugees and migrants, in an article we published last month about how such AI-generated materials normalise, reinforce and perpetuate dehumanising, racialised ideas about Muslims, migrants, refugees and other minorities, whilst normalising violence towards them.

In a wide-ranging report, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism detailed the growing problem of AI-generated videos fuelling racism on TikTok, with some accounts monetising their accounts to sell products.

A Guardian news report revealed earlier this month that OpenAI’s new Sora 2 platform had, within hours, become riddled with content that “depicted copyrighted characters in compromising situations as well as graphic scenes of violence and racism.” 404 Media also raised concerns about Sora 2’s misuse of copyrighted content.

Returning to our investigation, we detailed to TikTok how the user used different AI-generative content platforms to depict violence towards various politicians, notably Muslim politicians like Sadiq Khan and Shabana Mahmood.

The individual behind the account used the software to depict far-right violence towards the prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer, including Stephen Yaxley-Lennon (aka Tommy Robinson) violently punching him.

Other violent examples depicted Nigel Farage punching Starmer in the face and assaulting him with a pint glass.

Other political violence had overt misogyny and racialised misogyny, including one video that depicted a homeless male assaulting a female Labour MP with a wine bottle.

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Categories: News, Sadiq Khan, TikTok

Harry Whittaker was not just a ‘science nerd’. He was a threat to Muslim and Jewish communities.

October 29, 2025 Article

A DIY bombmaker guilty of various offences linked to explosive and poisonous substances harboured disturbingly violent anti-Muslim and antisemitic views and far-right sympathies, according to the police, following his conviction.

Harry Whittaker, 33, from Coddington near Luton, attempted to obscure his crimes and extremist views under a cloak of respectability, being a “nerdy kid” with a fondness for science and harboured no racist views, when the police interviewed him.

The prosecution detailed how Whittaker made various racist statements over WhatsApp messages, revealing his disturbing desire to murder Muslims who prayed at a local mosque in Luton with a tank equipped with machine guns and flamethrowers, desiring to turn Muslims into “mincemeat”. The full quote read: “We need a tank covered in machine guns and flame throwers, drive it into that mosque on Friday afternoon and turn them into mincemeat.”

Officers unearthed burned-out remains of a device labelled “for use on Jews only” and “throw at swarm of Jews” and a container labelled “Zyklon-B”, used in the gas chambers of the Nazi extermination camps, including Auschwitz. He kept a sample of the deadly poison potassium cyanide in that jar because it made him ‘happy’, it emerged during the trial.

The Telegraph reported that officers found a handwritten note from Whittaker that included racist, homophobic and discriminatory statements like “worship Hitler”, “avoid gays”, and “discriminate against other people of other religions and race”.

He admitted in court that his statements about Muslims were indeed racist, but he insisted that he would only use racist language at home.

Bedfordshire police confirmed that Whittaker had “labelled some of the chemicals using antisemitic or Islamophobic language or references.”

The police added that despite his “interest in some extreme right-wing ideologies”, they found ‘no evidence’ of plans to use the devices or chemicals to target others.

Following the guilty verdicts, various newspaper headlines included “‘Nerdy’ man guilty of making explosives in his shed”, “Self-styled ‘science nerd’ convicted after homemade explosives found in garden shed” and “‘Nerdy’ science buff convicted of making explosives in garden shed”.

The Telegraph’s headline was “‘Mad scientist’ suggested driving tank into mosque” and in the sub-heading, identified him as a “Hitler fan”.

It does raise questions as to why various headlines focused on his self-identified “nerdy” identity, not his racist, dangerous worldview. Whilst he did not target any groups directly, he still posed a threat to Muslim and Jewish communities, given what he stockpiled and sought to build and what dangerous views he openly espoused.

The explosive substances recovered from Whittaker’s bedroom and shed include black powder, a blank and a live round of ammunition, chemicals, lethal poisons and suspected improvised explosive devices.

Police unearthed radioactive materials and white phosphorus – a substance so dangerous that it required a military intervention to destroy it safely. It took two weeks for the crime scene to clear.

Whittaker came to the attention of the police after paramedics attended his home address (which he shares with his mother) after receiving a report about him going into anaphylactic shock, before disclosing his use of chemicals (some deadly) in his makeshift laboratory in the garden shed.

It emerged during the trial that Whittaker had collected various chemicals for twenty-six years, and when questioned, maintained that all purchases from websites like eBay, including buying sulphuric acid aged twelve, were made without any age checks. Other chemicals he procured from an engineering company where he worked and from a chemistry set a relative had given them.

Whittaker sought to downplay his extremist, racist views as a product of his autism and a lack of a “filter”.

A jury found Whittaker guilty of three counts of making an explosive substance (a section 4(1) offence under the Explosive Substances Act 1883) and of one count of possessing an explosive substance (a section 4(1) offence under the Explosive Substances Act 1883).

Whittaker will appear in court for sentencing on 9 January and was remanded into custody.

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Categories: Bedfordshire Police, explosives, Hitler, Luton, News

Rising race and religious hate crime across England and Wales needs a meaningful government response

October 9, 2025 Article

New Home Office data revealed a 19 per cent rise in anti-Muslim hate crimes in England and Wales, a major driver of which was the far-right violence and rioting after the Southport murders.

Of the 7,164 religious hate offences (up 3 per cent from 6,973 offences recorded in the previous year), almost half (45 per cent) targeted Muslim communities (4,478 offences), but the data excludes the Metropolitan Police (due to changes to their recording systems).

The Home Office briefing made clear that a “clear spike in these offences in August 2024, which coincides with the Southport murders on the 29 July and the subsequent disorder across several English towns and cities”.

Following the swathes of far-right violence, disorder and rioting, police forces recorded 10,097 racially or religiously aggravated offences in August 2024, the highest monthly total ever recorded. Again, however, the data excludes the Metropolitan Police.

A further breakdown of the data from the 35 police forces revealed 624 anti-Muslim hate crimes in August 2024 alone, up 122.85 per cent from the previous month, before returning to reporting levels seen before the Southport murders.

Racist hate crimes rose 6 per cent, with 82,490 hate crimes (as of March 2025), accounting for 71 per cent of all offences. Public order offences rose by 7 per cent (2,736 offences) as racist and religiously aggravated harassment rose by over one-fifth (21 per cent, 1,497 offences), and violence without injury rose by 10 per cent (771 offences).

Almost one-fifth of anti-Muslim hate crimes involved assault with or without injury (18 per cent), which echoes a worrying trend Tell MAMA detailed in our previous report, as we recorded a 73 per cent rise in assault cases in 2024, verifying 171 cases.

As with previous statistical bulletins, Muslim and Jewish communities are disproportionately impacted by religious hate crimes, with the latest figures showing the rate of Religious hate crimes rate per 10,000 population is 12 for Muslims and 106 for Jewish communities, respectively (2,873 antisemitic hate crimes).

Despite the lack of Met police data in this bulletin, the force had specified that Jewish communities faced 40 per cent of all religious hate crimes in the past year.

Tell MAMA Director Iman called for a meaningful government response to rising hate crimes and racism and bigotry more generally in society, beyond gesture politics. In a statement, she said: “The latest Home Office hate crime figures showed a staggering 19% rise in hate crimes (4,478 hate crimes) against Muslims (excluding data from the Met police), a key driver was the spike in far-right violence and rioting after the Southport murders.

Our data at Tell MAMA has shown record levels of reporting of anti-Muslim hatred and Islamophobia in 2024 and into 2025.

The sharp rise in religious hate crimes again shows the continued disproportionate impacts on Muslim and Jewish communities, yet many other faith groups face rising hate, too. Racist hate crimes rose by 6% (82,490 hate crimes). Communities deserve more than platitudes and gesture politics. They want to feel safe at their places of worship, on our streets, and in public. There is a failure of leadership and of a coherent strategy to address this growing scourge and improve community relations, whilst ensuring there is no place for racism and bigotry in political and public life.”

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Categories: hate crime, News, Southport

Recent YouGov poll shows that community cohesion work is needed more than ever

July 28, 2025 Article

Recent YouGov polling sparked concern and reflected what Imam Sabah Ahmedi described as “high levels of anti-Muslim sentiment” across Britain, as reported by the BBC and The Telegraph.

Now, Muslim women interviewed are pushing back against the idea that they did not choose to wear the headscarf.

“My hijab is completely my own choice. My religion, the way I practice it, is completely my own choice,” university student Unaizah Ahmad, 25, told the press as she urged understanding and dialogue “instead of giving in to preconceived biases.”

The YouGov poll, commissioned by the Ahmadiyya Muslim community ahead of their Jalsa Salana (annual convention), surveyed 2,130 adults in Britain between 16 and 17 July.

The first question asked: ‘Do you think the following groups of immigrants to the UK generally have a positive or negative impact on the country?’ broken down by religion – Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Sikh and Jewish.

Whilst the total negative impact of Muslim migrants in the polling understandably made headlines, totalling 41 per cent, the figures also revealed that Reform voters, above all other parties, proved far more likely to agree that Muslim immigrants had a “fairly negative impact” (34 per cent) and a “very negative impact” (54 per cent), respectively. And yet, across those voters from the other major parties in the 2024 General Election, 52 per cent of Conservative voters, 29 per cent of Labour voters, 19 per cent of Liberal Democrat voters, and 22 per cent of Green voters took a net negative view.

Conversely, just over one in ten Conservative voters (13 per cent), 35 per cent of Labour voters, 36 per cent of Liberal Democrat voters and 42 per cent of Green voters held a net positive view (when combining answers for a “very positive impact” and “fairly positive impact”, respectively). Just three per cent of Reform voters polled agreed that Muslim immigrants provided positives.

Whilst some news analysis did highlight the greater levels of negativity towards Muslim immigrants than other faith groups, there are two caveats to consider: those who answered “don’t know” and “Neither positive nor negative impact”. Across each faith group, just over one in ten polled answered “don’t know”. And while Muslims scored slightly lower than other faith groups, with the latter example, almost one quarter of those surveyed (24 per cent) agreed with the “Neither positive nor negative impact” answer (a figure that rises to more than one-third with the other faith groups).

When asked, “Generally speaking, do you think Islam is or is not compatible with British values?” 93 per cent of Reform voters said no, compared to 69 per cent of Conservative voters, 41 per cent of Labour voters, 35 per cent of Lib Dem voters, and 22 per cent of Green voters. In comparison, one-quarter of voters polled agreed that it proved compatible with British values, as just over one in five (22 per cent) answered “Don’t know”.

The next question saw bigger splits between voters and perhaps reflects more on how the question was framed, as it asked, “From what you know, do you think Islam encourages or discourages Muslims to carry out acts of violence against non-Muslims, or does it neither encourage nor discourage this?” Just over one-third (31 per cent) agreed that it did, as almost an equal number of voters disagreed that it did (27 per cent), with almost one-fifth agreeing that Islam neither “encourages nor discourages this” as 24 per cent answered, “Don’t know”. Again, Reform voters (70 per cent) agreed that it did, compared to 40 per cent of Conservative voters, 18 per cent of Labour voters, 17 per cent of Lib Dem voters and nine per cent of Green voters.

The final question asked, “Thinking about the reasons why British Muslim women might decide to wear a hijab, which of the following comes closest to your view?” Labour and Liberal Democrat voters showed a clear split on the choices of personal choice (36 per cent) or family/community pressure (39 per cent), as Conservative voters (65 per cent) and Reform voters (74 per cent) agreed with the second choice (pressured to do so). It is worth noting also that just over one-fifth (21 per cent) selected “Don’t know”.

Reacting to the poll findings, Farooq Aftab, a member of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, called for wider societal change and improving community cohesion, making clear that: “We recognise that concerns about integration and social change exist in society — but these cannot be allowed to turn into hostility or alienation. We call on leaders, institutions, and communities across the country to work together in strengthening cohesion, promoting dialogue, and standing against division.”

At a time of rising anti-Muslim hatred and Islamophobic sentiment, there is a great need across government to improve social cohesion, encourage and foster improved dialogue between communities, whilst ensuring that those who are targeted for their faith or belief can get the support they need. That Muslim communities can have their voices heard in meaningful ways across society more generally, beyond discussions on hate crime, but on everyday matters, of structural biases and allow for misconceptions and stereotypes (whether in sections of the media or politics) to be challenged in a manner that upholds the fundamental rights of all.

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Categories: Ahmadi Muslims, Ahmadiyya, Hijab, News, Opinions, polling, YouGov

Arrest made after rats released near Sheffield mosque

June 25, 2025 Article

South Yorkshire Police confirmed the arrest of a 66-year-old man following the release of three rats near a mosque in Sheffield.

Police attended the Sheffield Grand Mosque on Grimesthorpe Road in Burngreave on Monday (23 June) at around 8:15 pm.

Officers from South Yorkshire Police arrested the 66-year-old on suspicion of a racially or religiously aggravated public order offence after he allegedly released three rats from the boot of their car.

In a press release, Inspector Alec Gibbons, from the North East Neighbourhood Policing Team, provided reassurance and clear that: “We understand this reported incident has caused concern locally and I’d like to reassure you that we are working hard to understand the full circumstances of what took place.”

CCTV footage also appeared online.

Tell MAMA is liaising with officers further, and we endeavour to provide further updates where possible.

Anyone with information is urged to call 101, quoting 874 of 23 June 2025, or do so online. Tell MAMA can pass information forward on your behalf or anonymously.

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Categories: hate crime, mosque, News, Sheffield, South Yorkshire police

Dame Louise Casey’s Review Says What Needs to be Said

June 17, 2025 Article

Dame Louise Casey’s review on the abuse of young white girls over the last two decades makes for a harrowing read where statutory authorities chose to place the preservation of social cohesion above the safeguarding of many white young girls. There is no getting around the scale and the failures that Casey has raised in her excellent and brutally honest report.

Tell MAMA has previously highlighted how some far right groups have used the child grooming scandals to whip up collective anti-Muslim hate, though this cannot and should not take away from honest and frank discussions as Casey mentions. The child grooming scandals are widespread and have shown inaction and complicity, whether this be through previously elected councillors or local authority officers willing to blame the victimised young children rather than the monstrous middle-aged perpetrators.

Which brings us onto the following. There is nothing anti-Muslim about discussing issues around child sexual exploitation and the ethnicity of perpetrators. Blaming all Muslims as being potential child rapists is one thing, and we previously highlighted such anti-Muslim rhetoric promoted online by far right groups. Speaking about the link that Casey highlighted in areas such as Greater Manchester, West and South Yorkshire and where the majority of group related child grooming activities were undertaken by Asian men of Pakistani heritage, is another thing altogether. The former is anti-Muslim bigotry and the latter, legitimate public debate and discourse which needs to take place.

This is an important distinction and should not stifle legitimate public debate, The lives of many women have been deeply affected by what they endured at the hands of men who preyed on their vulnerabilities. These courageous women deserve to be heard and made the focus for real change so that children are no longer blamed as perpetrators, and the perpetrators let off in the interests of social cohesion.

Commenting on the Casey review, the Director of Tell MAMA, Iman Atta OBE said:

“Evidence alone should determine the basis of challenging prejudice and bigotry where we come across it. Knee-jerk reactionism in the misguided belief of protecting social cohesion and couched as campaigning against anti-Muslim prejudice and bigotry should be given no quarter by any legitimate organisation carrying out this line of work. Calling legitimate discourse on tackling child sexual exploitation ‘anti-Muslim’ bigotry by virtue of the ethnicity of the majority of perpetrators in areas like Greater Manchester does a disservice to the female victims of it and to public confidence in this area of work”.

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Categories: Child Grooming Gangs, child sexual exploitation, Greater Manchester, Louise Casey, News, South Yorkshire, West Yorkshire, White girls

Neo-Nazi trio guilty of planning terror attack on Leeds mosque

May 15, 2025 Article

Three neo-Nazi extremists who stockpiled an arsenal of over 200 weapons were found guilty of plotting a terror attack on a mosque in Leeds.

The group never met in person, but shared their racist, homophobic and violent ideologies online, discussing possible targets for terror attacks – including synagogues, mosques, and buildings housing refugees.

25-year-old Brogan Stewart, from West Yorkshire, fashioned himself as their leader and “Fuhrer”, telling Cannock-based Christopher Ringrose, 34 and Derby-based Marco Pitzettu, 25, to dress in Nazi-style clothing.

Stewart named them “Eitzen 14” – a reference to the notorious Nazi death squads. The Einsatzgruppen had murdered over one million Jewish people in mass shootings following the invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941.

Counter-terrorism police revealed that the group planned for a “race war” and sourced body armour, riot gear, rations and over 200 weapons divided across their home addresses. Weapons recovered included machetes, hunting knives, swords, and crossbows.

Ringrose had been building a 3-D assault rifle, with instructions found online and required just a firing pin, bolt and barrel to become active and deadly. He also shared a photograph of his one-year-old child with a skull mask on the Telegram channel, captioned “choose violence”, the Guardian reported.

Tell MAMA identified a TikTok channel potentially linked to Ringrose, which we can now disclose following the guilty verdicts.

The TikTok account potentially linked to Christopher Ringrose contained extremist content from 2022 and followed far-right pages.

The account had uploaded a video in late May 2022, captioned “one mans terrorist another mans freedom fighter”, which stylised a photo of armed members of the IRA taken in Belfast in 1987 during the Troubles. Another meme featured an armed man with the caption, “You think the government cares about you?”.

Of the various pages followed by the account, we saw overt neo-Nazi pages containing totemkampf death skull avatars or 14/88 name variants amongst other ultranationalist pages from Europe and anti-Muslim materials invoking the Knights Templar.

During a group call on 5 February 2024, Stewart detailed plans to seek out “human targets” near an Islamic education centre. Counter-terrorism police made their arrests sixteen days later after an undercover officer had infiltrated their group. When the trial began, the prosecution outlined how the “imminent threat of an attack” resulted in their arrests.

A photograph of Brogan Stewart’s room in the house he shared with his mother included a Nazi flag and a poster for the neo-Nazi group the British Movement amongst various weapons.

Other racist statements from Stewart in the chat included calling the former prime minister Rishi Sunak the P-word.

During the trial, the prosecution outlined how Mr Stewart told an undercover officer of his desire to replicate the Nazi death squad and of his homemade “information extraction kit” that included pliers, gaffer tape, a blowtorch and how a “syringe filled with bleach” would get people talking. He also spoke of a desire to torture local imams.

Marco Pitzettu had obtained an illegal stun gun, in breach of the Firearms Act 1968, an offence which he pleaded guilty to prior to trial. Pitzettu also shared footage of the Christchurch terror attacks that resulted in the murder of 51 Muslims in New Zealand in 2019, highlighting the lingering influence of such white supremacist terror over those convicted of far-right terror offences across the UK.

Detective Chief Superintendent James Dunkerley, Head of Counter Terrorism Policing North East, made clear in a statement that: “Stewart, Pitzettu, and Ringrose have today been rightfully convicted of multiple terrorism offences.” Adding, “They were a group that espoused vile racist views and advocated for violence, all to support their extreme right-wing mindset.

“Some of their defence in court was that it was all fantasy or just part of harmless chat, however all three took real world steps to plan and prepare for carrying out an attack on innocent citizens.”

The trio faces sentencing on 17 July.

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Categories: Antisemitism, Neo-Nazi, News, Telegram, terrorism

Hate crime investigation into Muslim grave desecrations ongoing in Hertfordshire

April 17, 2025 Article

Hertfordshire Police reassured local Muslims and communities at a public meeting in Bushey that they are investigating the abhorrent desecration of 61 Muslim graves as an Islamophobic hate crime.

Officers responded to the widespread desecration of graves and plaques, many belonging to babies and children, at Carpenders Park Lawn Cemetery in Hertfordshire – in an area reserved for Muslim burial on April 13.

Police revised the figures, initially thought to total 85, during the public meeting the Bushey Islamic Circle organised yesterday (April 16). Those in attendance included police, faith leaders, and the families impacted.

The thorough investigation has not yet identified suspects, nor have witnesses come forward. Still, officers are carrying out forensic work, stepped-up patrols around the cemetery, and increased visibility of officers around other local areas.

Funeral planner Hussain Sadiq, who attended the meeting, said: “One of the worst parts of this tragedy is the majority of the damage has been to graves of babies and children,” the BBC reported.

The chairman of Bushey United Synagogue also attended the public meeting in a show of support and solidarity.

A member of Tell MAMA’s outreach team attended the meeting to speak with those impacted, police officers, council officers, and others in attendance and offer our support.

In a statement, Councillor Muhammed Butt, who leads Brent Council, which owns the Watford-based cemetery, made clear: “We will reinstate the damaged name plaques and return Carpenders Park Lawn cemetery to a peaceful, quiet place of remembrance as quickly as possible, once the Police have finished their investigation.”

He condemned the desecration and said, “This is a very serious incident, and we continue to work closely with Hertfordshire Police to inform family members and bring the perpetrators to justice.”

Harrow Council Leader Cllr Paul Osborn said in a statement: “This affects our Muslim community here in Harrow who have loved ones buried at this site. My thoughts are with all those affected by this horrendous act of vandalism which Hertfordshire Police have confirmed as an Islamophobic hate crime.”

Days earlier, in a statement via her funeral provider, Alicia Hussain, the damage to her daughter’s grave raised “disturbing questions” and how it proved “cruel, cold, and deeply violating,” which left her “shattered”, the Watford Observer reported.

Fozie, another local resident, who recently buried her husband, told the local press, “Thankfully my husband’s grave was unaffected but to see the destruction of children’s graves was callous and pure evil. How are these people allowed to get away with this? It’s incomprehensible.”

Chief Superintendent Jon Simpson, who heads Hertfordshire’s Local Policing Command, sought to reassure Muslim communities, stating, “We would like to reassure those affected, and the wider Muslim community, that we are continuing to treat this crime extremely seriously.”

We will continue to liaise directly with the police and Brent Council and endeavour to provide further updates where possible. We are also extending our offer of emotional support and access to our free counselling service.

Some impacted families reached out to Tell MAMA for support, and given the immense emotional pain the families are experiencing, we want to ensure everyone feels supported.

On social media, we received a small number of reports detailing horrendous language, dehumanising anti-Muslim tropes, and calls for more vandalism, as many others stood in solidarity and condemned the heinous, cowardly acts.

More broadly, Tell MAMA’s most recent report documented a sharp rise in vandalism cases to our service, including the abhorrent vandalism of Muslim graves in Burnley following the horrific Southport stabbings and murders amid far-right violence and rioting.

We urge anyone with information to call 101, quoting Op Lunate. Tell MAMA can pass information forward on your behalf or anonymously.

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Categories: Carpenders Park Lawn cemetery, grave descecration, hate crime, Muslim graves, News, Watford

Coursing a Path of Independence from Government

April 1, 2025 Article

Over the last 13 years, we at Tell MAMA have been carrying out our work in monitoring and helping victims of anti-Muslim hate on a year-by-year grant-funding basis. The annual grant funding was supported and provided by successive Conservative administrations, and we thank them for their commitment to our work and their dedicated support during this period.

Over the last 6 months, however, we have been left in the uncomfortable and unsettling position of having no guarantee of further direct grant funding from the Ministry for Communities, Housing and Local Government (MHCLG). We have been concerned about decisions that have been made on the future funding of Tell MAMA during this period, particularly at a time when we recorded the highest numbers of anti-Muslim hate cases since Tell MAMA was founded in 2011. In addition, we have been subjected to malicious campaigns to undermine our work, including being the subject of hate and abuse targeting the project and our staff, threatening their safety and security, which have been reported to the relevant authorities. Whatever the reasons behind these campaigns, the people responsible for them have given no thought to victims of anti-Muslim hate whom we have served with dedication over the past 13 years.

We are saddened that the very service that has trained police forces, statutory authorities and civil society organisations, whilst highlighting the depth, scope and impact of anti-Muslim hate since 2011, has had to go through these significant insecurities and challenges over the last 6 months.

Following discussions with the MHCLG, Tell MAMA has received an offer of an extension of funding from the MHCLG covering the next 6 months (April-September 2025), together with confirmation from the MHCLG that it has full confidence in Tell MAMA and its work, for which we are grateful. However, for the reasons outlined above, and in order to strengthen our independence from central Government, Tell MAMA has taken the decision to turn down this offer. Also, we will not be applying for any future tenders from MHCLG on this work.

We would like to thank Lord Khan of Burnley in particular for his part in our discussions with the MHCLG and his expression of support for Tell MAMA in ensuring the offer of further funding. His determination to tackle anti-Muslim hate is heartening and motivating and we value his desire to make a positive impact in this area of work.

We will continue to monitor cases of anti-Muslim hate, whilst supporting victims of anti-Muslim hate and striving to meet the needs of British Muslims affected by it. We believe that this is crucially important at a time when the volume of anti-Muslim hate online has increased and where anti-Muslim hate appears to be fast becoming normalised politically. However, we will also seek to repurpose and refocus our support services in the next 3 months, without taking away from our work ensuring that victims of anti-Muslim hate have the access to access to justice to which they are entitled. We believe that our newfound independence from Government will ensure that we are able to review our services and re-assess where we can ensure maximal impact in this area of work.

Finally, we would like to add that work on countering anti-Muslim hate should not be an afterthought, but central to decision planning within the MHCLG if it is to ensure that Muslim communities are properly protected whilst also supporting social cohesion on a national basis. We are proud to have worked with over 50,000 British Muslims since 2011 – the true heroes striving for justice and ensuring that perpetrators of anti-Muslim hate are held to account.

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Categories: anti-Muslim hate, British Muslims, grant funding, hate monitoring, MHCLG, News

Tell MAMA is a Key Partner With Government on Tackling Anti-Muslim Hatred

March 25, 2025 Article

On 8th March 2025, The Observer published an article on the future of Tell MAMA’s work which had been supported for 11 years by the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG).

Tell MAMA was notified that direct grant funding was coming to an end on the 31st March 2025, meaning that we would not be able to continue supporting victims of anti-Muslim hate and mapping and monitoring these incidents. This was truly disappointing news, given that Tell MAMA has stood at the forefront of this important work over the last 13 years, supporting over 50,000 British Muslims and consistently demonstrating that anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia is a growing problem that needs addressing. Our work has also been crucial for law enforcement agencies, with police only recently saying that information provided by Tell MAMA is “invaluable” in their work tackling anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia.

We are proud of the systems that we have set up and utilised to support victims of anti-Muslim hate and Islamophobia and the measures and statistics that we have produced.

Yesterday, we were formally notified by the MHCLG that direct funding will be offered to Tell MAMA for 2025/2026, reflecting the Government’s continued trust and confidence in our work. We wanted to extend our thanks to Lord Khan of Burnley, the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State at the MHCLG, for his time and collaborative efforts in working with us to address this matter. Lord Khan has stated the following:

“Tell MAMA is a key partner in the Government’s work to tackle anti-Muslim hatred and Islamophobia. It has developed important initiatives to capture, monitor and report instances of anti-Muslim hatred that have helped to inform Government policy and has worked in communities and organisations to provide training for those who support victims.”

“We are choosing to move away from direct funding awards to an open grant process to provide transparency and value for money, in line with standard grant functional standards across government.

This is not a reflection on Tell MAMA’s performance. Tell Mama have worked with government for over 10 years and have delivered an important service in that time.”

We are pleased that the Government has shown continued trust and confidence in our work by approving further funding and we look forward to continuing our important work serving Muslim communities in the UK.

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Categories: anti-Muslim hatred, Funding, Government, Lord Khan of Burnley, News