Londoners speak out after being targets of racist abuse following Brexit vote

Comments on the train: Natasha Brandlish was targeted on the day the results were declared
PA
Hannah Al-Othman29 June 2016

Two Londoners have spoken out after being targeted with racist abuse since the EU referendum result was declared.

Police have seen a spike in reported hate crimes since Friday, when it was declared that voters had opted to leave the European Union.

Recent graduate Natasha Bandlish, 21, from Dulwich, was on a train from London Bridge to Lower Sydenham on Friday when a group of construction workers stared at her on the train whilst shouting about British independence.

Ms Bandlish told the Standard: "I got on the train and sat down, and I was the only person of colour in that part of the carriage.

"There was a group of construction workers - all white, all men, all kind of young, cracking beers and celebrating.

"Two were looking directly at me for the majority of the train journey - it was quite uncomfortable.

"They were saying 'today is Independence Day, next year it will be a bank holiday'.

"They all looked at me - they looked me in the eye and started laughing."

She added: "I've lived here for so long and never experienced that. When I was a kid I had a few children refer to me as 'P**i', meant as a racial slur.

I was born and brought up in London before moving to India when I was 10. I moved back to London at the age of 18 to go to the University of Westminster.

"In a situation like that I thought I'd have something to say but I was just so shocked that someone would have the audacity to act like that - especially in London, it's such a multi-cultural city, it's known worldwide as a melting pot.

"I'm a British citizen and I feel really angry, I was born here, brought up here, both my parents are British, my grandparents are British, we have as much of a significant contribution to this country as they do."

Abused on the Tube: Kimberley Roberts
PA

Kimberley Roberts, a 31-year-old nanny, was called a "C***k" and told she would have to "go back home soon" as she travelled on the Tube over the weekend.

She told the Press Association: "I felt hurt and confused at first. I wasn't sure why he was saying this to me. I'm English. My parents are English and my grandparents are English. All born and raised in this country.

"When I got off the Tube I felt sick and anxious. I was concerned as to how many more people he had spoken to like this. I have many friends from all parts of the world living in London and they are subjected to this frequently.

"He wasn't aggressive towards me, in fact, he was shockingly blase, as if the conversation was a regular thing for him."

She added: "I was often bullied at school and called a 'C***k' or a 'P**i', but I've not been called either of these things since I left school 15 years ago.

"I firmly believe this was because of the referendum owing to his statement, 'you'll have to go home soon'. Many people are under the impression that Brexit means anyone who isn't white or who wasn't born in this country will be deported."

The incidents are just two of many reported across the capital in the past few days.

Londoners horrified by the spike in racist incidents have turned up with gifts at a Polish community centre on Hammersmith, which on Sunday was daubed with the words "Go Home".

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