The Chapeltown Riots of 1981 took place in the Leeds district of Chapeltown in West Yorkshire, England, during a time when many other areas of the UK were suffering similar problems (such as London, Birmingham and Liverpool). The riots unfolded in July 1981 from a background of racial tension, inner city poverty, poor housing and high unemployment (which was rising rapidly as a result of the recession at the time). [1] This brought high tension, particularly amongst the area's Caribbean community, culminating in attacks on the local police.
The Yorkshire Evening Post reported on the events from a 'law and order' perspective, quoting police and council sources. The Leeds Other Paper reported on the social and community aspects of the disturbances, including the root causes. [2]
These were not to be the last riots in the area. In 1987 there was further rioting in Chapeltown and in 2001 there was widespread rioting in nearby Harehills. [3]
Other riots in the UK the same year
Handsworth is an inner-city area of Birmingham in the West Midlands, England. Historically in Staffordshire, Handsworth lies just outside Birmingham City Centre and near the town of Smethwick.
Harehills is an inner-city area of east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is about 1 mile (1.6 km) northeast of Leeds city centre. Harehills is between the A58 and the A64. It sits in the Gipton & Harehills ward of Leeds City Council and the Leeds East parliamentary constituency, between Burmantofts and Gipton, and adjacent to Chapeltown.
Chapeltown is a suburb of north-east Leeds, in West Yorkshire, England. It is part of the Leeds City Council Ward of Chapel Allerton. It is approximately one mile north of Leeds city centre.
Gipton is a suburb of east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, between the A58 to the north and the A64 to the south.
The Leeds Carnival, also called the Leeds West Indian Carnival or the Chapeltown Carnival, is one of the longest running West Indian carnivals in Europe, having been going since 1967. The carnival is held in the Chapeltown and Harehills parts of Leeds every August bank holiday weekend. Attendance is estimated at 150,000.
The 1981 Brixton riot, or Brixton uprising, was a series of clashes between mainly black youths and the Metropolitan Police in Brixton, London, between 10 and 12 April 1981. It resulted from racist discrimination against the black community by the mainly white police, especially the police's increased use of stop-and-search in the area, and ongoing tensions resulting from the deaths of 13 black teenagers and young adults in the suspicious New Cross house fire that January. The main riot on 11 April, dubbed "Bloody Saturday" by Time magazine, resulted in 279 injuries to police and 45 injuries to members of the public; over a hundred vehicles were burned, including 56 police vehicles; almost 150 buildings were damaged, thirty of which were burnt out, and many shops were looted. There were 82 arrests. Reports suggested that up to 5,000 people were involved. The Brixton riot was followed by similar riots in July in many other English cities and towns. The Thatcher government commissioned an inquiry, which resulted in the Scarman Report.
The Toxteth riots of July 1981 were a civil disturbance in Toxteth, inner-city Liverpool, which arose in part from long-standing tensions between the local police and the black community. They followed the Brixton riot earlier that year and were part of the 1981 England riots.
West Yorkshire Police, formerly the West Yorkshire Metropolitan Police, is the territorial police force responsible for policing the metropolitan county of West Yorkshire, England. It is the fourth largest territorial police force in England and Wales by number of officers.
Riots often occur in reaction to a perceived grievance or out of dissent. Riots may be the outcome of a sporting event, although many riots have occurred due to poor working or living conditions, government oppression, conflicts between races or religions.
Potternewton also Potter Newton is a suburb and parish between Chapeltown and Chapel Allerton in north-east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It is in the Chapel Allerton ward of Leeds City Council.
The 2001 Harehills riot took place in the multi-ethnic Leeds district of Harehills. The riot occurred after the alleged wrongful arrest of an Asian man by the West Yorkshire Police which was alleged to have been heavy-handed. More than 100 Asian, White, and Black youths were together involved in the six-hour-long rioting against the police. The West Yorkshire Police later stated that any attempt to legitimise criminal behaviour by saying it is connected with racial tension or the style of policing is just an excuse for young males committing crime on the streets. It was the first rioting in Leeds since the Hyde Park riots of 1995. The Police Officer involved in the alleged wrongful arrest was questioned, and later cleared of any wrongdoing.
The Chapeltown riotsof 1987 took place in the Leeds district of Chapeltown in West Yorkshire, England. Widespread rioting in Chapeltown also occurred in 1975 and 1981. During the 1981 riots, rioting took place not only in Chapeltown, but also in London, Birmingham and Liverpool.
The Chapeltown riot occurred on 5 November 1975 in the troubled Leeds district of Chapeltown in West Yorkshire, England. They were not to be the last riots in the area with further rioting in 1981 and 1987 and rioting in nearby Harehills in 2001.
In April and July 1981, there were riots in several cities and towns in England. The riots mainly involved black English youth clashing with police. They were caused by tension between black people and the police, especially perceived racist discrimination against black people through increased use of stop-and-search, and were also fuelled by inner-city deprivation. The most serious riots were the April Brixton riots in London, followed in July by the Toxteth riots in Liverpool, the Handsworth riots in Birmingham, the Chapeltown riots in Leeds, and the Moss Side riots in Manchester. There were also a series of less serious riots in other towns and cities. As a result of the riots, the government commissioned the Scarman Report.
In July 1981, the inner-city district of Moss Side in Manchester, England, was the scene of mass protesting. The protests at Moss Side started at the local police station and later moved into the surrounding streets over two days. Key factors seen as fuel for this protest were racial tension, due to frequent allegations of police officers racially abusing and using excessive force against black youths in the area, and mass unemployment brought on by the early 1980s recession. Unemployment was at a post-war high across the nation during 1981, but was much higher than the national average in Moss Side.
Chapel Allerton is an inner suburb of north-east Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, 2 miles (3.2 km) from the city centre.
In early August 2011, England was struck by riots, the worst in the country in decades. The timeline of the events of the riots spanned from 6–10 August.
The 1981 Handsworth riots were three days of rioting that took place in the Handsworth area of Birmingham, England in July 1981. The major outbreak of violence took place on the night of Friday 10/11 July, with smaller disturbances on the following two nights.
The 2024 Harehills riot was a public disturbance that took place in the Harehills area of Leeds which comes under the Gipton and Harehills ward, West Yorkshire, England. The unrest involved violent confrontations between local residents and police officers, resulting in the overturning of a police car, the torching of a double-decker bus, a bonfire of debris blocking a main road and widespread disorder in the streets.