“I can still see the confused stare of a young boy who has no idea why these people hate him so much”
An editor who witnessed rioters trying to smash their way into a hotel housing asylum seekers in Rotherham has described how what he saw left him open-mouthed and scared for his safety.
Dan Hayes told readers of the Sheffield Tribune newsletter that he had been monitoring discussion in online groups, which centred around targeting the Holiday Inn in Manvers, near Rotherham.
Arriving at the hotel, he witnessed a mob smash windows, prompting cheers from a watching crowd, while rioters taunted the police.
Dan wrote: “After the ground floor window was smashed, the mood intensified and disorder grew. Initially the police didn’t seem to have enough officers there, meaning parts of the hotel were left completely unprotected. The rioters searched for rocks in the surrounding area before launching them at the hotel and the police. Every time a rock found its target and brought down another window a huge cheer went up.
“The crowd was predominantly, but not entirely, male. And almost entirely white. I counted about three black people in the couple of hours I stayed there. My impression was that the vast majority were local, either to Wath-on-Dearne or South Yorkshire more generally. There were Sheffield Wednesday and Sheffield FC shirts among the crowd. Regular chants of “Yorkshire, Yorkshire, Yorkshire,” erupted when the mob threw rocks at the hotel’s windows.
“As a journalist I would normally be asking people questions about why they were there but for the most part I was stood there open-mouthed or else genuinely scared for my safety.”
Reflecting on the day, Dan added: “While I was stood near the reception, a young boy in the hotel of around seven looked out of a window right at me. I would love to think he knew I wasn’t one of the hate-filled people I was surrounded by, but there’s no way he could have. I can still see him in my mind as I write this piece. The confused stare of a young boy who has no idea what’s going on and why these people seem to hate him so much.”
You can read Dan’s full account on the Sheffield Tribune Substack here.
