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Four years after removing “antisemitism” from its hate crime awareness poster, the London Borough of Tower Hamlets has restored the word following growing criticism, according to The Telegraph.
Omission Sparks Outrage
Since 2022, the borough’s poster for National Hate Crime Awareness Week left out antisemitism while listing Islamophobia, transphobia, and disablism. The edited version circulated across council channels for years before anyone noticed the missing term.
Tower Hamlets later admitted that the word had been cropped out but said it was a mistake, not a deliberate act. The image was corrected after a councilor raised the issue, prompting the council to update it and include antisemitism once again.
Backlash Amid Rising Antisemitic Violence
The correction came just days after two Jewish men were murdered outside a Manchester synagogue during Yom Kippur. Critics said the omission reflected a broader disregard for Jewish safety at a time of rising antisemitism across the UK.
“In the wake of the murderous terrorist attack on a Manchester synagogue, and frequent hate marches on the streets of London, it is doubly unforgivable that Tower Hamlets’s Jewish community has been treated in this way,” said James Cleverly, the Shadow Secretary for Housing, Communities, and Local Government.
A Historic Borough Confronts Blind Spots
Tower Hamlets includes some of Britain’s oldest Jewish neighborhoods, such as Whitechapel and Spitalfields. For generations, these areas were central to Jewish life in London.
To many residents, the omission showed how easily antisemitism is sidelined or overlooked in public messaging about hate. Restoring the word was an important step, but true progress demands more. Combating antisemitism requires action, accountability, and a consistent acknowledgment that Jew-hatred remains a real and dangerous force in Britain today.
Take Action
CAM has launched Report It — a secure app to report antisemitic incidents anonymously and in real time. Don’t stay silent — download it today on the Apple Store or Google Play. See it. Report it. Stop it. Together, we can fight this hate.
