Anger outbreaks as racist graffiti spotted at park in Glasgow

Racist graffiti has appeared in a park in Glasgow, sparking “anger” and “disgust” among the community. The graffiti was spotted in a BBQ and picnic area of Pollok Park playing fields and appeared to be from supporters of the Scottish Defence League (SDL) 

The seemingly anti-Muslim phrases scrawled along the benches included “born in Scotlan(d)”, “Muslims are not welcomed”, and “Muslims f*** off”, along with several SDL acronyms. 

Anthony Carroll, Scottish Greens Councillor, condemned the graffiti and said that Saturday’s counter-protest demonstrates that racism has no place in Scottish communities. 

He said: “As we saw on George on Saturday. Those spreading hate and racism are outnumbered in this city by anti-fascists. 

“Yet they still try to defile our public spaces with racist graffiti. These actions, and the people who wrote them, have no place in our communities as all they cause is division and destruction. 

“I hope to see this removed promptly.” 

The dog walker, who has asked not to be named, who first spotted the graffiti said it was a horrible discovery as a large group of Scots Asians, including kids, were playing sports right next to it. 

They said: “I was quite disgusted to see this, to be honest with you. 

“I’d seen news of far-right protests planned for Scotland in recent days, but nothing had seemed to come of any of it. So, to see some cowards too scared to say their views in public instead scrawl these vile words where young children can read them is just horrible. 

“The graffiti is on the picnic benches on the playing fields next to the Burrell Collection. I often walk by there, and, especially on weekends, there are regular families from all different backgrounds using the space.” 

They continued: “When I saw this graffiti there was a large group of Scots Asians, including kids, playing cricket right nearby. Knowing the space and how it’s used makes me think these racist words were specifically targeted at those people. 

“Hopefully, the council cleans it up quickly, and Muslim members of our community know that the disgusting cowards who wrote that graffiti in no way represent the vast majority of the good people of Glasgow.”