Young people who took part in last summer’s riots were not primarily driven by social media misinformation or racism, according to new research by the Children’s Commissioner.
The report found that children joined the unrest because of their curiosity about the events, animosity towards the police, or a lack of opportunities in their community.
Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza spoke to about 20% of the children who were charged in relation to the riots that broke out after the murders of Bebe King, Elsie Dot Stancombe and Alice da Silva Aguiar in Southport on 29 July last year.
The Children’s Commissioner said her report did not excuse the criminality of the hundreds of children, some as young as 11, who got involved with the unrest across England.
But her report concludes that while racism and misinformation from far-right influences played a potential role, they did not appear to drive children’s actions.
Instead, many children said they joined in the ‘thrill’ of the moment, or cited negative interactions and deep-seated mistrust of the police, as well as poverty, a lack of youth activities and limited job opportunities.
Dame de Souza said: ‘The involvement of children in those riots and the reasons they told me they got involved raise some really serious questions about childhood in England and why our children feel so disaffected and disempowered.’
