Farage’s racially coded attacks have no place in a civilised society
4 December 2025
Robina Qureshi comments on the importance of holding the line against racism.
When a political figure, mired in accusations of antisemitism and racism going back to his schooldays, deliberately targets Glaswegian schoolchildren, the response from national leadership becomes a matter of human rights, not party politics.
Nigel Farage’s racially charged attacks on children of colour and on those from refugee and immigrant families will be felt mentally and physically in school playgrounds across the city.
It is telling that while 1400 Glaswegian schoolchildren speak Gaelic as a first language, they are not the target of his outrage. Gaelic speaking children are overwhelmingly white. This exposes that his attack is not about language, it is about race.
For Scotland’s First Minister, John Swinney, publicly naming this for what it is, “quite simply racist” carries essential weight. His intervention signals that children cannot be dehumanised for political gain and that the state has a duty to safeguard them from racially charged hostility.
Clear pushback from the country’s highest office strengthens the confidence of schools, local authorities and safeguarding bodies to protect affected pupils. It also reassures minority communities that our rights and dignity are not negotiable.
At a time when xenophobic rhetoric is being mainstreamed, unequivocal leadership is indispensable. Scotland’s values must be defended precisely when they are being tested.
Rarely does the racism that deeply affects our lives get expressed as racist tropes. Mostly that destruction is done structurally and often very politely. The problem is that racism has been made respectable in mainstream discourse so it’s difficult to discern except by those forced to suffer it.
Racially coded phrases that pretend at neutrality but clearly are designed to portray people of colour, refugees and migrants as a negative in our society have to be exposed and called out. We must hold the line.
Across civic society, First Minister John Swinney has gained immeasurable respect as one of the few political leaders to hold that line and not capitulate to racism, as others have done. The vast majority of this country find such views abhorrent.
Scotland is a nation of immigrants going back hundreds of years. We have a strong tradition of protest. Quite simply, there is more of “us” than there is of “them”.
Robina Qureshi