The strength of a neighbourhood against a deportation

On 13 May 2021, on Kenmure Street in the multicultural neighbourhood of Pollokshields, Glasgow, an Immigration Service van stopped two Asian locals for no apparent reason. The news spread quickly, and more than 2,000 people headed out onto the street to stop the vehicle from taking them away. They blocked the van for hours, and an activist even lay down underneath it. The pressure was such that the Scottish police ordered both of them to be released. The scene, with chants of "these are our neighbours", became a symbol of community resistance against British immigration policy.

This was no isolated incident, but part of a tradition of social mobilisation against deportation in Glasgow. In 2005, the so-called "Glasgow girls" managed to halt the deportation of a Kosovar classmate and other asylum seekers, forcing the Government into a U-turn. Some years earlier, in 2001, the community occupation of public paths in Govanhill had demonstrated the neighbourhood's capacity to organise and resist through civil disobedience. This collective memory was once again triggered on Kenmure Street: local residents headed outside, made their stand, and said "no".

Similar community responses have also been seen in the Basque Country. In Bilbao, the neighbourhood of San Francisco has repeatedly denounced police dragnet operations, and forged networks of local residents to support migrants. On the River Bidasoa border, the Irungo Harrera Network has done the same. In Vitoria, the Gora Gasteiz citizens' initiative mobilised thousands of people in 2015 to oppose xenophobic political discourse, celebrating their diverse city.