The government turning a blind to an increase in hate crimes has normalised these heinous actions in the eyes of their perpetrators, according to Social Democrats justice spokesperson Gary Gannon.
Deputy Gannon said:
“This rise in racially motivated attacks must not just be condemned in the strongest terms possible – it must be tackled head-on through action.
“The Minister for Justice should spend less time boasting about the people his department has deported and more time tackling the rise in hate crimes on our streets.
“We already know that the Minister’s consistent “tough on immigration” stance has been little more than a blatant attempt to mislead the public into believing that this year’s deportations were both necessary and meaningful in fixing the system.
“This is where we are now: a government more interested in appearing “tough” than in protecting our most vulnerable, standing by while hatred and racism has been allowed to flourish.
“Little is being done to stop the spread of mis- and disinformation online, which in turn is manipulating members of the public to believe in a hateful agenda – stronger regulation of social media is long overdue.
“Reports suggest that many of these crimes are committed by children and adolescents – legislating against our youth being radicalised online must be a priority once the Dáil resumes.
“My thoughts are with the victims of this recent slew of attacks – the state has failed to protect them from being targeted, just for being themselves.
“Ireland is losing its reputation as a welcoming country, and for good reason – work has yet to be done to live up to that badge of honour.
“I hope that we can put politics aside and focus on establishing our republic as the tolerant and proud country it was once considered to be.”
August 12th, 2025