The Chapeltown Riots of 1981 took place in the
Leeds
Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by popula ...
district of
Chapeltown in
West Yorkshire
West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...
, England, during a time when many other areas of the UK were suffering similar problems (such as London,
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands in England. It is the second-largest city in the United Kingdom with a population of 1. ...
and
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a populat ...
). The riots unfolded in July 1981 from a background of racial tension, inner city
poverty,
poor housing and high
unemployment
Unemployment, according to the OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development), is people above a specified age (usually 15) not being in paid employment or self-employment but currently available for work during the refere ...
(which was rising rapidly as a result of the
recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction when there is a general decline in economic activity. Recessions generally occur when there is a widespread drop in spending (an adverse demand shock). This may be triggered by various ...
at the time). This brought high tension, particularly amongst the area's Caribbean community, culminating in attacks on the local police.
The ''
Yorkshire Evening Post
The ''Yorkshire Evening Post'' is a daily evening publication (delivered to newsagents every morning) published by Yorkshire Post Newspapers in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The paper provides a regional slant on the day's news, and traditi ...
'' reported on the events from a 'law and order' perspective, quoting police and council sources. The ''Leeds Other Paper'' reported on the social and community aspects of the disturbances, including the root causes.
These were not to be the last riots in the area. In 1987 there was further rioting in Chapeltown and in 2001 there was widespread rioting in nearby
Harehills.
See also
*
Chapeltown
*
Harehills
*
1975 Chapeltown riot
*
1987 Chapeltown riot
*
Harehills riot
*
List of race riots
Other riots in the UK the same year
*
1981 Brixton riot
The 1981 Brixton riot, or Brixton uprising, was a series of clashes between mainly black youths and the Metropolitan Police in Brixton, London, between 10 and 12 April 1981.J. A. Cloake & M. R. Tudor. ''Multicultural Britain''. Oxford Unive ...
- London
*
Handsworth riots - Birmingham
*
1981 Toxteth riots
The Toxteth riots of July 1981 were a civil disturbance in Toxteth, inner-city Liverpool, which arose in part from long-standing tensions between the local police and the black community. They followed the Brixton riot earlier that year and we ...
- Liverpool
References
{{Riots in England
Chapeltown Race Riot, 1981
Chapeltown Race Riot, 1981
Black British history
Chapeltown, Leeds
Crime in Leeds
History of Leeds
Race riots in England
July 1981 events in the United Kingdom
1980s in Leeds