South Asian students ‘in constant fear’ amid racist attacks

A recent spate of racist violence in Ireland has forced many South Asian students to transform their daily lives for fear of being targeted, Times Higher Education has heard.

Among the attacks that occurred over the summer were the violent assaults of three Indian men in the Dublin area, which took place within a matter of weeks, while a six-year-old girl was punched, hit with a bicycle and and racially abused by a group of boys in County Waterford. In September, a Pakistani doctor was attacked on his way to work in Limerick.

In August, the Indian embassy in Dublin said it had contacted the Irish authorities after “an increase in the instances of physical attacks reported against Indian citizens in Ireland”, adding, “Indian citizens in Ireland are advised to take reasonable precautions for their personal security and avoid deserted areas, especially in odd hours.”

“South Asian students are scared – not only of being attacked, but of the constant possibility that it could happen anywhere, anytime, just because of how we look or the language we speak,” said Ansh Chawla, president of Trinity College Dublin’s Indian Society and a fourth-year global business student.

“People’s lives look different now. Students who used to walk back from the library at 1am are leaving early. Female students in particular have said they avoid public transport at night. Many skip society events or parties if they finish late, because getting home safely has become such a big worry.”

“For international students who’ve left their families thousands of miles away, it’s particularly hard,” Chawla said. “Parents call us almost daily now, worried sick, which only adds to the pressure.”

Conversation in the Trinity Indian Society’s WhatsApp groups has shifted from “food, culture and events” to “safety warnings, check-ins and routes to avoid”, Chawla said, while events are now organised “with fear in the back of our minds”.

Santosh Yadav, an Indian data scientist who has lived in Ireland since 2021, was assaulted by a group of teenagers in Dublin in July and subsequently required surgery to treat a fractured cheekbone. “It was a terrible experience,” he told Times Higher Education. “It’s been 1.5 months now, but I’m still trying to recover.”

“They were all around me, hitting from all sides,” he recalled. “I was bleeding from my ears, from the nose, from my cheek, from the hands, legs – everywhere.”

Yadav moved to Ireland to take up a postdoctoral position at the University of Galway, before working as a senior AI scientist at research institutes including CeADAR at University College Dublin and Atlantic Technological University’s WiSAR Lab. This year, he launched a start-up to develop an AI assistant for the art market, with backing from Enterprise Ireland.

“Scientific research in those environments is really good, and I’ve had a fantastic experience working in Ireland,” Yadav said. “The first three years were amazing.” Citing the far-right, anti-immigration Dublin riot in November 2023 as a turning point, Yadav said he would now advise other members of the Indian community “to be cautious about their safety and security”.

“For me, things have changed a lot,” he said. “If I go out, in my mind it’s always there that I have to keep looking behind me, because those people came from behind when I was attacked.”

“Even if I have my friends around, that psychologically affects you. It’s a trauma that might stay for a very long time.”

Chawla, too, pointed to the 2023 riot, commenting, “These new attacks feel like a continuation of that same environment.”

“Racism wasn’t new this summer,” he said. “South Asian and other international students have dealt with it for years: slurs shouted on buses, being told to go back home, accents mocked in public.”

“The difference now is that the violence has connected the dots.”

Trinity College Dublin has shown “real solidarity” with students impacted by the violent attacks, Chawla said: “We’ve had emails from leadership, counselling offers and visible security.” However, “a lot of what’s been done feels reactive”.

“Students want more proactive measures that make a difference in daily life,” he said, suggesting “clear reporting systems with follow-up, not just links buried in emails. Practical things like late-night shuttles so we don’t have to choose between safety and money. Stronger engagement with Garda Diversity Officers so there’s protection outside campus too.” Student orientation should incorporate anti-racism and bystander training, he added.

Bryan O’Mahony, president of the national student union Aontas na Mac Léinn in Éirinn, called for government action including “stronger enforcement against hate crimes, public campaigns promoting the importance of diversity and inclusion in society and investment in community-led initiatives that support South Asian students and other minority groups”.

“We would also like to see collaboration between the government, local authorities, universities, and student organisations to address the broader systemic issues that allow racism to persist,” O’Mahony said. “Not just in violent attacks but discrimination in housing, unconscious biases [and] stereotyping.”

After being attacked, Yadav launched a community initiative, Fáilte Namaste, which will provide diversity and inclusion training in business and schools and host cultural exchange events among other activities. “The purpose is basically to bring the Indian and Irish cultures together,” he said.

Chawla said universities and the Irish government should treat the recent racist assaults as a wake-up call. “Don’t wait for another attack,” he said. “Act now, listen to us, protect us, and make sure Ireland continues to be the open, safe society that it has the potential to be."