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Outlook: Bradford 12: The Asian youth who took on the racists, part 2

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Tariq Mehmood with other acquitted members of the Bradford 12 outside Leeds Crown Court

01/06/2023 GMT

Bradford 12: The Asian youth who took on the racists, part 2

BBC World Service - Outlook, Bradford 12: The Asian youth who took on the racists, part 2

Self-defence is no offence: how anti-racist activist Tariq Mehmood made UK legal history

In 1981 anti-racist activist Tariq Mehmood was arrested for conspiracy to make explosives. It led to the historic Bradford 12 trial where he argued that self-defence is no offence

By 1981, Pakistani-born immigrant Tariq Mehmood had endured years of violent racism in Britain. When he heard that gangs of white skinheads – with a history of attacking Asians – were coming to his home in Bradford, Tariq and his neighbours took desperate measures to defend their community. Underpinning their actions was the principle, “self-defence is no offence.” Tariq would end up being arrested, charged with conspiracy to make explosives, and facing life imprisonment. What followed was the landmark legal case of the Bradford 12.

Hand on the Sun, the novel that Tariq wrote in prison over 40 years ago, has been re-released with a new update.

Presenter: Mobeen Azhar
Producer: Maryam Maruf and Lina Chang

Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com

(Photo: Tariq Mehmood [far left] along with other members of the Bradford 12. Credit: Ishaq Kazi)

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