Councillor Reports Primary School Children Involved in Racial Harassment of Family

A councillor has said primary school children have been involved in repeated incidents of harassment of a family on the outskirts of Londonderry, which police are treating as a racially-motivated hate crime. The councillor said he had seen doorbell camera footage of children using racist language near a house in Strathfoyle.

The family reported verbal abuse which went on for weeks, as well as mud and water balloons being thrown at their home.

The police said they had spoken to a number of young people about the incidents.

Foyle's North West Today programme on Monday, the councillor said the harassment had been ongoing for weeks. "I was first contacted several weeks ago when this particular family started to be harassed by a group of young people, starting with banging on the door and banging on the windows," the councillor said.

" The councillor is now going to ask local school principals to have conversations with their pupils about racism. "These incidents are not representative of the people of Strathfoyle," the councillor said. " An anti-racism campaigner said the family should be allowed to live in peace.

She said everyone had a responsibility to make sure their neighbours felt safe, regardless of their ethnicity. She said that there was a "growing awareness" of race-hate crimes.