Paper short abstract:

Based on twelve months of ethnographic fieldwork in Kirkby, Liverpool, this paper focuses on a protest and riot that happened in 2023 surrounding the placement of asylum seekers in a hotel in the area. I discuss some of the tensions and dilemmas involved when doing research in this environment.

Paper long abstract:

In 2022/2023, I conducted twelve months of ethnographic fieldwork in my hometown, Kirkby, a post-industrial town on the outskirts of Liverpool with some of the highest levels of socioeconomic deprivation in the country. Initially, empathising with the political views of my participants was not difficult, as their primary adversary was the Conservative Government. However, when approximately one hundred asylum seekers were placed in a local hotel during my fieldwork things became more complex. I observed gradually increasing tensions surrounding their presence, culminating in a violent protest and riot outside the hotel. I attended the protest as part of my research and was recognised by counter-protesters, who accused me (rightly so) of standing 'on the wrong side.' This created conflicts both socially and internally which remain an ongoing effect of my fieldwork. My data demonstrates that mainstream media accounts of this riot as right-wing and racist are overly simplistic. However, my concern is that being open about this may lead to me being aligned with ‘unlikeable others’ for the rest of my career (Pasieka, 2019:3). Likewise, giving voice to the rioters in this situation does not sit comfortably with my own political beliefs. This paper will explore some of these tensions and the ethical dilemmas involved when conducting research in an increasingly polarised Britain, more specifically, when conducting research with interlocutors whose views diverge from our own moral standpoint.

Pasieka, A. (2019), Anthropology of the far right: What if we like the ‘unlikeable’ others?. Anthropology Today, 35: 3-6. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8322.12480