Background
Bradford is historically a working class city. Since its rapid growth in the 19th century, there have been several significant waves of immigration, notably Irish (19th century), Poles (1940s-50s) and South Asian people. At the time of the riot, Bradford had the second largest population of Asians of any UK city, with approximately 68,000 Pakistanis, 12,500 Indians, 5,000 Bangladeshis and 3,000 other Asians. However, the majority of people in the city are white (Ethnicity: 78.3% White, and 18.9% S.Asian).
While the South Asian population in Bradford has grown, and there are areas which are mainly white and areas which are mainly South Asian, it is disputed whether segregation has grown over time, whether the phenomenon of white flight applies to Bradford, and whether one can accurately talk of ghettos in Bradford. At the time of the riot, Bradford Moor was 67% South Asian, Toller was 64 percent South Asian. Of the 17,512 people of Manningham 13,049 were South Asian. Tong was 93 percent white, and Wibsey was 91 percent white.
Read more about this topic: 2001 Bradford Riots
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