The cleanup was swift in Southampton’s Portswood area after an anti-police demonstration turned violent, with workers sweeping up broken glass and mending fences that had been repurposed as missiles. But as any psychologist will tell you, trauma doesn't heal as fast as a street sweeper.

Residents described a night of fear and fury. Sophie Martin, whose family’s two cars now sport stylish tarpaulin windows, noted: “My kids’ car seats are covered in glass. I saw signs saying ‘protect the kids’, ‘safety is a privilege’. Well, I didn’t feel safe last night.”

The violence erupted after the death of Henry Nowak, who bled to death while handcuffed by police after being falsely accused of racism. His killer, Vickrum Digwa, used what the sentencing judge called a “Sikh sword”. Now the Sikh community is facing threats, with one gurdwara spokesperson noting: “All of a sudden everyone who is wearing a turban or has a beard is labelled as being Vickrum Digwa.”

Satvir Kaur, the Labour MP for Southampton Test and first Sikh woman to become a UK government minister, now requires a security guard just to knock on doors. “Some want me dead,” she said, which rather puts a damper on constituent services. She called the murder “evil” and stressed that most rioters weren’t even local. “Henry’s father himself said he didn’t want his son’s murder to be used to further grow divisions and hatred.”

Nearby, at the Gurdwara Khalsa Darbar, police community support workers offered reassurance - and, as always, spinach, mixed veg and chapatis. The gurdwara has posted extra volunteers for security. “The police really need to work harder on building their own trust because nobody has trust in anybody at the moment,” a spokesperson said.

The disturbance followed a demonstration at Southampton central police station featuring far-right activists, including Tommy Robinson. Eddie Thomas, 22, a waiter, noted the irony: “I hear Tommy Robinson came down. That’s not just local people getting upset. A lot of them were young, looking for trouble, covered up in black.”

City council leader Cllr Sarah Bogle condemned the “weaponisation of what is a huge tragedy”. Retired art teacher Andrée summed it up: “I taught people of all races for 40 years. This is a nice mixed community and most of the time everyone gets on well. This is so uncalled for, so sad.”