ABSTRACT
This study addresses online responses to the riots that followed the Southport murders in the United Kingdom in summer 2024. These riots occurred in a context of anti-migrant and anti-Muslim sentiment in the United Kingdom. While the riots were widely condemned, this analysis focuses on online debates and in particular those that praised people involved in the riots. To do this, the study drew on online user comments following two news articles on the Daily Mail website (sampled from 1 August 2024 to 15 August 2024, on the Daily Mail website and via google, totalling 847 unique comments) and analysed them using critical discursive psychology. The analysis identified three main arguments that were used in support of the riots: (1) (un)fairness in justice, (2) debating whether migrants are not wanted and (3) presenting rioters as heroes. It is shown how these arguments could justify and even glorify the riots despite their violent and racist undertones.