Three Nigerian men have fled their home in a loyalist district of Belfast where many apparently racist attacks are taking place.
The men moved out after a firework was found in a back yard at Coolfin Street, within 24 hours of a petrol bomb attack on a nearby Bangladeshi family.
It was the 90th racist attack recorded by police in south Belfast this year.
A brother of one of the men, who insisted they were too terrified to return to their home of two years, could not understand what motivated the attackers.
"We try to communicate with the community to ask them why, but nobody knows the reason," he said. "They are looking at us from the perspective that we are refugees, which we are not. We are all workers, we work for our living and pay our rents."
Army explosives experts were called in to the area as part of a major security alert.
Despite senior officers defending their record on attacks against ethnic minorities, campaigners pleaded with the authorities to do more.
Mr David Carlin of the Anti-Racist Network said: "Police and community representatives need to stand shoulder to shoulder with those being attacked."
Earlier, Chief Insp Nigel Grimshaw denied claims by the organisation that officers were dragging their heels in tackling crime against ethnic minorities.
The family of Mr Mohammad Hossain were sleeping in their Fane Street home when two petrol bombs were thrown at it early yesterday.
Mr Hossain, his wife and their five-year-old daughter escaped unharmed but said they had been attacked around 20 times before.
Chief Insp Grimshaw said he understood the frustration following such a horrendous incident. "We fully accept that, if you look at the statistics, not a lot of people are being brought to the courts for these sort of attacks and the process of justice and investigation can be lengthy."
A community beat officer had been assigned to Mr Hossain's family before the attack, he said.
But he added: "Ultimately we need information and evidence to put before the courts."
Former Belfast mayor Mr Alex Maskey (SF) urged unionist political and community leaders in the area to intensify their efforts to end the campaign.