London / UK Riots

[ravage]

Re: London - riots

@goddamniamsoawesome

It was just a local grass-roots initiative. I lived smack between Brixton Hill and Streatham Hill for under one year. I also lived between Lewisham and Peckham for just over six months. We were some guys looking to make right, I got into some rough business because for a while I lost my heading, This is when I started boxing which led to unsanctioned underground prize-fighting which led to me getting involved with unsavoury characters. We started doing music (PDC and Suspect boys) first and then got into some other stuff. Funny because there is still a rivalry between the Brixton and Peckham boys. Anyway, the work was a few of us found our way out of the mess and we started trying to work with the high-ups (Jaja, Nyia, Ramsey, etc… PDCEnt now) and trying to prevent youngsters following their footsteps and getting into this dodgy business. We organised talks, shared experiences and how we came out better because of such experiences. A lot of kids listened and a whole other lot didn’t, that’s just how it is I suppose. Probably more than I should have let go but yeah, whatever.

Interesting! Certainly an eventful life. Slightly confused about the details, you lived in South and SouthEast London for a year and a half during which you both got into gangs and got out of them..? Or did you mean you lived there during the time you were working wiht the higher ups after getting out of the gangs.

Not really. At some point there might have been such prejudice but most of these youngsters haven’t seen the days their elders have. Its a lack of role models and other things I have described. We love to talk about the failure of society. Anyone remember ‘Hug a Hoodie’? What a load of bollocks really. I spent a lot of time amongst these people, I was one of them FFS. Its just irrational prejudice against authority. Nothing much. Watch Channel U sometimes, you’ll see how they glorify such gansters. I know the BBK boys and you can listen to them griming. They are people I know but I don’t agree with a lot of their talk. I mean PDC meant Pussy-Drugs-Cash. You tell me what you can read from that.

Yeah, the desire to get money is a trait present in probably every single human being in the world. And no, I know enough of such ‘oppressed/excluded’ youngsters who turned their lives around and are doing good for themselves. Maybe not drug lords but they are making a living. I mentioned Nyia earlier. He was a heavy character in South London. Now all he does is work the night at Sainsbury’s and looks after his two daughters as a single dad. He saves some money to spend on studio time and goes MC’ing in raves. Just one example. I have lots more. My point was the fact that a lot of people choose to settle down and work towards a stable future while others don’t. You can’t blame a segment of society because they are doing well, just like you can’t absolve another section if they aren’t. No one owes them anything.

Im not sure why these are mutually exclusive. Do you mean to say that the experience of this gentleman doesnt correspond to reality? You say you know a lot of people making it out of their stations in life, perhaps you should note that the UK has the lowest social mobility rates amongst developed countries. The chances of a UK child doing better than his parents are lower than in other places.

You point to culture, I say again PDC represents the same culture that exists in the rest of the modern world, albeit in a cruder wrapper. Thats just consumerism. The glorification of crime results from it being the most accessible way to get the glorified PDC [where lets take D to include flash cars and designer clothes]. In that sense it is just mainstreaming.

You happen to live close. I’ve been through the life. Sure, it was not something I grew up in (I grew up a universe apart) but I know those people, I know their families, I know their culture, I know how they think. Its opportunism at its best. No excuses Ravage. Yeah, you can see a difference because some choose that path while others are happy to try and live the live of a gangster, because it gets them money, girls and power. Fact. Opportunities in England are equal, too PC in my opinion. And I say that even after knowing a whole lot of these guys.
That my friend is not the case anymore. There is ample opportunity for people these days in England to sort their lives out. Trust me I can list tens and tens of individual cases where they came from nothing more than a broken home without any family and yet have worked on their lives,. Simply put, these guys aren’t okay with such activities. There is no frustration, there is no desperation, this is mindless opportunism. Its very malicious in nature. Let’s not make excuses here.

Once again, see the report I link above. Opportunities in the England are NOT equal by any means. Also, the intent in saying I’ve seen how they live is to simply say that I have seen both segments of society, and regardless of what your personal experiences are I find it hard to believe that you think there is no difference between the opportunities and lifestyle Toff Toffington has and what someone growing up in Brixton does. That just stretches credulity, and I have to believe you were oversimplifying to make a point.

Most of my friends work in the city, and I have spent five years in the academia. The experience of both groups of people is that these are spheres where black people, and lower class people in general, are a rarity. Yeah you know a few people who work in Sainsbury to avoid getting into gangster life but that isnt really my point. The life that is advertised and promoted as ideal in this culture is inaccessible to most of these people no matter how many hours they work at Sainsburys, and that is no small thing.

I never said they are unemployed. I say a large part of them are unemployed. The average age of these looters is under 20.

On what basis?

The guy who got shot for example was a gangster, clear as the sky. Yet these people come out in support and now come out purely to satisfy their malicious whims. I call BS to any injustice. I can say all this because I was one of them for some time of my life.

There is a world of difference between some being a gangster and someone who should have been shot. Warna to you were a part of a gang too. Should you have been shot?