Watching the news on the BBC regarding the uprising in Tottenham. And the media is resorting to type. There’s emphasis on the 8 cops being hurt yet the shooting of Mark Duggan is being sidelined and pushed into the background. Interviews with the likes of London Deputy Mayor, Kit Malthouse keep on being re-cycled (Oh, and the “grass up your neighbour” line) along with him dismissing the comments made by Clasford Stirling who knows a hell’va lot more to say about Tottenham than pompous right-winger, Malthouse. His boss, Boris Johnson, didn’t mention the death of Mark Duggan but the unjustified attacks on property!!
Also, there have been references to and comparisons to 1985 “riots”, along with the death of PC Keith Blakelock. But no mention of the death that sparked off the Tottenham uprising, Cynthia Jarrett nor the miscarriage of justice with the imprisonment of Winston Silcott, Mark Braithwaite and Engin Raghip. David Lammy MP mentioned the “destructive conflicts of the past” but does not mention reasons for events of ’85 to kick off, nothing about stop and searches or racist policing. His predecessor Bernie Grant only knew too well the reasons completely (Lammy was being interviewed when he was shouted down by people shouting, “When will we get justice”!!)
A youth worker on the news made the point that many people on the streets wouldn’t have been born around the time of 1985 but there’s a collective history and would have been told about the events back then. And that many young Black people have grievances with the cops who feel they are “against them” then a white top brass cop says there’s better policing in the Black communities. Really?? I don’t think so…..
What is also lacking from the BBC’s bourgeois analysis is how deprivation, savage cuts and child poverty allows pent-up anger and frustration which explodes and expressed on the streets. Whatever you think of this response it exposes the collective anger about the death of Mark Duggan combined with the cuts especially the cuts on youth centres.
The lethal combination of deprivation, poverty, victimatisation, criminalisation, unemployment, racism, racist policing with the trigger being the shooting of Mark Duggan which all exploded on the streets. Yet the mealy-mouthed offensive guff spouted by the likes of Malthouse only highlights the right-wing political consensus and the class war being waged on working class communities. Working class people in Tottenham being ruled by a white elite known as the Chipping Norton set.
Interesting as well BBC News picked up on the fact that the uprising kicked off after a teenage woman was batoned by the cops BUT what was laughable was that the cops quickly maintained that this had not been “verified”…. (and also hilariously BBC reporter making excuses if she was batoned such as “was it an accident”? Yes, PC Plod accidentally on purpose whacked someone on the head, slip of the hand) Yet when cops report information to the media that hasn’t been verified they are only to happy to report it as the truth.
What worries me is what will will happen now? Another miscarriage of justice. As they say history has a tendency to repeat itself.
This is class war.
This is what happens when people are dispossessed and then kicked in the teeth with racist policing.
To answer the question, we will get justice when we have effective ways of changing society. You cannot excpect justice to be handed down from the bastards in power. Justice is something you fight for.
The reaction to the governments act of social thuggery and vandalism has been and will be increased crime, riots, substance abuse and things like that. What we have no sign of yet is an effective class response with effective ideas to remedy society’s ills. Till we get that we will never get justice.
Indeed the ruling class has been indulging in violent smash and grab when it comes to public services, workers and the welfare state. Wholesale state violent burglary from the Chipping Norton thugs!
innocent young man shot seven times in head in full view of public on tube train, the person in charge of this operation promoted to top job…………..aren’t our police wonderful; not!
[...] a few posts on the Internet that helped me situate the events a bit: first was HarpyMarx’s post, “When Will We Get Justice?” from August 7, 2011. He has since posted more reflections and some photos of damage in Brixton [...]