London Town Riots

As it is impossible not to notice, there are riots in London (the worse it gets the more i think, 'this'll make a memorable story when i am old, 'oh those riots of '11''). However, it is not most of London, it is not the 'disempowered youth' of London, nor the immigrants nor the uprising against the budget cuts that affect the young. Boys just want to go out and smash up things and fight the police, simple as. Initially as i walked past my local Tesco closing early on my way home I'll admit i was scared and unbelievably sad. Things like this make me want to cry.

As we see pictures of burning buses near my offices, the shops in Peckham being looted and my whole house remain home all night in order to not get caught up in it, i am slowly fuming less and less. On reflecting on what it was that so greatly affected me with these kids rioting is, i realised it is that i cant believe these kids are so unintouch with who they are as individuals. These kids have such low self esteem and poor thought that they didn't think about what they are doing and are acting so illogically. I guess that is the fear also, how do you reason with the unreasonable?

These kids are not sending a message, they are not thinking for themselves and what this will ultimately mean for their future or their parents now. They cover their faces like cowards, if you have a point to make, do you not stand up proud and tall to make it, or do you pull your hood up and hide while you do it because you know that really what you are doing is wrong. They say they cannot get things, so they must loot for them. I say they cannot get things so they need to wait, get good grades and a job and then buy them like the rest of us. Children as young as ten have been seen wandering around masked and looting, and the police have begun asking parents to call their children home (nicely asked as if it will keep them safe, and not as if it would actually stop the riots when all the kids (who are the rioters go home).

Its a stark demonstration that many of us social workers already know, a growing proportion of parents cannot control their children, have not managed to establish in them a strong moral compass or sense of self. Many a child as young as eleven is out as late as they want, having sex with whomever they want and demanding new clothes and money and mobile phones when they need (and getting it).

My way to help society safely will be to gleefully identify as many as i can from the mug shots and tell the police. After all the police are too lenient and are typically perpetuating the parental relationships by letting the kids go with a warning, which is as good as saying, 'I'm gonna turn my back on this one'. Whatever happened to an instant 3 year prison sentence for anyone carrying a knife?? I've never seen one kid go down for that.

P.S new computer = unable to publish anything i've written at home? problem should be rectified soon. sorry.