The sad summer of 2011

 17^th August

And so today, as it was predicted, very sadly a 14 year old young man, was found stabbed to death in a park in Enfield, London.

The riots of last weeks, shocking and disturbing though they were, were also not so surprising when given the social conditions of the areas where the  unrest took place.

This blog will not add to the myriad of explanations that have been offered suffice to say that whilst England continues to be one of the most unequal countries, and London the most unequal city, in the western world we should not be surprised. The richest 10 % in London earn 273x more than those at the bottom.  And for those looking for work the statistics are equally disturbing. In Hackney ONS statistics  show less than 500 vacancies for 11,000 claimants. Youth unemployment is at a record 20%. As health practitioners we should be concerned about the implications for this. We have all seen the effects of chronic worklessness and its toll on mental and physical health in adult populations. Young people will be similarly, perhaps more markedly harmed, by the lack of opportunity.

For many of us this does equate to a ‘sick society’ which needs reparation and compassion.

In the wake of the riots we now  see a hard-line rhetoric which only threatens to aggravate marginalized groups of largely young people who see themselves as having no stake in this injust society.

 Lord Ken Macdonald, a former DPP and QC, defence  barrister, has questioned the logic of evicting  families from their homes because one of the children has been involved in looting (21 % of all those convicted are aged between 11-17 yrs).  He debates the rationale behind the issuing of tough sentences which are ‘contrary to the norms of justice’ and  ’ lack humanity’.

And how do we humanely support children growing up in father-less households? As one teenager interviewed asked; ‘Will there be a shop selling fathers?’ Who will replace  the father’s of children we meet in surgery presenting with behavioural problems -whose fathers have died of alcoholism, or accidents, or as a result of war in conflict zones  in unstable parts of the world ?  

We need to take stock from other countries which have weathered these storms and emerged with compassion and dignity, the most recent example being  Norway where their leadership has  promoted restraint and prosocial behaviour. It is true, we have our inspirational examples nearer to home, like the grieving family of Haroon Jahan in the Midlands. Our political leaders would be wise to follow such examples.

Jane Roberts