“We Can Roll a Force Like How They Roll A Force” – London Rioter Speaks
WARNING: CONTAINS STRONG LANGUAGE
There are no words. None.
I decided to go to Tottenham and then Brixton, scenes of the weekend’s incidents, to ask locals about their feelings towards the destruction, looting and lawlessness. There wasn’t much happening in Tottenham but while I was there word came through the wire about the helicopter aerial shots of street battles on Mare Street.
Together with Glen and Gerard, two photographers I had just met, I hopped on a bus from Tottenham to Hackney. We had missed the skirmishes and as the unrest moved to Clapton I began to ask Hackney locals for their views. Then I saw this guy.
I ran over, and adopting my best street patter, asked him if he would tell me why he’s doing what he is about to do and if I could film his answer. As helicopters circled overhead, looking for people like him, he stopped and spoke to me answering some brilliant impromptu questions put to him by Sinem (whom I was previously interviewing).
Speaking with an adrenaline fused animated excitement, he talks of his dissatisfaction with the policing in London, that the killing of Mark Duggan was the necessary spark for a much bigger angst, and that the rioters are determined to demonstrate that they can organise a force to rival the police themselves. Most chilling was his warning about the 2012 Olympic Games.
None of us felt threatened by him, or anybody else. Clearly there is no intention to harm people physically. Despite all that is going on, we all found a moment to laugh at the end of the recording. But when I got home and saw the new devastation, the smiles quickly wore off.
Watch the video and share your thoughts on his reasons for destruction in the comments below.
About Uche Chukwu | All Posts | Website | Twitter | Contact
An opinionated, social commentator and cultural critic with something to say about everything. Usually polemic and not always well thought through. Something of an insensitive, hypocritical contradiction of altruistic folly, he observes what is wrong with society, snears at, examines and dissects it then walks away in disgust, offering little by way of solution. Believes the world needn't actually change, and dumbing down is unnecessary, we just need to find a way to eradicate the really stupid. He's part of the problem.
The gobernment – David Cameron – is to blame for this explosion. The people are gting so angry at being used and abused by the government who are now bordering on the Nazi’s.
I myself am being robbed by the government, who somehow Justify this robbery by ‘waffling’ about me being mentally disabled and abroad – where I was taken as I am certified never to work again because of injuries caused by aforesaid government…and as my retiring mother needed to care for me so took me to where she had made prior plans to retire… Hence the government in effect sent me abroad..murdererd my mother who died due to the stresses caused by the injuries the government caused my brain – Evict David Cameron from the House! He’s a Nazi supporter!!
‘Heil Cameron’…is what he wants to here…
The people rioting want to make the biggest impression so things can be made good again…the more they loot burn and cause damage the more the PM must think!
I hope it happenes again, ..and again, ..and again…until the moron starts thinking!
Well first off thanks for making this great short little video. The mainstream coverage of the riots has been conspicuous by the complete lack of coverage given to those taking part. And according to one BBC correspondent it’s not because they don’t want to be interviewed. He said there was no shortage of people wanting to explain why they were doing what they were doing. Given the risks inherent in doing so that proves for me that many involved are far more interested in getting the point across than making off with some loot.
I like this guy. He’s genuine, down to earth and speaks from the heart. I don’t really understand the moral outrage about damage to property. Riots or uprisings are part of our history. Look through Wikipedia for the history of such events in this country. The list goes back to the 12th Century. Most of the recent ones are all to do with racial tensions in poor areas and ‘Stop and Search’ is another common factor. Recessions are also another commonality. And they often do have positive outcomes. For instance the Brixton riots lead directly to the setting up of the IPCC some 4 years later.
The other factor I’ve heard come up is the closing down of youth centres. No wonder people are angry. It’s the rich bankers that are largely to blame but the poor youth who must give up one of the few things they have to pay for it. Young unemployed get just £42.50 a week. I can’t imagine how anyone can survive on that, £6 per day for everything you need. So looting is also no surprise.
If the police need to go into these areas to search people on a regular basis then they need to do so respectfully and spend more time talking to the local community about it including the youth., The Met has been described officially as ‘institutionally racist’ so what can else can we expect when they’re policing black communities.
I’m attitude to this is guy is – ‘sorry mate – not good enough’ your argument is shallow. Destroying a community? as some kind of demonstration against the police? to make the police more tolerant? how misguided are you?
If you are so organised and have such a message then organise yourself like they did in Spain – took to the streets in their thousands – occupied squares – I’d stand with you – I’d support you.
The violence displayed, not just to communities and small businesses but to individuals who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time – does nothing to bring anyone to your cause – all you do is feed into the right wing press, the right wing government and neither of them are going to do you any favours.
Looting JD Sports and Foot Locker – moaning about having nothing whilst organising it on your BlackBerry – do me a favour! You want respect? Respect is something you earn. There is nothing to respect in the last few days, the worst of it, is grown men allowing children to run alongside them – shame on you.
This guy is a complete prick and thats coming from a fellow black man, your not earning any respect by doing this shit, all you are doing is smashing up your own ends, ends that only a few weeks ago you would have probably shot down another black man for disrespecting or some other bullshit.
Your also now making the general public view the BNP and NF as heros because they are now marching the streets looking for black people to beat up and hand over to the police.
Only thing that will happen after this is that the police will have the full support of the public and government to stop, search and do whatever the fcuk they want to black people now.
And its time to stop blaming people and the police for everything, your talking as if there are not kids running around hackney with guns, your talking as if kids in E8 dont have beef with kids in E9, i watched a funeral the other day of a murdered kid from hackney E9 and some kids turned up from E8 because they knew people they had beef with would be at the funeral, these kids have no fcuking respect not even for a black family burying there dead son, and when these pricks get stopped and searched they wonder why? they fcuking deserve it and yes i repeat, i am black.
I grew up being stopped and search for no reason, sometimes there was reason but most the time, 90% i had done nothing, but we know how it goes, but in my time we had fist fights, maybe the odd knife but today its rediculous, these pricks dont respect nothing.
The amount of times i go to visit my mum and these pricks are sitting in the stairwell smoking weed, spitting and pissing on the steps.
Im black but its hard to back these pricks, they dont give a fcuk about nobody but themselves, blame blame blame everyone else for there problems, stop worrying about garms, getting pussy and quick money and do something constructive with your life and stop bringing kids into the world if you believe your life is a dead end, if you have nothing to offer kids mentally.
I don’t agree with what has been happening with shops, homes and cars being burnt down and people injured and the deaths of innocent people.
But the guy does have a point. People are angry, and I think this is just the start. The Government has a lot to answer for, they have sent our country down the pan and they wonder why people are starting to kick off. Its not just about Mark Duggan its far more than that. At the moment there is no future for the younger generation, no jobs, further education is way too expensive the list goes on. Councils are cutting services left right and centre, all down to Cameron and his pathetic coalition party. If I could punch David Carmeron in the face right now I would. As usual they all made promised in pre-election but none of them were honored. Its about time we all got together to speak up for our younger generation, they need us, yet the government dont give a shit.
Anyone else see the irony in the sign behind him saying HELP YOURSELF ?
Personally I think that many teenagers and adults have no jobs and nothing to do during the summer. The teenagers from unprivellaged backgrounds are using violence as legitimate reason to cause havoc and disruption on the streets of London. It is up to us as people to make change happen and get the young people of the streets and into a productive settings that allows them to occupy themselves.
People are also acting as bystanders as mayhem floods our streets. If no one has the bravery to actually stand up to these people, where are we as citizens. Read my blog if you want a young persons prospective on the rioting that is present on the streets of London.
This is senseless distruction of our communities and people’s lives . The shooting in tottenham has been pushed into the background by the looters and those who are too lazy to work for a living. The tottenham shooting is being used as an excuse to steal and destroy. I saw cars full of hooded people rushing to locations hoping to benefit from the chaos. To add insult to injury, watching the news I see children causing mayhem and adults attacking the police with one hand while holding a can of lager in the other. This is not about the underclass it’s about organised anarchy!! Bastards!!! Nobody knows what happened last Thursday and why the police shot Duggan and until the enquiry is finished nobody should speculate. Social injustice?!!! The question is why are kids out on the streets in the early hours of the morning? Why are kids being arrested with guns? It’s so easy to blame the government and the police, but what are the parents doing?!!!
What makes me really mad is the police are standing back and letting the rioters have uninterrupted sessions of smash and grab!!!!
Uche I read your article; why are they thinking of attacking the olympic games? Hasn’t that event created jobs? It’s insane. However, the riots do call into question the government’s policy of reducing the police force; I hope the home secretary does the right thing and hands in her notice. It seems to me that the police are out numbered and helpless. Bring in the water cannons and the army I say!!!