A Push and a Shove, and the Land that We Stand on is Ours

[dotinthesky]

I just witnessed teenagers attack a group of men in the No. 8 bus. I was on my way home from Brick Lane (having left Kevin behind because he has a larger tolerance of crowds than me), staring out of the bus' window, when I heard a teenage girl talking loudly into her cellphone. She was screaming "how could I call you if your mobile was turned off?" If you've seen the Vicky Pollard skit in Little Britain, multiply that by a 100 and you get the idea.

She kept up the loud behaviour, enliciting giggles from her two friends, until a man talking on his cellphone described her as "trash". After some abuse thrown at him, because how dare him call her "trash", she seemed to move her attention somewhere. The bus then stopped, and as he leaned down to pick up a box of flowers he had bought, she said "take your flowers and go home." Understandably, he stepped on her foot as he walked away; she stood up with a scream and shoved him. His friend, looking completely bewildered, got two shoves and pushes from her, to the sound of her friends laughing. They were proper violent shoves that made one of the guys hit someone sitting up ahead. If that wasn't enough, she then stood up on a seat and tried to spit at them through the window, calling them "cunts".

As you can imagine, I desperately wanted to grab her by the hair and punch her face. Perhaps I'd be applauded by the horrified bus; perhaps I'd end up in the nearest police station. Honestly, with a trip to Brasil just around the corner, I couldn't take the chance of getting in trouble.

Who, in their right minds, calls a London teenager "trash" to their face? They were obviously new in town.

Comments

[olamina.livejournal.com]

This entry just confirms my suspicions that all this reporting about increased violence in UK, is a product of the patent British racism and classism that has ruled the day for many a century. British bullshit is on the rise once again and I'm saddened that I've not seen many people out in the streets decrying it. People are at home watching concerts for a dead princess and laughing at caricatures of poor people instead of addressing the real issues.

I reiterate: I hope that guy from the bus (and everyone else like him) catches a stray rock to the head. He and his pearl clutching, wannabe toff behaviour are the problem. He's the real trash.

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

You don't live here and although you have visited often, your perception is still that one of an outsider.

This particular incident has nothing to do with racism and classism. Like I said, it's about respect and how people react to aggression. Notice how I didn't even mention these people's ethnicities! The fact that you made that jump says alot more about you then myself or anyone else living in London.

"I" statements please

[olamina.livejournal.com]

I am not saying this particular incident was one of racism. I am talking about the whole news reports I am reciving about everyone being up in arms over hip-hop (read: BLACK)-related violence. Part of the "joke" on chavs seems to be "ha ha,look at those silly poor white kids acting black". Racism and classism (and sexism and homophobia) are INEXTRICABLY tied together, yes. But I NEVER assumed anything about the ethnicity of anyone in THIS particular incident. YOU assumed that I assumed. I wasn't crying racism on this matter.

*

I agree it WAS a matter of respect, and if the guy had any SELF-respect he would've either gone up to the woman and made his concerns known in a civil manner or kept his mouth shut. He clearly said it within earshot of the woman and clearly didn't care if she heard it. So he should live with the consequences of his actions. I've seen this kinda stuff go down before (though rarely to this level) and this dude was being a passive aggressive jerk. Maybe the girl was outta line and obnoxious but this guy is IN NO WAY innocent just because he was a middling passive/aggressive a-hole with a box of flowers.

Re: "I" statements please

[commonpeople.livejournal.com]

If you are not saying that this particular incident was one of racism, why did you write earlier: This entry just confirms my suspicions that all this reporting about increased violence in UK, is a product of the patent British racism and classism that has ruled the day for many a century. It sounded to me like you were equating my "reporting" with others which you have read about violence in the UK, coming to the conclusion that I was making some racist and classist point. My assumption was based on your statement.

Black-related violence has been almost exclusively bound within black communities, with kids in gangs killing each other. And the perception of Chavs in London, as far as I know, is not bound by class or race but by attitude and education. You can have a millionaire who's a chav, for example, as well as someone black or asian. Chav is about a certain style and behaviour which, unfortunately, translates to an obnoxious attitude at times. I find it actually hard to define a chav sometimes, because many of the eastern european immigrants dress similarly (track suits, etc) as well as many middle-class kids who wish to imitate the style.

I live in a council tower block. My neighbours are from Asia and from Africa; they work as janitors, taxi drivers, etc -- basic, working-class professions. They would have been as horrified as I was by the behaviour of those teenagers, especially because education and respect seems to be important in their families (I gather from conversations I've had with them). Perhaps those girls even came from a better off background then the men they attacked. After all, they all lived in the East End, not exactly the most affluent part of London

As I said somewhere else, i wouldn't have behaved as the man did; I would have called the police instead. But I can see where he was coming from - he was pushed and he snapped. Notice as well that they did nothing when she started pushing and shoving them, and spitting out of the window at them. Her response was disproportionate.