 Article: Jonathan Bright
Illustration: Jaswant Bhachu As an aside, I would like to remember and pay respect to those souls that needlessly lost their lives in the Westminster attack of Wednesday 22 March 2017 and the Manchester bombing on Monday the 22 May 2017. It's unfortunate that in doing so, I can’t help but recall the words of the vile Katie Hopkins and the re-tweet of the bilge by the equally detestable Nigel Farage. According to these self-serving wastes of good oxygen, London and Manchester are divided by fear and has cowed to terrorism. Sure, whatever gets you back in the headlines. I could say 'go screw yourself', but that would infer that they possess the requisite human genitalia to do so. I could say Hopkins is the personification of clickbait, but that rather dehumanises the abstract concept of clickbait. Mind you, Hopkins did get done for libel so we should really encourage her to spout some other attention-grabbing piece of unfounded garbage and bankrupt herself. Meanwhile, with Article 50 now signed and Brexit sadly being realised, we have to face reality that we are leaving the EU. It is a point to mention here that in some boroughs of London, over 70% voted to remain. And the majority was 59% of Londoners across all boroughs voted remain. But with the overdue collapse of UKIP, things are not all bad. However, this being said- has UKIP just relocated its ‘supporters’ over to the right wing swaying Conservative party? The mind boggles does it not? As cities, we are not divided. We will never, ever be bullied or be disheartened by any form of terrorism, and we are not scared of coming to or being in these great city’s. I got on the Victoria Line at Vauxhall to cross town about half an hour after the Westminster attack, and the only person I saw anxiously rocking back and forth was the guy still up from the night before at the Fire Club! Life goes on as usual. The only thing that divides London is the River Thames. You want to see division? Try telling someone from Walthamstow there's a party in Peckham. Suddenly a marathon of re-runs on Dave seems overly appealing. Try as it might even a Tube strike won't shut London down. We'll still queue patiently for an overcrowded bus rather than sit at home feeling like we've somehow been held to ransom. London’s diversity is legendary for outnumbering any bigotry you may read in the tabloids. We have in this special city, a culture that is coveted from around the globe. So anyone who protests there is a fear within the locals does not know London. What keeps this great city’s heart thumping is a collective unity of acceptance and acknowledgment, even if most of the inhabitants are not actually from London. You know what actually prevents people coming into London? The property ladder, £6 pints, and Southern Rail. Read more for 55pages magazine
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