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London burning
Aug. 9th, 2011 04:21 pmI am only an adopted Londoner, and everything that needs to be said and written about the current situation has been, or will be, done by wiser heads than mine. So what I'll talk about are the past and the future.
My hometown, Washington DC, still bears visible scars from a riot that happened in 1968, four years before I was born, on the news of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. Five days, thirteen deaths, injuries in the thousands. I read back through some of the old news stories last night.
The London riots have been larger in numbers than the King riots, not so well armed, and more focused on looting than on pure violence. The racial element is less relevant-- news reports have been describing a fairly mixed crowd. It's a socioeonomic action, not a political one. The long-term results, however, may well be similar.
( More thoughts below )
My hometown, Washington DC, still bears visible scars from a riot that happened in 1968, four years before I was born, on the news of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King. Five days, thirteen deaths, injuries in the thousands. I read back through some of the old news stories last night.
The London riots have been larger in numbers than the King riots, not so well armed, and more focused on looting than on pure violence. The racial element is less relevant-- news reports have been describing a fairly mixed crowd. It's a socioeonomic action, not a political one. The long-term results, however, may well be similar.
( More thoughts below )