Apparently US rap superstar Snoop Dogg thinks that he is the answer to violence and gang crime in the UK.
Entertainmentwise.com reports that Snoop, real name Calvin Broadus, believes his visa should be reinstated as he is a good example to British youth. He says: "I can reach the kids with my mic that politicians cannot with their voices. I can tell them to stop the violence and killings that have been happening in the UK."
Snoop's visa was rejected after a massive brawl involving his entourage at London's Heathrow Airport last year, as well as a number of drug and gun charges in the states.
To demonstrate Snoop's potential as a role model to the kids, here is a snippet from 1994 hit song "Gin and Juice":
I got b*****s in the living room gettin it on and,
they ain't leavin til six in the mornin (six in the mornin)
So what you wanna do, sheeeit I got a pocket full of rubbers and my homeboys do too
So turn off the lights and close the doors
But (but what) we don't love them h**s, yeah!
So we gonna smoke a ounce to this
G's up, h**s down, while you m***********s bounce to this
Tuesday, 27 March 2007
Just as you thought gun crime had calmed down a bit in South London...
This news is a bit late but I've only just come across it.
On Sunday, 18 March, an armed gang robbed revellers at Brockwell's wine bar in Herne Hill, South-West London, of cash and jewellery. The raid took place at around 1.30 am.
The thugs, of which there were around 12, were wearing balaclavas and scarves to cover their faces. They ordered everyone onto the ground before robbing them. One clubber claimed he saw a woman get butted in the face with a gun.
source:
http://icsouthlondon.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200southlondonheadlines/tm_headline=gun-gang-sparks-terror-at-busy-club&method=full&objectid=18812240&siteid=50100-name_page.html
On Sunday, 18 March, an armed gang robbed revellers at Brockwell's wine bar in Herne Hill, South-West London, of cash and jewellery. The raid took place at around 1.30 am.
The thugs, of which there were around 12, were wearing balaclavas and scarves to cover their faces. They ordered everyone onto the ground before robbing them. One clubber claimed he saw a woman get butted in the face with a gun.
source:
http://icsouthlondon.icnetwork.co.uk/0100news/0200southlondonheadlines/tm_headline=gun-gang-sparks-terror-at-busy-club&method=full&objectid=18812240&siteid=50100-name_page.html
Wednesday, 21 March 2007
Guns are like, sooo last month. It's all about knives now
Sorry about the lack of updates recently. Apart from there not being so much news in the issue of gun crime in London at the moment, my room is being redecorated, so I cannot use the computer. But anyway, on with the post…
IT SEEMS like knives are the new guns. After a spate of teenage gun murders in South London last month, the past week has seen a handful knife attacks.
Last Wednesday, Kodjo Yenga, 16 was stabbed to death by a group of teenagers in Hammersmith Grove, West London. (I fail to understand why some of the girls in the picture in the above link are smiling, but whatever)
On Saturday Night, Adam Regis, 15, died of stab wounds while walking home in Beckton, East London .
Yesterday, a man, 49, was believed to have slashed his girlfriend, 29, and her four-month-old baby, to death after their relationship broke down – before killing himself. The murder took place in a flat in Bow, East London.
Finally, on Wed 7 March, a 17-year-old boy was robbed at knifepoint for his dog in Cricklewood, North London.
Even though the title of this blog is “GunLondon”, many of the same issues concerning gang culture etc. apply to these knife attacks. In fact, stabbings have a greater potential to become something of an epidemic because they are comparatively easier to get a hold of than guns. They can be found in all of our homes.
In terms of gang culture though, maximum respect seems to go those carrying particular types of knifes, specifically designed for killing. I was held at knifepoint two and a half years ago, by a boy carrying what is known as a ‘borer’ (i.e. for boring out an animal’s stomach). It was about five inches long, and the blade was a curved zig-zag shape.
Further trouble with knifes is that they are usually smaller, flatter, and therefore can be more easily concealed than guns.
Responses to gun crime of “we must get guns off the street and out of teenagers’ hands” do not apply here, due to the various legitimate reasons for owning a knife. Therefore, it urges us, more strongly than ever, to figure out what we are going to do about the culture that encourages people to use such weapons.
IT SEEMS like knives are the new guns. After a spate of teenage gun murders in South London last month, the past week has seen a handful knife attacks.
Last Wednesday, Kodjo Yenga, 16 was stabbed to death by a group of teenagers in Hammersmith Grove, West London. (I fail to understand why some of the girls in the picture in the above link are smiling, but whatever)
On Saturday Night, Adam Regis, 15, died of stab wounds while walking home in Beckton, East London .
Yesterday, a man, 49, was believed to have slashed his girlfriend, 29, and her four-month-old baby, to death after their relationship broke down – before killing himself. The murder took place in a flat in Bow, East London.
Finally, on Wed 7 March, a 17-year-old boy was robbed at knifepoint for his dog in Cricklewood, North London.
Even though the title of this blog is “GunLondon”, many of the same issues concerning gang culture etc. apply to these knife attacks. In fact, stabbings have a greater potential to become something of an epidemic because they are comparatively easier to get a hold of than guns. They can be found in all of our homes.
In terms of gang culture though, maximum respect seems to go those carrying particular types of knifes, specifically designed for killing. I was held at knifepoint two and a half years ago, by a boy carrying what is known as a ‘borer’ (i.e. for boring out an animal’s stomach). It was about five inches long, and the blade was a curved zig-zag shape.
Further trouble with knifes is that they are usually smaller, flatter, and therefore can be more easily concealed than guns.
Responses to gun crime of “we must get guns off the street and out of teenagers’ hands” do not apply here, due to the various legitimate reasons for owning a knife. Therefore, it urges us, more strongly than ever, to figure out what we are going to do about the culture that encourages people to use such weapons.
Friday, 16 March 2007
Victims of gun crime... that have nothing to do with gun crime
Something that I have not mentioned so far is how the coverage of gun crime in the media affects the rest of us. Muslims, in fact Asians in general, were stereotyped and made the subject of abuse by some following 9/11 and 7/7. In a similar way, black teenagers have been stereotyped as gun-toting muggers.
This article from the Ealing Times gives an example of how the recent portrayal of teenagers in the media affects the decent, law-abiding kids – just because they wear hoodies.
Thursday, 8 March 2007
Spectacularly missed the point
Sometimes, the propoganda that's created in an aim to reduce gun violence actually glamourises it. Take this video, by East London grime music crew Roll Deep, in conjunction with Operation Trident.
I don't know about you, but I think it falls a bit short of putting out its intended message. The "gang" is shown driving around in a new Volkswagen Golf when they get into a dispute with members from a rival "gang". There's a lot of agressive-competitive banter until one of the guys pulls out a gun, at which point the other gang is silenced. One of the guy's friends tries to stop him, which leads to an innocent bystander being shot.
And what happens to guy? Well he doesn't get arrested. He doesn't even get caught. In fact, someone else gets arrested instead. The guy's punishment - his friends avoid him (for fear of getting caught for being accomplices?) and he gets shot by the rival gang.
moral of the story: the police are incompetent, and the gangs rule the streets.
Does that not sound like glamourisation to you?
I don't know about you, but I think it falls a bit short of putting out its intended message. The "gang" is shown driving around in a new Volkswagen Golf when they get into a dispute with members from a rival "gang". There's a lot of agressive-competitive banter until one of the guys pulls out a gun, at which point the other gang is silenced. One of the guy's friends tries to stop him, which leads to an innocent bystander being shot.
And what happens to guy? Well he doesn't get arrested. He doesn't even get caught. In fact, someone else gets arrested instead. The guy's punishment - his friends avoid him (for fear of getting caught for being accomplices?) and he gets shot by the rival gang.
moral of the story: the police are incompetent, and the gangs rule the streets.
Does that not sound like glamourisation to you?
Monday, 5 March 2007
Another gun death... (and introducing the Gun Map)
There has been yet another death by gunshot on the streets of South London. Yesterday afternoon, a 21-year-old male was shot in Harlesden, North-West London. He has yet to be named by the press.
With all the recent shootings in London, it may be useful to observe the areas of the capital in which they are happening. I have produced a map below showing all of deaths and injuries by gun attacks since the start of February. If any more cases arise in the near future, I will be adding them to the map. Hopefully this will give some insight into the problem – it may provide a clearer scope of what can be done to prevent such incidents in the future.
In a separate incident, a police officer was shot in Peckham, South-East London, yesterday morning by a gang of youths whilst talking to another gang of youths suspected on stealing a moped. The officer was not seriously injured, however, as the bullet fired was homemade.
With all the recent shootings in London, it may be useful to observe the areas of the capital in which they are happening. I have produced a map below showing all of deaths and injuries by gun attacks since the start of February. If any more cases arise in the near future, I will be adding them to the map. Hopefully this will give some insight into the problem – it may provide a clearer scope of what can be done to prevent such incidents in the future.
In a separate incident, a police officer was shot in Peckham, South-East London, yesterday morning by a gang of youths whilst talking to another gang of youths suspected on stealing a moped. The officer was not seriously injured, however, as the bullet fired was homemade.
Sunday, 4 March 2007
There's a gun problem on the estates... not just in the country.
I often drive through the Fenwick Estate in Clapham North. It’s a dingy-looking place and, despite the fact it about one minute away from Clapham main road and Clapham North station, it seems hidden away, isolated from the world around it.
However, I noticed something new when driving through the estate the other day. Dozens of flowers resting on the ground, and “R.I.P. Remer” written in chalk a number of times on the wall. This was the where 15-year-old Billy Cox, a.k.a. “Remer”, both lived and died.
In the same way that this little estate was tucked away from the wide open and busy main road and tube station nearby, the problems that were dogging the estate and other estates around it, such as violence, gangs and drugs, had too been mostly hidden away, but from the media and politics.
Of course, the government and the police were aware if it, but it was not until Billy Cox’s murder that people truly realised how rapidly the problem was growing amongst Britain’s Youth. There was plenty of media coverage about ASBO’s, which were often portrayed as being given to Caucasian youth upsetting the neighbours and committing acts of vandalism in smaller communities. The term “hoodie” was invented to pidgeon-hole such youths. However the often more severe problem of local gangs, or “manors” as they’re often known on the street, amongst inner-city, ethnic minority kids seemed to go unnoticed. From my experience it has been a big problem since around 2003 that appears to have grown exponentially since then.
However, rather that looking at the problem at a national level, I think that individual areas and estates need to be targeted first. Ask some of the kids and they will tell you where to start. For many, there are estates they just know not to walk through. Perhaps what the authorities are doing wrong is either not talking to teenagers, or only talking to those already involved in the gang culture who will therefore be apprehensive about speaking to them. They tend to forget that simply being a teenager is a culture, and there is a lot to learn just from talking to regular local school-kids.
In terms of looking at gun crime on a local rather than national level, the South London Press have got the right perspective. This article charts the problem in Clapham North, Billy Cox’s area, in the past three years.
Ali Martin, a journalist for The Sun newspaper, used to live on Fenwick Estate and recalls a similar murder just three days after he moved in. (see here)
However, I noticed something new when driving through the estate the other day. Dozens of flowers resting on the ground, and “R.I.P. Remer” written in chalk a number of times on the wall. This was the where 15-year-old Billy Cox, a.k.a. “Remer”, both lived and died.
In the same way that this little estate was tucked away from the wide open and busy main road and tube station nearby, the problems that were dogging the estate and other estates around it, such as violence, gangs and drugs, had too been mostly hidden away, but from the media and politics.
Of course, the government and the police were aware if it, but it was not until Billy Cox’s murder that people truly realised how rapidly the problem was growing amongst Britain’s Youth. There was plenty of media coverage about ASBO’s, which were often portrayed as being given to Caucasian youth upsetting the neighbours and committing acts of vandalism in smaller communities. The term “hoodie” was invented to pidgeon-hole such youths. However the often more severe problem of local gangs, or “manors” as they’re often known on the street, amongst inner-city, ethnic minority kids seemed to go unnoticed. From my experience it has been a big problem since around 2003 that appears to have grown exponentially since then.
However, rather that looking at the problem at a national level, I think that individual areas and estates need to be targeted first. Ask some of the kids and they will tell you where to start. For many, there are estates they just know not to walk through. Perhaps what the authorities are doing wrong is either not talking to teenagers, or only talking to those already involved in the gang culture who will therefore be apprehensive about speaking to them. They tend to forget that simply being a teenager is a culture, and there is a lot to learn just from talking to regular local school-kids.
In terms of looking at gun crime on a local rather than national level, the South London Press have got the right perspective. This article charts the problem in Clapham North, Billy Cox’s area, in the past three years.
Ali Martin, a journalist for The Sun newspaper, used to live on Fenwick Estate and recalls a similar murder just three days after he moved in. (see here)
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