On Wednesday 14th
November, local activists from Croydon organised a silent march to commemorate the
victims of the Grenfell tower fire in June of last year. My brother, Liam Miles, a Criminology student
from Birmingham City University, attended the march with his colleagues and
peers. Here, are his thoughts on the march as it happened and some of the
stories of those also in attendance at the march including the survivors,
firefighters and the relatives of those who lost their lives…
How did you hear about the event and who organised it?
News of the event was circulated
round my university at least by one of my Criminology lecturers at BCU. He has
contacts with several political activists local to London. The organiser of yesterday’s event was based
in Croydon.
What was the turnout of people at the silent march?
I was really impressed by just
how many people turned up to show their support to the families of the victims.
There were hundreds of people, students and members of the local community, all
types of ages, religions and backgrounds. I would estimate that over 300 people
turned up. Yesterday’s silent march was of course, in response to the horrific incident
around Bonfire Night when a group of yobs burned a sick cardboard effigy of the
Grenfell tower. It absolutely repulsed me. It still repulses me so I’m not at
all surprised at how impressive yesterday’s turnout was. People are coming out
in droves and it’s a strong message that it’s not acceptable, it’s not right
and we demand justice so the events of last year can no longer be swept under
the carpet, or as the Bonfire Night incident showed us, mocked.
What was the structure of the demonstration?
So firstly we met with a man
called Lowkey, who was the organisation’s coordinator. We got up close to the
Grenfell tower which is now a construction site and spent some time there, reading
some of the messages on the walls and murals people have made. It was a deeply
reflective moment for me. We then all met up at the local church which was the local
meeting point and marched from the church in complete silence around the block,
through Kensington and Chelsea. To know that such affluence and extravagance exists
just round the corner where this tragic event occurred and to physically be
reminded of that inequality by walking through it was something I wasn’t
prepared for emotionally.
And how would you describe the mood among the people who took part in
the silent march?
It was just a unity of the elderly,
young people, different faiths, backgrounds, races- we were all walking in the
same way, in the same direction, all holding the same placards and signs. It
felt quite sobering actually. It was certainly my first time and perhaps other people’s
first time doing something and being involved in something like
that. There was a really serious and sombre mood in the air.
We keep hearing the language of ‘Justice for Grenfell'. But after speaking to other activists yesterday, what outcomes are the protesters campaigning for?
The demonstrators’ policy demands
have always been simple enough. They want Justice for Grenfell, no cover-up and
no whitewashing. They want the corporate and political figures to be held accountable
for what has happened and for the serious errors they have made, in terms of
the cladding and the materials used which ultimately cost people their lives
and their livelihoods. Another demand which was made really clear by yesterday’s
protest is that the people demand an end to the scapegoating of firefighters.
We have to take into account austerity and cutbacks and the community are sick
and tired of the brave firefighters being scapegoated by the mainstream media
because the firefighters are the ones who feel as if look, we did everything we
could for those trapped in the fire and we stand in solidarity with those
affected.
Did you get the chance to speak to any firefighters who tackled the
blaze?
I briefly spoke to one of them. I
didn’t even know that they would be there but I’m so glad that they were. They
stood in a sort of line of honour, removed their helmets and stood in a very
respectful fashion. It’s sad because they clearly did their best, their
absolute best but it cannot be their responsibility alone to bear, particularly
when the fault of the tragedy goes right to the top. This whole thing, this
whole scapegoating bears a striking similarity to other events like this we
have seen. Just look at 9/11 for example where the firefighters were also slandered in this way.
What of the survivors and families of those who perished? What do you
think is going through their minds right now, over a year later?
They were there and they were
there fighting on the front lines as they have done since the tragic event
happened. They want change and they want it now. They want justice but most of
all, they want peace. They don’t want this to become an excuse for rioting.
They want people to stand in solidarity with them and their loved ones to say
that this is unacceptable but they don’t want this to escalate and become
violent or a threat to wider society. That’s why the silent march is as
powerful as it is. No words, no violence, just solidarity.
Finally, with crunch time Brexit negotiations at Westminster and the
upcoming departure date growing nearer, the tragedy at Grenfell could seriously
slip under the political radar once and for all. How can we stop that from
happening?
As far as I am aware, there was
no turnout of politicians last night. I could be mistaken but there was
certainly no evidence of a visible political representation there. A year on
and Grenfell is still being talked about and it’s still being felt in the local
inner community of Grenfell and the voices are still being heard and stories
retold. But nationally, I feel it has already been swept under the carpet by
politicians. Just look at events like these and other media representations. It’s
largely grassroots' initiatives which are campaigning to make sure this tragedy
will always be remembered. I think the whole ordeal is such a classic sign of what’s called moral panic and moral panic has very specific stages to it. A big
event occurs, it is honed in on by politicians and the media, the politicians
come out and say that this needs to be done, that needs to be done. Whether
they’re followed out of course is another story. But the problem soon
evaporates and another issue replaces it. Brexit has always been that problem
which aims to replace Grenfell and with everything going on at the moment and
new developments happening, the importance of social media, blogs and open
discussions about Grenfell have never been more important.
You can be a part of the movement too by following Justice for Grenfell’s
social media sites. Their Twitter can be found @GrenfellJustice and their
website at https://justice4grenfell.org
Liam Miles is a 2nd Year Criminology student at BCU. He can
be found on Twitter @liam_miles1 and at his blog www.liamcrime.blogspot.com
No comments
Post a Comment