Annual United Families and Friends march in London

This year's annual families and friends march in London came on the back of the killing of Chris Kaba in Streatham and was attended by 100s.

The procession started with speeches and a rally of around 500 people in Trafalgar Square.

The march set off from Trafalgar Square at around 13.30pm and grew as it progressed down Whitehall and commenced with further speeches at 10 Downing Street.

Protesters progressing to Downing Street

There were a number of campaigns in attendance commemorating those killed in custody and in mental health institutions.

The United Families and Friends Campaign (UFFC) was set up in 1997 by families who had lost loved ones at the hands of the state to challenge the injustice in the system.

It has now grown as a group that supports all families of the victims of custodial deaths at the hands of police officers, prison officers or in medical units.

They believe:

• The failure of State officials to ensure the basic right to life is made worse by the failure of the State to prosecute those responsible for custody deaths.
• That failure to prosecute those responsible for deaths in custody sends the message that the State can act with impunity.

You can support the family campaigns by pledging to the National Memorial Family Fund.

The annual procession has been taking place since 1999.

Protest in London against Putin entering Ukraine

A protest of several 100s amassed to call for withdrawal from Ukraine of Russian troops.

Chants of "Stop Putin" and "Uk Arm Ukraine" were raised.

Police presence was measured, but closed in a growing number of protesters in the early stages of the protest.

It continued peacefully.

Protesters opposite Downing Street.

See also BBC coverage of protests in Russia. 

Thousands demonstrate against austerity in London

A march in London against austerity and for a socialist alternative congregated at Portland Place today at midday.

Several thousand rallied and set off at around 1pm down Regent Street and on to Parliament Square.

The march represented a wide cross section of British society including Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and Jews.

The cry that often could be heard on this intentionally anti-austerity march was “Free Palestine” and indeed there were many Palestinian flags on display.

Zarah Sultana MP spoke at the Parliament Square rally, lending support to a 15% rise in nurses wages.

The march passed off peacefully and in good humour.

Folk in the south

Follow The Lost Cavalry around venues and it seems you unearth musical delights.

A Valentine’s event last night brought a number of folk acts together to folk about.

Salt Moon

This three piece combine cello, double bass and electric guitar with a female singer.

The style is occasionally reminiscent of Fairport Convention.

The songs tend to the tongue in cheek and melancholy, even when ‘love songs’, the vocal itself unquestionably strong for the style.

The Lost Cavalry

Again they performed well.

The arrangement is creative without being sloppy and the vocal performance really is hard to match.

Some of the songs tone have hints of Kurt Cobain, unusual for a lead singer who often sings beyond the rafters.

Patch and the Giant


These guys were the last to perform and a real treat.

They will be playing in Brighton tonight at ‘The Folk Room’, afraid all the details I have.

You will be treated to layered folk styles, unexpected brass and a haunting melancholy.

I would urge you to check them out in Brighton if you are free.

London attack

My thoughts with those caught up in today's attack.

Big Ben's on strike

The final chimes of Big Ben ring out today, as the old London clock goes in for repair.

We can look forward to a surreal world of silence in the centre of town, as a clock not silent for 157 years ceases to chime.

Big Ben will be back after a very long illness due to end in 2021.

Meantime, as you were London.

Ahaad Alamoudi

Last Friday Ahaad Alamoudi exhibited her artwork at The Mosaic Rooms in West London, with the events at Grenfell Tower I was slow to collect my thoughts on the piece.

Alamoudi said the piece is inspired by a viral protest video that emerged several years ago examining the inequality between those in the Arab world.

Alamoudi had remade the video and paired it with many other renditions of the same song, looking at the Arab world through the lenses of those at the bottom.

Given what had just happened at Grenfell to the mind of a Londoner there was an added element to the piece as it was hosted so close to a disaster rocking one of the richest London boroughs.

The piece was continued downstairs with an emersive audio pairing and video.

However the most interesting piece was the video of the dancer overlaid with a song of looking up at the wealth of another.

A dancer was also a feature of the event, this self effacing man performed three times with an interpretative dance based on the minimal direction of Alamoudi.

His dancing was lovely and it was lovely to see something happy and vibrant added to what in essence was quite a sad reflection on the state of the world.

It will be interesting to see what Alamoudi presents next.

Housing hopes

Mark Zuckerberg is reportedly planning to build accommodation for his employees in a bid to counteract the Silicon Valley housing crisis.

Like London rents in Silicon Valley are spiralling making it more and more challenging to balance work with rents.

Zuckerburg's plans underline the importance of housing for business success.

As the London mayor roles out his plans for so-called affordable housing in the capital, it is well to remember a city stands and falls on its population.

The rub

You can offer all the perks in the world to public servants and business people alike and it will flounder if you can not provide affordable local housing.

In order for business to thrive you need an affordable city.

If all a workers pay is spent on rent there is no spare cash to spend in local businesses and the service sector.

Resulting not only in an unhappy work force, but in a sluggish tertiary economy.

A sombre day in Trafalgar Square

I decided to join the vigil in Trafalgar Square this evening, to commemorate three deaths at the hands of a violent extremist.

Around a thousand were in attendance at the short vigil in the square.

Amber Rudd and Sadiq Khan were among those of a selection of elected representatives, police officers and those of different faiths and ethnicities at the event.

The mood was sombre and quiet as the speakers painted a picture of London as brave and united in the face of terror.

I hope this peaceful unity against horrific events represents more than just those standing in the square, but many, many hard working and quietly heroic Londoners who have in total been a reason for joy in my life.

I hope coming days bring more joy to those people than they do pain, as truly many of the kind acts and courtesies I see replayed every day deserve to be rewarded.

Why not officer?

I happened to be in town recently and saw police tape cordoning off some of Oxford Street.

I beckon over one of the policemen to ask what had happened.

An incident.

What kind of incident?

I can't tell you.

Why not?

It's private.

Will it be going to court?

I can't tell you at this stage.

Perplexed

Now this all seems very innocent, but I'm stood there thinking: Why am I allowed so little information?

After all it happened in a public place.

Someone may have got hurt and I'm not even allowed to what kind of incident it was.

I mean I'm not asking who and I already know the where.

But I'm not allowed to know what kind of incident happened in my own city that has drawn police attention.

Is this all lies?

This piece is paraphrased from memory, they are not exact quotes.

Home turf

I was at a party earlier this week and someone from the other side of London took it upon himself to insult my part of town.

Now, here's the funny thing, if it had been one of my mates running the area down or if I'd been fed up, it would have passed with nothing other than perhaps a sage nod.

Hearing it from a stranger unfortunately sends all my hackles up.

Gone all primal

The reaction is something akin to what a Lioness might feel if you turned on her cubs.

I can physically feel myself bristle and then all the aggression that is thoroughly unacceptable party behaviour comes out.

This is not the way to win friends and influence people.

I like it this way, I do

That has however flown out of my head, I feel something similar to if the man had wandered into my home and insulted the paint work.

Sure I know it needs a paint job and yes I'm not entirely sure about the shade either.

But here's the thing, it's my home, it feels like one of those comfy sweaters that everyone has that has now got a million holes in it due to the fact that you've worn it to death because despite it not being fashionable or to most people's tastes, you love it.

I always start a fight

So here I am cursing a lost connection because of a mixed up sense of pride and belonging.


Honestly, if you're reading this I thought you were lovely, I just can't seem to keep my mouth shut when I disagree with people, it was how I was raised.

No one ever sent me to finishing school I'm afraid.

Disillusion

I got caught into conversations about the state of London last night.

Bemoaning changes in the landscape around me.

Then I feel I was forgetting the things that have got better.

Letting go of the past is a funny thing, sometimes you need to, sometimes you should hold on.

I guess the trick is trying to work out what is actually worth the struggle of keeping.

Which probably ends up with you listening to songs like this.

Dearest American

I went out in search of a demo on Saturday and ended up at Leicester Square.

There I met an American.

We began by talking over a book and moved on to discussing the economy and the city.

Sightseeing

He wanted to know somewhere to go with only a day in the city.

My mind went blank.

We were sitting in the middle of the West End, where everything cultural sits and I couldn't direct him anywhere.

Useless suggestions

I mentioned the National Gallery, but not even I was particularly convinced by this suggestion.

I finished my lunch and got going.

Having time to think

Then on wondering round my mind started to fill with places.

The Tate Modern, The Houses of Parliament, The South Bank and I felt bad I hadn't managed to bring these suggestions to mind.

So, dearest American, should you read this.

Places to go, people to see

Go to the Tate Modern and check out Jackson Pollock or just the wonder of the building.

Visit the Houses and Parliament and get them to show you round all its Gothic majesty.

Sneak into St Paul's and wonder at Wren's masterpiece.

Walk along the south bank and look at the modernism and graffitti.

The galleries, meh, it's the buildings and the people that fill them that I love.

Badgers and the BNP

An anti-fascist demonstration against a march by the BNP began today at 12 noon.

Two groups of protesters assembled outside parliament and near the cenotaph in anticipation of a march by the British National Party.

These two groups then moved to make a line across the road at the cenotaph.

The line progressed slowly to the Oliver Cromwell statue where the protestors were met by a police line preventing them for progressing closer to the BNP demonstration, which was estimated at that time to number 200 in opposition to what appeared to be over a thousand anti-fascist protestors.

The protestors numbered among them representatives from UNISON, the PCS and Unite Against Fascism.

A changing mood

The mood of the demonstration was initially jovial with a festival like atmosphere.

It became more confrontational upon reaching the police line and closer to the BNP demonstration.

Events took a more worrying edge approaching 4 pm when both marches were due to be disbanded.

At this point it was reported by ambulance members and some legal observers in attendance from the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers that there had been some arrests under the public disorder act, though I saw no visual evidence for this.

Police a little heavy handed

From this point police behaviour developed a more threatening tone and at two point the police charged forward on the line of anti-fascist protestors seemingly with no provocation.

This was a line closely backed by families with small children, though there was no apparent injury.

This could be seen as a defeat for the BNP in that they numbered so few and did not progress to Downing Street.

There number had reportedly dropped to 20 by the latter point of the demonstration, but it is hard to tell given the large number of opposing protestors and the police cordon.

The police numbers were disturbingly high, there were thirteen odd police vans in attendance.

They also seemed to do little to charge the BNP with incitement to racial hatred.

And the badgers

A demonstration against badger culls were also at Westminster today, some of whom came to rather confusingly mingle with the anti-fascists at around 4 pm.

It was an interesting mix.

Pasta perfect Pasticcio

I have discovered a new pasta restaurant, Pasticcio.

 It was a delight to find such a warm and inviting restaurant in such an unlikely setting.

 There was enough garlic in the air that you could taste it on your tongue.

And the thermostat was so high that all the winter blues were firmly banished.

The food was generous and tasty, and the service was quick and polite.

The restaurant itself was quirky with all manner of odd items hanging from the walls, including a very traditional looking bicycle.

Generous, but still cheap

 Living in a city that forever seems to be upping its price tag it was refreshing that the price of a meal ranged between £7 and £10.

 It was also a relief that in the cold weather it was only stumbling distance from the tube station.

And my fussy tastes were delighted by the Lasagne, it was generous, tasty and accompanied by a great salad and dressing.

Yum, yum and double yum.

Don't walk there, run.
 

Voting for the London assembly

So, I've voted and you know what it felt good.

Not because I feel that it will make everything magically perfect, but because I'm saying I want to be part of something.

I want to be involved in what happens in my city.

It doesn't always mean that I'll have time to help with everything.

A wounded city

If I find myself in the middle of another riot I won't necessarily be there with a broom the next day to clear up all the mess.

But the fact that there has been rioting in the areas that I care about has concerned and saddened me and I want to vote for the people who I think also care.

Not the ones that think flinging accusations around and getting heavy handed is the answer, but the ones that recognise there is a serious problem that needs fixing.

Often I feel I am not a large enough part of the solution, but I want to help and that's a good start.

Voting

I also live in a country that seems wise enough to allow people a say in how their world is governed, I am privileged and I want to be a part of that process.

So if you live in London, this is your chance to say something in some small way about where you would like our future to develop.

You don't have to smash everything up.

Just put a few crosses in a few boxes.

Decision time again London

London goes to the polls on thursday to decide on the mayor and the london assembly.

I have never felt so negative about a vote.

I am not fired up, I don't feel that I am going to be able to change anything.

I feel flat.

Maybe it's because despite his idiocy I feel that Boris Johnson will win again.

When he got in I was crest fallen to say the least, even though part of me expected it.

Now with two far right candidates standing and conversations of apathy all around me I fear that nothing will ever get better.

We will present our city to the world with a man that I despise and for whom I have no respect.

I think I know who I will vote for, but I've given up trying to persuade anyone.

Everyone seems to like living in this inequitable, money obsessed and dehumanising city with a man that wants the congestion charge to shrink by the second and has the nerve to use language you don't even hear in BNP party political messages.

London I love you, Boris I hate you, please vote.

Politics is not a dirty word.

The homeless view of London

A friend of mine told me a while ago about tours of London conducted by homeless people, organised by sock mob.

To me this sounded like a wonderful idea on a number of different levels, not least because I don't like being herded on and off a bus.

Seriously though, the project sounded interesting, positive and potentially empowering.

I finally found the time to attend.

A different view

Our guide for the day was Sean, he loitered inconspicuously to one side until we started the tour and then quite simply took command as if we were just a group of school children that he was trying to educate.

Our tour centred around Old Street; I had envisaged being led around a very large area but in fact our hour long tour took us round a very small section of Old Street, there was just a surprising amount to be shown.

I think that in a lot of ways I have become quite jaded, or at least I did until I met Sean.

I'm a bouncing ball of naive innocence in comparison to him.

However, I have never lost my home.

The tour

He told us stories, and showed us places I'd never noticed before - and I've spent a lot of time in Old Street.

It was interesting, yet sad.

He showed us a lot of places that had dreamed of a fairer and more charitable world, but had hit the rocks of commercial reality or unscrupulous councils.

I was forced to look through his eyes and it made me ashamed, angry and sad.

Taking stock

A friend of mine challenged some of the facts that he had quoted at me later, it sowed a seed of mistrust that had simply not been there before, but I knew some of them had been accurate and though the journalist in me will try and source some of them, the humanitarian in me is furious that someone's word shouldn't be taken as readily as my honest words are spoken.

This food for thought cost me £5 and kept me occupied at a time of year that everyone seems to be focused solely on the shops.

I will leave you with one statement he made that has not left my mind.

For the Olympics all the homeless people in the area will be asked to move to Derby, those that refuse will be sent to mental hospital for the duration.

Sean thinks he'd prefer the hospital.

Did I mention that he had a wicked sense of humour.