Thursday, January 31, 2019

Most of these knife and the violent attacks are driven my the persons emotions WITH NO THINKING present - their mind not coming into their behaviours.











There is a vast majority of young people who have not stabbed. 
There are so many on the fringe of this lifestyle. 

1 Being entertained by it all 

2 Being tempted to join in under the cover of numbers and the excitement of it all. 

It is all like an action movie or a 
violent computer game - and attractive. 

We can see there is a large number who are using knives 

in different locations in London and beyond. 
I work with, and have for many years, 
worked with young people on the edge, 
who are living in violence and anti social behaviour. 

I write and share stories about their lives and struggles. 
I feel with them in their situations. 
I work and yearn to understand them and want for them deeply. 
I, like you, think that knife crime is totally unacceptable - absolutely horrific - 
but that is not enough. 

What can be done? 
Short term the local communities and the police force and 
the course of law has to manage the crisis - but - 
what about the long term? 

I have two challenges in my life. 

1 How to burst a bubble. 
Firstly I am challenged by 
young humans, living in a bubble. 
Trapped in a cycle of 
a spliff habit, alcohol dependency, 
no reason to get out of bed, 
twittering on Facebook and 
trapped in the benefit system, 
and clinging to security with their peers. 
Life is not challenging or stretching. 
They have no responsibility for anyone or even themselves. 
It is a bad place for them to be. 
It is a bad place for the rest of us to be. 

My challenge is how can I get through to them. 
How can I help facilitate them in bursting their bubble? 

I can't burst their bubble, 
it needs to be an act of 
liberation by them themselves. 

I know so many young beautiful intelligent humans 
who are trapped in such circumstances. 
I am on a mission to be of some use. 

2 Burst a Bubble 2 
Young humans involved in serious crime. 
Drugs, knives, guns, violence, BMWs, prison. 
Here they are, and all their friends and opposition parties, 
in a cycle of socially and personally negative relationships. 
How can I facilitate them bursting their bubble? 
How can they burst out of their networks 
to form more positive human networks? 

Place these two ingredients together and an explosion will happen - sooner or later. 

We cannot leave families 
and young people to 
become and exist in these circumstances. 

I don't know what to offer in just a few words. 
But there is a massive need for social and emotional learning.
Most of these knife and the violent attacks are driven my the persons emotions WITH NO THINKING present - 
their mind not coming into their behaviours.

Their families are also very much in need too. 

It is no use saying 'lock them up' 
because we have no space for them 
and it only criminalises the more. 

These young lives need to to be able 
to self determine their lives 
positively. 
They, like us, need a reason for living - to choose that 
because oppression does not change people - 
it is only themselves who can change. 
They are beautiful humans - like buds of flowers
ready to bloom & NOT be stabbed in their own streets.

Youth Work - my profession, 
is often titled ‘Informal Education’.
That means working among young people in any context. 
Any of their 'normal' environment.
That means making human contact & developing / building helping relationships with them.
The police can’t do that, 
and the teachers are doing their best
but they are not on the streets.

We need people workers on the street.
Skilled workers who need to 'busk it' in terms of relationships.

It isn’t easy.
It can’t be short term.
Harsh communities don’t often welcome outsiders.
Workers need to earn the right to be in helping relationships.

They can become like ourselves 
who would not wish to riot, loot, stab & 
have fun in extreme vandalism. 

It can be done. 
It must be done. 
BUT 
we need to get humans on the ground 
to do this specialist work with them. 
Nurture, involve, new skills, 
new values, new spiritual inner life. 
 
I have experienced this in my life. 
Seeing those at the bottom 
become significant humans 
giving of their intelligence and personalities 
to become more than useful members of communities 
and in our society at large. 

Youth services have been hit deeply in recent years. 
Massive cuts. 
Employment is an escape from poverty 
and relational ghettos. 
Yet not available to those in extreme need. 

We need to do something about disaffected young humans. 
Otherwise they will take the risks of behaving like this 
because it breaks their boredom. 


We can see a persons behaviour
but we can’t see their upstream.

www.pipwilson.com