Three interesting snippets appeared this morning,
1 - a clip of a few young people and one older person scrapping in St Peter's garden that had been sold to an online media channel.
2 - a positive comment from a Wisbech resident who had lost her dog and met a group of young people as she was searching for her much loved pet around 1am. She posted a very positive comment on FB saying how kind and caring this group had been, how they assisted her. Her post immediately attracted negative comments advising her that it was not safe to be outside your home in Wisbech at 1am, allegedly she had placed herself at great risk of some undefined harm.
3 - BBC Gardeners' World was showcasing a community garden created by residents for residents. This was a place designed to encourage people to gather, that was the intention, to foster the development of connections between people who possibly had never met before.
Was the squabbling children video posted for the benefit of Wisbech? I doubt it. The squabbling children video was more of a staged incident than a terrifying assault. Nobody involved appeared genuinely frightened, even the person falling in the pond was unfazed. If our media channels are prepared to pay for bad behaviour then can we be surprised if we see more of it? Would the Sun pay for a video of young people drinking coffee and eating cake? I don't think so. In a world of mediated communication there are many reasons for the choices that the media make. It can be an easily seen direct profit relationship, or the reasons can be more subtle and indirect, serving the needs of politicians or other powerful people determined to shape public behaviour. Unscrupulous people wanting to create our perceptions of our public spaces can do so in devious ways.
Was the positive comment from the dog seeker genuine? I'm inclined to believe it was, having been in a similar position when my young puppy bolted through the town after hearing a firework I know how desperate the hours are until you know they are safe. So what were the negative warnings about? Is there a curfew in Wisbech? What happens in Wisbech, and when? Is it safe to walk the streets at 10pm? 11pm? Maybe midnight is when Wisbech becomes unsafe? Who is it unsafe for? The group that this dog seeker found certainly weren't frightening and neither were they frightened, so it must be OK for the young to be out at night. This may seem like a frivolous question but it isn't. The negatives gave no indication as to what we should fear, violence against the person, theft, sexual assault? What does Wisbech witness after dark? Is it darkness we must fear? Do these crimes occur earlier during the winter months? In my younger days I used to run before work, usually around 3am through the parks in Birmingam. That was the only time I could fit my training in and I saw few people, never felt frightened by the darkness. Why is Wisbech different? Is it, or is it just a perception problem?
The BBC Gardeners' World community garden was a garden designed for people to meet and communicate, it was a social space. St Peter's garden is a walkway with flowers. It's attractive, but it doesn't invite anyone to pause awhile, and from many of the comments I read on FB neither do the residents of Wisbech. Pause too long and you might be considered a nuisance. But what would happen if it was redesigned to encourage people to linger? If seating was not just placed alongside the path but grouped around tables?
One thing Wisbech must fear is the taking over of the public spaces by corporate owners. This has happened in so many places throughout the world and although there are now movements forming to fight back it must be easier to resist than reclaim. If we are frightened out of our public spaces by rumours of what might happen to us, and offered vague concepts of the terrible events that occur in our parks, then we leave ourselves vulnerable to losing them altogether. We need to use public spaces more, not less. We need less fear of the dark, less fear of the stranger and more connections with the community.
In a 24/7 society it is ridiculous to say that we can shop throughout the night at Tesco but cannot socialise, stroll, or just enjoy watching owls, bats and urban foxes as they weave around the built environment. Towns can be beautiful places at night, let us not be afraid.
No comments:
Post a Comment