It’s hard to tell, looking at the UK during and after the riots this month, if anyone of you has any idea of what it would look like if it were fixed. Government seems to think it might be that all those pesky young people are locked away and off the streets – which are populated instead by many police officers. For the young it might be that almost everything of worth is burned to the ground or broken. The business community sees perhaps that everything is locked away behind fierce protective security, …. But these are not outcomes by design. Surely what it looks like when it’s fixed is that everyone lives their best lives, that we are too busy pursuing our dreams to riot and loot, that government invests more in opportunity and less in enforcement and that business is staying in business.
There can be no clearer proof of Irvin Waller’s hypothesis “more law, less order” than what has played out in the UK this month. This then is a perfect moment to innovate. There is no risk that innovation could result in a worse outcome than the tried (and tired) approaches of zero tolerance, tough on crime, Bratton and all the other fear fed strategies that have for too long loaded criminal justice budgets while crippling social services, education, arts, entrepreneurial skills development, start-ups, community development. What can be lost in shifting gear and trying a new approach, one that looks at youth not as potential criminals against whom we must protect ourselves, but as potentially fabulous, creative, clever collaborators to a society that thrives as a valued system with a role for everyone.
This is the time for government brave enough to invite collective action and responsibility for new, imaginative, systemic intervention that is driven not by fear but by opportunity. And yes, of course we need programmes to address gangs, bullying, peer pressure, alcohol abuse, substance abuse – but without a vision of something worth striving for, none of these will make the difference.
Dear Mr Cameron, you are right, part of society is sick, but being intolerant of it isn’t useful. Part of society is sick and we must heal ourselves or we won’t survive. The ailing part of our society is not separate or unreachable – the private sector has not only reached these same youth but has made them slaves to their brands. We need to learn this new language and to learn to listen. Why not harness this power and use branding and social media to shift thinking, change their world-view to dream big and share control of a different destiny…. Society needs to be a club worth joining.
After all it may be that this moment is your greatest opportunity; surprise us all with a vision that comes from your heart and inspires at a time when inspiration is a scarce commodity.
This blog is written on invitation by Barbara Holtmann, who is recognized internationally for her research and work on transformative processes that prevent crime and violence. She recently wrote What it looks like when it’s fixed, available for free download at www.pwc.com/za/safecommunities
