London: Truth and Reconciliation

[Bedhead]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VFnumCP-IqU

PART SIX: THE EXPLOITED


The City: Catwalk Capitalism

 

[Bedhead]

XXIII - Slaves

Welcome back to our tour of Prodigal London – a journey around monuments and memorials to those who have been outlawed, exploited or shunned by the city’s authorities, only to be honoured after death.

This time it’s the turn of the exploited – those who have suffered a fate worse than criminal punishment through no fault of their own, and whose suffering still leaves a stain on the glamour of the capital.

First we arrive at The City of London, which cut its teeth as a financial centre by bankrolling the slave trade. In the shadow of Lloyd’s of London, which insured many of the slave ships that sailed to the New World, sits a memorial to the victims of the trade.

Its form is deliberately ambiguous – resembling a kind of pulpit, surrounded by what could be a congregation, or could be a cluster of sugar canes.

Written across the sculpture is a poem by Lemn Sissay, a British poet of Ethiopian and Eritrean parents. The poem draws on both Biblical and financial language to contrast the calculating mentality of the trade with the brotherhood of slaves and abolitionists. (You can see the full poem here).

The sculpture is situated in Fen Court, which used to be a graveyard but is now an attractive public space, popular with office workers on lunch breaks and cigarette breaks.

A few stop to read the poem, displayed on the wall of a nearby building.

For others, the monument makes for a handy bike stand.

I like the half-organic, half-abstract shape of the columns, standing like quietly accusing fingers.

They remind us, if we want to be reminded, that the slave trade still carries some unfinished business.

[Bedhead]

The Borough: Too Cool for School

[Bedhead]

XXIV - Prostitutes

Moving south from the City of London, we cross London Bridge and find ourselves in Southwark. During the middle ages, this borough was outside London’s jurisdiction, coming under the rule of the Bishops of Winchester. Their more liberal regime allowed for theatres, bear pits and brothels. Southwark’s prostitutes had to pay the Bishop for a licence to practice their trade and, as a result of this and the noise they made as they plied for customers, the women were known as Winchester Geese.

Despite being, essentially, a bunch of pimps, the Bishops of Winchester insisted that the prostitutes of Southwark be buried in a piece of unconsecrated ground. This ‘Single Woman’s Graveyard’ later became a paupers’ burial ground, before becoming ‘overcharged with dead’ in the 1850s.

In the 1990s the graveyard was rediscovered during the building of a new tube line, and local people began holding memorial rituals at the site, and decorated it with ribbons and trinkets. A plan by the Post Office, which owned the land, to redevelop it was successfully opposed in 2002, and the Council has since put up a memorial plaque in honour of the Winchester Geese and the paupers buried in the graveyard. There is now a campaign to have the site turned into a memorial garden.

[Bedhead]

Bow: Scruffy

















 

[Bedhead]

XXIII – The Match Girls of Bow

An old working class rhyme talks about the British love of the free market; it goes:

“F is for freedom, like the English boast about:
If you can’t afford your dinner, you’re free to do without.”

In the nineteenth century, the one and a half thousand workers at Bryant and May’s huge match factory in the East End of London were never outlawed or convicted by London’s authorities, but its free markets visited worse punishments on them than would be faced by any prisoners in the developed world today.

Not only did the women in the factory have to work up to fourteen hours a day, with heavy fines for turning up late, talking or going to the toilet without permission, many also succumbed to a horrible occupational disease called ‘phossy jaw’ - a form of bone cancer that turned one side of the face green, then black, discharging pus before finally causing death.

Phossy jaw was caused by the use of white phosphorus in the manufacturing process. In the 1870s and 80s it was banned in countries like Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Switzerland, forcing companies to use the more expensive red phosphorus. In Britain, though, this was seen as a restraint of trade and white phosphorus continued to be used until 1910.

In 1888 a journalist called Annie Besant published an article describing conditions in the factory under the title ‘White Slavery in London’. Bryant and May prepared a paper refuting the article, and ordered its workers to sign it. When they refused, one woman was dismissed. In response, 1,400 of her colleagues went on strike.

It was one of the first successful strikes in London, and after two weeks the management agreed to reinstate the dismissed worker, abolish fines and allow meals to be eaten in a separate room, where they would be much less likely to be contaminated with phosphorus.

Today, the gigantic Victorian factory has been converted into ‘The Bow Quarter’ – a gated community in the middle of the East End. By its entrance, two plaques remember our latest recruits to the ranks of prodigal London: Annie Besant and the Matchgirls of Bow.

[Expat]

Finding this thread has been like receiving a gift from heaven. Brilliantly & beautifully put together. I have become a devoted fan of your talent, skill & creativity.

I have gone through the entire thread this afternoon, but will be coming back repeatedly to savor & learn. You have inspired me to go out into my world and give it a fresh look.

[mr.John]

you must be using some very high quality lenses and camera to get this kind of results, some of the shots have a Leica look to them

[Thundertubs]

Holy crap, I have slept on this ongoing series.

Very strong work here.

London is a treasure trove of both historic and modern architecture, and they work well together to an exceptional extent here.

[Bedhead]

Thanks guys, those are very kind words.

Mr John - you certainly know your lenses - most of these were taken with a Leica lens, but only the one on my humble Panasonic Lumix DMC-TZ7 (I carry around a pocket tripod, as well, which I use in low light, for long distance shots & when I'm not being lazy). As point and shoots go, I've got to say it makes my life very easy.

[muppet]

I love this shot:

[ThisSideofSteinway]

Transatlantic transcendence you might say.

Excellent.

[rousseau]

A more interesting city than London does not exist in this world. Maybe the next one, but not this one.

Great shots.

[flar]

Great photos! I wish I had access to the endless supply of subject matter in London, I really have to search for things here in Ottawa.

[mr.John]

Originally Posted by flar

Great photos! I wish I had access to the endless supply of subject matter in London, I really have to search for things here in Ottawa.

Same goes for Montreal, I ran out of ideas a long time ago.... which leaves you with the option of photographing people (something I'm not crazy about)

[LSyd]

this settles it, i'm going back this summer.

great tours as usual. are some of those shots from the DLR?

cool quasi-socialist bas relief.



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[Bedhead]

Thanks for all your comments

LSyd, glad you like that relief - it belonged to the 1958 Lloyd's of London building, that was demolished to make way for the Willis headquarters.

Well spotted on the DLR - this shot was taken from Bow Church Station, looking south down the tracks, and other shots were taken nearby.

[Bedhead]

Time for another update - more filler to get to page 7

[Bedhead]

[Bedhead]