Benefits Street Part 3

Episode three of Benefits Street focused on children. It did not make for comfortable viewing.

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Being born into poverty is like being thrown off a cliff at birth. You hit the ground eventually but the impact can be softened by branches as you fall.

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Those branches include; the love of a parent or parents, a comfortable and stable home, the support network of family and friends, a community, access to health care and the opportunity to attend a good school.

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These six factors will not prevent a poor child hitting the ground. It will however, allow them to hit the ground on their feet and running. If those branches do their job, it may even allow the child to climb back up the cliff and prevent other new born babies being thrown off.

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Reducing a complex problem to six factors may be an oversimplification. We all belong to at least one of the six factor groups. There’s an argument that at times of austerity where more children are born into poverty, we need to stretch our branches more.

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To all the local babies being born today in City Hospital in Winson Green, good luck on the way down.

The PM’s response to a question by Pat McFadden MP on Operation Blue Star in 1984:

“First of all, can I agree with him of the deep scars that this event left and the incredibly strong feelings that exist to this day.”

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“We are going to make sure this inquiry is held properly, its findings will be made public which I think is vitally important.”

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“In the end I don’t think anyone should take away the responsibility for these events with the people who are properly responsible for them and I’m sure the inquiry will find that.’

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“In terms of holding a statement and revealing this information and the findings to the house, I will listen carefully to what he says but I think a statement will be the right response.” 

The PM’s response to a question from Tom Watson MP on Operation Blue Star in 1984

“It is very important we get to the bottom of what happened and this is why I have asked the cabinet secretary to lead this review, he will establish this urgently and establish the facts, the process is under way.”

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“I want it to be fast, I want it to find out the truth and the findings will be made public.”

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“What happened in Amritsar 30 years ago led to a tragic loss of life. It remains a source of deep pain to Sikhs everywhere. I completely understand the concerns that these papers raise.”

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“Lets wait for the outcome of the review by Sir Jeremy Haywood. I don’t want to prejudge the outcome but I would note so far it has not found any evidence to contradict the insistence by senior Indian army commanders responsible at the time that the responsibility for this, it was planned and carried out solely by the Indian army. “

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“But we do need an inquiry to get to the bottom of this.”

Benefits Street Week 2: More BS

The second instalment of Channel 4’s fly on the wall ‘Benefits Street’ continues to shred the second city’s reputation.

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With 5 million viewers, Benefits Street attracts national coverage on Channel 4 and global coverage via Channel 4 on demand. Reactions and counter arguments are however focused locally. 

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Birmingham is at the receiving end of manipulative editing from Channel 4. A city of one million, tarnished for the sake of selling advertising slots during the breaks.

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Criticism is often levelled at countries like North Korea who use propaganda to control its people. Unfortunately this exposes our ignorance of the propaganda we are subjected to. Watch Benefits Street and ask yourself, do you blame the economic challenges of our country on reckless investment banks who played Russian Roulette with the global economy or do you blame the residents of Benefits Street? Do you think Lehman Brothers and RBS were bought to its knees by White Dee, Black Dee or any other shade of Dee? 

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Take a bow Kim Jong-un.

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From the gated communities of wealthy suburbs, Ministers who enjoy the protection of personal and financial security risk making an impression they are abandoning regional cities and towns. If so, we alone face the challenge of dealing with the social tremors of welfare cuts. Policy makers author the destiny of populations they choose not to live amongst. 

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Remember the 2011 national riots in the aftermath of the Mark Duggan shooting? The situation grew increasingly critical. Social Commentators were everywhere after the dust had settled but who was there whilst cities burned? We should remember it was a Winson Green man who stepped forward during the riots. Grieving the death of his two sons and nephew, Tariq Jahan addressed the gathered media and told rioters to end the madness. To stop. And they listened. 

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The riots stopped here in Birmingham and they stopped across the country. One man from Winson Green did that. Channel 4’s misrepresentation of Winson Green failed to mention this fact once. A whole hour to introduce a little balance and the programme makers decide to shy away from reality. Funny that.

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Viewers are being coerced to turn against society’s poor and risk accepting welfare cuts without reflection. Small businesses are presently in the process of completing their end of year accounts. It may bother them, their hard earned money contributes to the welfare payments of others. Decreasing opportunities for children to escape poverty and inheriting a life on welfare should bother them more. I have little faith those responsible for abandoning the Building Schools for the Future program have the stomach to watch Benefits Street.

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Please feel free to share this article with friends and family who live outside of Birmingham. 

Benefits Street

I was asked to photograph George Osborne’s visit to Birmingham today (Monday 6th January 2014). A visit where he continued the theme of his Autumn Statement of the need for more cuts in the year ahead. The visit was covered extensively by the media. He came, he spoke and he jumped back into his Jaguar and returned to London.

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The day of the visit coincided with most of the UK returning to business as normal following the Christmas break. It ended with Channel 4 launching its new 4 part series, Benefits Street. It is set in one of the poorest wards of the country and follows the daily challenges of the residents of James Turner Street in Winson Green, Birmingham.

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It could be best described as voyeuristic television aided by the editing skills of the production team. Think Shameless but with the added horror these are not actors.

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I can’t help but feel George Osborne’s visit and the release of Benefits Street are related. Could somebody deep in the bowels of the 2015 Election Campaign have really timed the Chancellor’s visit with the national release of Benefits Street? A programme that ignites the hatred of those in society who consider the unemployed to be work shy and lazy.

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The manipulative editing skills in Benefits Street gave Osborne’s speech gravitas, it allowed his words to echo past the final airing on Newsnight. For some it would have justified the welfare cuts Osborne spoke off.

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Benefits Street is neither a true picture of Birmingham nor of the unemployed. Its a skewed vision and I was glad to see a lot of people on social media saw through this.

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I remember when Channel 4 was an edgy and exciting channel, it defied the establishment and showed previously banned films like A Clockwork Orange. When did it turn from being the hope of Generation X to become the voice of Generation Daily Mail?

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I was born on Wellington Street, parallel to James Turner Street. Winson Green isn’t like Pimlico where social housing shares kerb space with million pound apartments. Winson Green is an oasis of deprivation. Its home to Winson Green Prison, a rebranding operation changing it’s name to City Prison did nothing to elevate the area. Don’t hold your breath if you’re waiting for Starbucks to land.

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If City Prison is hard to break out of, spare a thought for how hard it is to break out of the poverty cycle endured by the residents of Benefits Street. I worry the Coalition have made it even harder to escape poverty by cancelling programs such as Building Schools for the Future.

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Jas Sansi is a freelance Photographer in Birmingham 07930 837 505