In London and the Caribbean, the gangs still thrive, as my Law Breakers once did

I landed at Gatwick on my return from the Caribbean early on Tuesday morning, to be met by an anxious Mrs Howe. She had seen a Channel 4 programme on gang wars and feared for our son's safety. He has flown the coop and shares a flat with two mates in south-east London, over Woolwich/ Plumstead way, where one of the large gangs is based.

He visits weekly to see us, and tells us quite casually that he can't go to parties and clubs in north London and other parts of south London. "Too much beef, Mum." He arrived late for one of his visits; on the way, he explained, he had been ambushed by gang members.

This has hardly ever involved racial conflict. I guess that the sheer numbers of blacks and their propensity to use firearms may explain the absence of whites from these confrontations.

Mrs Howe had the video of the programme and I sat through what seemed to me a startling replica of my own life 45 years ago in Port of Spain, Trinidad.

I belonged to a gang of more than a hundred youths called the Law Breakers. There were several other gangs in and around Port of Spain with exotic names such as Silk Hats, Sun Valley and Fallen Angels. Here are the lyrics of one of the most popular calypsos of the day:

I'm young and strong
I ent 'fraid a soul in town
Who think they bad
To meet them, we more than glad
And we got we guns/and pardner, we ent making fuss
If yuh smart clear the way
If yuh think yuh bad
Make yuh play.

In the Caribbean, as here, the problem continues. Where the Law Breakers once strutted, two gangs exist now. My friend's grandson already has three notches on his gun. Another parent buried a son only days ago. No knives, no cutlasses, only guns.

Expect it to dissolve into something else. There will be a second phase, when internecine strife is replaced by unity in pursuit of a larger purpose. As the late Frantz Fanon showed, the black power movement of the 1960s established itself as a major source for change once gang strife was transcended.

Post your comment

Please note: you will need to login or register before you can comment on the website