The London Riots: Who’s to Blame?

No one is doing nothing for us—not the politicians, not the cops, no one.” These are the words of a 19-year old boy who was arrested, along with 1200 others who were involved in the riots that have transformed London into terrifying scenes of violence and chaos. Among other youth who are currently filling Britain’s courthouses and under arrest for participating in the riots:  a 15-year-old immigrant from Ukraine whose mother recently died; a 17-year-old teenager who reportedly was trying to finish school&mdashbut made the mistake of following his cousin into the rampage; and an 11-year old boy from Essex. He was arrested for stealing a garbage can.

These are the worst riots in Britain in decades, and vandalism and violence is unacceptable and must be condemned. But are these youth—most of whom come from poor, underserved, and often ethnically mixed neighborhoods the only culprits? Some of Britain’s leaders are lashing out at the young rioters, calling them “groups of thugs” and saying that the problem is lack of morals and poor parenting. Are these really the underlying causes of this violent unrest? Yes, anger at the police and ethnic tensions are clearly part of the problem. But what about the austerity budget now in place in Britain that has prompted deep cuts in public services&mdashincluding subsidized housing&mdashin neighborhoods that sparked the riots? What about the fact that 18 percent of young people in Britain are unemployed and nearly half of all black or other minority youth can’t find jobs?

Yesterday, I spoke with a prominent British businessman who lives in London. While he was appalled by the violence and vandalism, he had his own take on the crisis. He said that wherever young people have no realistic prospects for leading a productive life, and no stake in the future, then they will often hit back—whether it’s in Europe’s finest cities, or in the slums of Manila or Rio or Detroit. It’s not just the moral imperative that should drive us to address the needs and aspirations of today’s young people. It’s also in the self interest of governments, and private industry, and all of us, to do so. And then he added: the thing that youth respond to the most is the feeling that they are worth something; that they have something to offer. You give them that, and they can do anything.