Poverty Safari: Understanding the Anger of Britain's Underclass

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People from deprived communities all around Britain feel misunderstood and unheard. Darren McGarvey, aka 'Loki' gives voice to their feelings and concerns, and the anger that is spilling over. Anger he says we will have to get used to, unless things change. J.K. Rowling Nothing less than an intellectual and spiritual rehab manual for the progressive left.

Considering this, and in the absence of a bloodless revolt soon, the question for people on the left is no longer simply: “How do we radically transform the system?”, but also: “How do we radically transform ourselves?” He reveals various traumatic recollections from his childhood regarding his alcoholic mother, who would eventually succumb to cirrhosis of the liver as a result of her drinking, dying at only 36 years old. His story is one of triumph over the odds, overcoming demons and very much an inspiration to the millions of people who find themselves in equally distressing circumstances.In this extract from his radical book Poverty Safari, former rapper Darren McGarvey sets forward a new approach to an old and complex problem McGarvey is able to connect with his students because his own life has been shaped by the dual forces of poverty and violence. He grew up in Pollok, a poor, working-class neighborhood on the southside of Glasgow. In the early nineties, when McGarvey was a child, this area often ranked as one of the most economically deprived places in Europe.

Don’t be fooled, though. In reality, things will be much different. In reality, you’ll be stumbling in the street, sleeping in trash, and stealing from your friends. You’ll be a junkie. This then presents another challenge for EPs. As well as seeking to use our professional voice to support and advocate for marginalised and disadvantaged communities, are we also a profession that really listens to the communities that we serve? Are we a profession that seeks to facilitate and empower the solutions that local people advocate to their identified needs? I’m not sure I have the answers to these questions yet, but they’re certainly worth considering. And for that reason, I’d really recommend reading this book which doesn’t shy from asking them. Part memoir, part polemic, this is a savage, wise and witty tour-de-force. An unflinching account of the realities of systemic poverty, Poverty Safari lays down challenges to both the left and right. It is hard to think of a more timely, powerful or necessary book.The welfare system is strongly criticised because McGarvey regards it as a punitive system for the poor and vulnerable devised by people with no real comprehension of what it is to be poor. The shadow of austerity also looms large within McGarvey’s safari tour. He lauds those instances where real grassroots community action occurs within disadvantaged areas, but laments that these efforts are simultaneously hindered because they do not fit with the preconceived ideas and preferences of the powerbrokers, those individuals and organisations that provide funding and a public voice for such local community projects. What makes a neighborhood valuable? For McGarvey, it’s about a personal connection to the place. A neighborhood matters because it’s where your roots are. However, wealthy newcomers to a city may have different concerns. They may care less about a neighborhood’s history and care more about trendy cafés with names like Soy Division. We must open another frontier in politics. Not one based on railing against the system, but about scrutinising our own thinking and behaviour. One of which is about reclaiming the idea of personal responsibility from a rampant and socially misguided right wing that has come to monopolise it. A new leftism that is not only about advocating radical change but also about learning to take ownership of as many of our problems as we can, so that we may begin rebuilding the depleted human capacity in our poorest communities.

The book is divided into 32 short chapters, self-deprecatingly described by McGarvey as a “series of loosely connected rants that give the appearance of a book” (p. xxv). The result is a pleasingly accessible book for those pressed for time (such as trainee EPs) as each chapter does not take long to read. Class Matters The title is supposed to be a cruel barb. The rich drive through poor places on poverty safari. But I thought McGarvey was going to take us out of the car and show us things. He doesn't. Savage, wise and witty….It is hard to think of a more timely, powerful or necessary book.” J. K Rowling. I have always hated sociology. Take an entire subculture and claim they are a homogeneous blob. I find it offensive and dull. If you genuinely want to teach me about the poor, show me examples. McGarvey does this, somewhat, but he seems uncomfortable doing so. Msybe he worries he's being exploitative. He's much happier telling you about how the liberal middle class do gooders think they can parachute in to poverty country and fix things their way. His criticism is valid, but again, theoretical, not tied to any concrete examples, and pretty dull. This tension is present in many gentrifying neighborhoods. It is definitely the case in Gorbals, a working-class neighborhood in Glasgow. This once-neglected area now receives lots of attention from developers, investors, and nonprofits. However, for many residents, this change is a mixed blessing.

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There's no way someone like me would have been given the opportunity to write a book like this had I not draped it, at least partially, in the veil of a misery memoir. Okay then, first, we need to create the illusion of objectivity. It seems the most effective way to do this would be to completely dehumanise my family and me, to look at our experience through a statistical lens. The McGarvey warns against investing too much energy and faith to the delivery of political silver bullets, because even if you do think that a change of government/the end of capitalism/Brexit/nationalism/Corbyn/Trump/not Trump will solve many of your problems, you could still be waiting for a long time, and if you aren't prepared to work within the current political system, then it become just another protest movement that wants to keep people angry for the benefit of the movement, not the community. When you think you have nothing to lose, then hoping for the banks to fail sounds like fun, but in reality, the poorest would still end up suffering the most. Brilliant. Haunting, thought-provoking and compelling in equal measure, this devastatingly honest memoir merged with political and social polemic is essential reading for anyone even remotely interested in alleviating poverty. This is because the conversation about poverty is usually dominated by people with little direct experience of being poor.” Poverty Safari explores a lot of the author’s personal experiences: of his dysfunctional family, his alcoholic mother and violence experienced while growing up. In what ways is this book more than a memoir?