One of the largest social issues throughout the world is equality, or equal rights under law for individuals of each gender, race and social class. On my trip to London in the United Kingdom, we took a variety of tours and visited a number of sites in order to better understand the issues that arise around these specific cultural differences in London’s past and present. Throughout our trip of study, we read a number of contextual articles as well as looked for examples of many social issues within the lenses of gender, race and class. In this blog I would like to focus specifically on equality, as learning more about it in the United Kingdom can help us see the shortcomings and or gains of equality throughout the rest of the world as well as at home in the United States.
The first area of our tour in which the equality rights of the cultural difference of race presented itself, was in our viewing of the new film “Blinded by the Light” (Hornaday, 2019.) This film featured the life story of a young Pakistani British boy, and the many barriers that were presented to him on the basis of his race and class. It was shocking to see how the stress of economic decline brought out the differences of people rather than banding them together. In England of the United Kingdom in the 1980s, the people experienced high unemployment and a reduction in social services. The policies of the government under Maragret Thatcher, placed severe economic pressure on the entire middle and lower classes. Javed, the main character of the film seeks inspiration and commonality in the medium of American music from the artist Bruce Springsteen. He relates to the frustration of being stuck in the lower class. While Javed and Bruce Springsteen differ in both race and nationality, they use their words to connect with others and escape poverty.
Another example of a film that presents a minority’s ability to connect with another group that has been affected by poverty, was in the film we watched before our departure “Pride.” This film tells the true story of how a minority group “Lesbians and Gays Support the Minors” managed to raise money to support the unemployed miners, that had been targeted by the same government policies of Maragret Thatcher. In both films, the characters overcome disparity by focussing on what they have in common, instead of their differences. I believe this to be one of the most effective ways to overcome discrimination in any society. The relationships built between the two groups was far more valuable than the money raised. Kindness overcame the peoples’ differences. More recently a group “Lesbians & Gays Support the Migrants” formed in a similar fashion to extend a kind gesture of support to Migrant families being negatively impacted by the United Kingdom’s policies (Dear BA.)
Another aspect of equality that was presented to me in our trip was in regard to gender equality. The ability of women to obtain equal rights in the United Kingdom, but of equal importance was the rights of non-traditional gender identifying individuals. In fact on our tour of Soho, many of the stories of gay persecution mentioned the kindness of women business owners. Furthermore, Soho was a progressive place in the 1950s as it embraced multicultural practices far ahead of other parts of the world (Sawer, 2019.) At the close of World War II, many African Americans embraced the freedom they experienced in Soho in London. The article we read about Soho states it quite well, many great musicians and artists paved the way for a multicultural Britain (Sawer, 2019.)
Business women were not the only ones to help Brittain progress to embrace the diversity of its citizens. The rise of women in power, specifically Queen’s who ruled as monarchs after Henry VIII son’s death. While some of them did not have sole power over their country, they set the precedent for female leadership roles. Throughout my tour of London I saw symbols and heard about the Queen of England in tones of great respect. As an American, I had little experience with the notion of a people’s reverence for a Queen. In the United States of America my country had forcibly removed itself from the hierarchy of this particular monarchy, so I found it hard to see their Queen as a symbol of anything positive. However after touring the National Portrait Gallery and the Tower of London, I saw how the ruling Queen represented both strength and respect of her people’s laws. I heard the story of how queens since Queen Elizabeth I, ruled in the place of a king and were instrumental in giving more power back to the people.
The current Queen Elizabeth II has been such a strong symbol for the British people, that she now has a television series on Netflix called “The Crown” (Abbott, 2019.) The series highlights the emotional toll and self sacrifice that Queen Elizabeth II and her family have endured in their service to the British Empire, England and later the United Kingdom. I was particularly interested in the sacrifices of the Queen’s husband Prince Phillip. Prince’s that married into royalty such as Queen Victoria’s Prince Albert and Queen Elizabeth II’s Prince Phillip experienced a reversal of gender roles in regard to power and authority, unlike and other relationships of the time. While the basis of the gender role reversal was royalty, it still provided and example of the ability of women to lead the country and even their households.
While the examples I have given focus mostly on social conflicts in the United Kingdom, these types of conflict have happened all over the world in both the past and present. The path and progression of equality across gender, race and class in the United Kingdom served as an example to the world. They were one of the first countries to have a queen rule without the oversee of a King or husband. They are also one of the most diverse countries in the world, though far from perfect; London is an example of how a large diverse city population can co-exist, progress and innovate with the aid of its people.
Works Cited
Abbott, Kate. “The Crown: First Glimpse of Olivia Colman’s Queen as Hit Drama Returns.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 12 Aug. 2019, www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/2019/aug/12/the-crown-first-glimpse-of-olivia-colman-queen-as-hit-netflix-drama-returns?CMP=share_btn_fb&fbclid=IwAR3RlprNdvmqaBAMeWBF64PW622J4peH8IDJKQhvEuEpt8wyFaKboEn0vSI.
“Dear BA.” Lesbians & Gays Support the Migrants, www.lgsmigrants.com/100-letters?fbclid=IwAR3vUebwtYTmEnWqJGh6kAazfX-UiP7eZD4mwSP5A9A6e8Ru9hF0RvMSRHY.
Hornaday, Ann. “This Ode to Springsteen and the Power of Music May Be the Feel-Good Movie of the Summer.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 13 Aug. 2019, www.washingtonpost.com/goingoutguide/movies/this-ode-to-sprinsteen-and-the-power-of-music-may-be-the-feel-good-movie-of-the-summer/2019/08/13/05c1e24a-b953-11e9-b3b4-2bb69e8c4e39_story.html?fbclid=IwAR2pw_780MeMbgAKWVYbqDF4eQuu4XDnwE7X0jNMnTTlEhtoO3jmInLSH6I.Sawer, Patrick. “Soho 1951: Defying Racial Convention and Paving the Way for Multicultural Britain.” The Telegraph, Telegraph Media Group, 24 Aug. 2019, www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2019/08/24/soho-1951-defying-racial-convention-paving-way-multicultural/.
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