An Ex-Gang Member on UK Knife Crime | Sheldon Thomas
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“When you look at the kids that are involved, every kid, whether they be rich or poor, black or white, you will notice one thing; they are not loved at home.”
SHOW DESCRIPTION
Location: Bedford
Date: Monday, 20th January 2020
Company: Gangsline
Role: Founder
Incidents of knife crime in the UK are on the increase. In the 12 months ending March 2019, there were over 43,000 knife crime offences, marking an 80% increase on the same period in 2014. Of the 44 police forces throughout the UK, all but one recorded an increase in this kind of crime.
While London has the highest number of knives on the street, this issue is not confined to the capital. Cities like Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester and Nottingham are also seeing a marked increase.
The reason for this increase in is unclear, and while there likely isn’t a single answer, the blame has been laid on county lines drug dealing, lack of father figures, falling government funding for youth services and even social media.
Observations have also been made that while knife crime has increased, the police force has shrunk, with 20,000 fewer police officers than in 2010. Despite this decline, former Prime Minister, Theresa May claimed “no direct-correlation” to the increase in knife crime.
In this interview, I speak with Sheldon Thomas, an ex-gang member and founder of Gangsline, a non-profit organisation that provides help and support to young people involved in gang culture. We discuss the growing knife crime problem in the UK and Sheldon’s observations from the frontline of this growing epidemic.
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SHOW NOTES
Connect with Sheldon:
Connect with Gangsline:
Mentioned in the show:
Wikipedia: English Defence League
Wikipedia: National Front (UK)
Wikipedia: British National Party
The Guardian: How the battle of Lewisham helped to halt the rise of Britain’s far right
Wikipedia: 1980 St Pauls riot
The Guardian: A new kind of riot? From Brixton 1981 to Tottenham 2011
Wikipedia: Borstal
Sky News: 'This war won't end': London gang murders on the rise
The Times: Rise of football hooliganism sees return to 1980s violence
BBC: Stephen Lawrence murder: A timeline of how the story unfolded
BBC: Ipswich stabbing: Boy called for own ambulance after knife attack
The Independent: Knife crime hits all-time high after more than 43,000 offences across England and Wales last year
Reuters: London murder rate overtakes New York as knife crime rises
Reuters: Fifth stabbing in four days in north London district amid knife crime surge
Reuters: Knife crime soars to record in England and Wales but homicides fall
NCA: County Lines
The Guardian: Violence traps scared kids in county lines gangs. They need help before it's too late
IMDb: Top Boy
IMDb: Blue Story
The Independent: Fifth of people in working UK households trapped in relative poverty
Wikipedia: UK miners' strike (1984–85)
Wikipedia: Murder of Rhys Jones
The Guardian: The banana wars explained
New York Times: El Salvador Throws Out Gang Truce and Officials Who Put It in Place
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