Good piece from Nesrine Malik.

"The supposedly unifying thread of all these new policies is “integration”: this mythical concept that has taken on the quality of a religious ideal. ... It depends upon the children’s centre that links parents to others in the community and pools advice and resources. It depends on the libraries that provide literature and history and local knowledge. It depends on youth clubs and midwife visits and community centres and public-sector workers ...

"Yet all of these services have been hollowed out by years of austerity, pushing people back into their own small networks and atomised lives."

I'm remembering when one of the Nottingham leisure centres was closed, a youth worker explaining that the youth club there had been neutral ground for local kids from different areas to be able to hang out safely. I think it's unlikely the benefits of that had been costed in when the council decided to close the place. Even purely economically, I think it was a false economy, let alone quality of life and community-building.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/commentisfree/2025/oct/20/labour-immigrants-a-level-english-work-citizenship

#austerity #migration #integration #LabourParty #UKLaw #UKPol #libraries #LeisureCentres #ThirdSpaces #citizenship

"…if asked to solve the impenetrable mystery of why so many boys are aimless, dissocialised, and credulous, I might point to the fact that 70% of #schools have less funding than they did in 2010. Or that two thirds of council-run #youthcentres in #England have closed in the same period, along with 30% of #leisurecentres and 20% of #libraries. Add to that thousands of football pitches, #swimmingpools, boxing clubs, and communal spaces. Pretending that the effects of such obvious social vandalism are somehow outweighed by people on Twitter talking about ‘male privilege’demeans the issues at hand, as well as our collective intelligence."

https://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle-columnists/arid-41592826.html