An special poetography by Julio Etchart – one of the most recognized photographers from Uruguay based in London – who specially wrote this poem and included his photos of the recent riots which affected many Londoners directly and others indirectly.
Requiem 4 London – Poetography By Julio Etchart
In Court No. 3 at Westminster Magistrates
Ms. L pleads not guilty
to handling stolen goods.
She looks like a zombie
three nights with no sleep
It wasn’t me, it wasn’t me!
A big Plasma TV
My daughter is only four,
she misses me badly…
Yet no mercy is bestowed,
moved on to Crown Court,
and no bail for you
no future, no hope…
Back in the Caribbean
or in Chiantishire
the bankers play golf,
Martini dry, jug of Pimms
to reward their exercise.
No broken vacation
from this burnin’ nation.
Sitting in Court no. 2
a pair of trainers
is all that it takes…
a moment of weakness
that wrecked his life.
Mr. P, 18, pleads not guilty
to burglary.
It was just fun, all my mates were there.
He is a Blood bro
who hails from Haringey,
his one-year-old son
won’t see him for a long time…
Temptations are multi-fold
in our layered society,
branding illusions
the stuff of dreams;
yet the admen and ladies
are still at large
sex on the beach
and mojitos at sunset
no broken vacation
from this burnin’ nation…
Just round the corner
from my humble abode
the Penbury Boys
are having a rest
from an orgy of fire
that charred the hood.
Corner shops cast shutters
hiding the debris;
no amount of brooming
will clean the phantom of looting.
E5 vs. E9; E8 are losers, N16 too posh,
blade’em, kick’em
quick, run, the Feds are coming!
Berlin 1945
Beirut 1984
San Salvador 1989
BBC Pathe archives,
my own visual records
something hits my memory cells
when I lift my camera again…
No, is sunny Croydon
on a balmy summer afternoon
in two thousand and eleven.
The calm after the storm:
two nights ago, a deadly inferno
now a tourist destination
in this broken nation.
Innocent kids clicking their iPhones
to capture their uncertain future
for posterity.
The end of history
some clever guy says.
That, I do not know;
but one thing I’m certain of,
is that there is no vacation
in this broken nation…
* Hackney, London, 2011
Copyright poem and photo © Julio Etchart www.julioetchart.com
Julio Etchart is an Uruguayan award winning photojournalist based in London. He has traveled round the world for international magazines and NGOs and specializes in reportage, music and performing arts photography.
very political, shame is the wrong point of view as all this rioters deserve what’s coming their way and i hope they spend a loooong time in jail!
Well said… Great information, keep up the great work!