By contributor Sean Carey

Politicians in the U.K. are puzzled about the cause and scope of the recent disorders on the U.K. mainland. Last night, for example, I listened to Baroness Sayeeda Warsi, co-chair of the British Conservative Party, and Harriet Harman, deputy leader of the Labour Party, squaring up to each other on BBC Radio 4’s Any Questions.

Baroness Warsi, the daughter of migrants from Pakistan and the first Muslim woman to serve in the cabinet, was clear about her view that the riots were caused by a failure of parenting. She said that when she was a child she would not dream of getting into trouble because of what her parents might do once they found out.

Harman, the daughter of a Harley Street physician, appeared anxious not to be perceived as “soft” on issues of law and order or to be some sort of moral relativist. She said that behind the “criminality” other issues drove the behavior of the rioters, including “lack of opportunity.”

What can we learn from some street-side fieldwork? Continue reading “U.K. riots: poor parenting or lack of opportunity?” →