British as the next guy
We are faced with a march through at least part of Tower Hamlets this weekend by the English Defence League(the march goes over Tower Bridge before sitting on the boundary of The City and LBTH at Aldgate High Street).
A confession. I am an economic migrant.
I studied hard as a child and I aspired to achieve my potential. I stole the place of a privately educated child at the University of Cambridge, probably as the result of affirmative action. I have moved to London, I have bought up [a] London property and decorated it in my gaudy taste and stolen a London job. I came to London on my own and then convinced my wife to join me. As an amusing joke I refer to my nearby area as Shad-chester to reflect the fact I dance with maracas on the banks of Shadwell Basin like Bez on the Irwell.
Sometimes I struggle with the language and this annoys people. I call my lunch dinner, and my dinner tea. I drink Yorkshire tea, like tea used to be. An invitation for one of my supper clubs is to receive a biscuit with a lot of chocolate just before bed.
I live my life with the values handed to me by my family and my non-conformist faith. I don't follow social norms; I queue for buses and allow those waiting longest to be served at the bar.
My cultural activities differ from my indigenous neighbours and include clog-dancing, crown green bowling, meat and potato pie eating and shouting 'How much?! Is that for a family?!' whenever I'm told the price of single admission to a club* or tourist attraction. I wear tweed without irony and for practical purposes, I wear a flat cap in the Winter and a grimace when the sun shines.
I label and identify myself as British. So when a group tells you that some minority isn't British because they act differently and come from somewhere else, tell them to sod off, because there's a fat man in a flat cap in Wapping that ticks all the boxes.
Having got that out of my system an interesting fact about Muslims in Tower Hamlets: they are more likely to identify as being British than anyone else in the borough and that is the only fact that matters.
This is the proportion of residents who defined themselves as their nationality as being purely "British".
This is the proportion of residents who defined themselves at least partially using any of the parts of the UK (E.g. British-Swedish, Welsh-English).
*Not strictly true
A confession. I am an economic migrant.
I studied hard as a child and I aspired to achieve my potential. I stole the place of a privately educated child at the University of Cambridge, probably as the result of affirmative action. I have moved to London, I have bought up [a] London property and decorated it in my gaudy taste and stolen a London job. I came to London on my own and then convinced my wife to join me. As an amusing joke I refer to my nearby area as Shad-chester to reflect the fact I dance with maracas on the banks of Shadwell Basin like Bez on the Irwell.
Sometimes I struggle with the language and this annoys people. I call my lunch dinner, and my dinner tea. I drink Yorkshire tea, like tea used to be. An invitation for one of my supper clubs is to receive a biscuit with a lot of chocolate just before bed.
I live my life with the values handed to me by my family and my non-conformist faith. I don't follow social norms; I queue for buses and allow those waiting longest to be served at the bar.
My cultural activities differ from my indigenous neighbours and include clog-dancing, crown green bowling, meat and potato pie eating and shouting 'How much?! Is that for a family?!' whenever I'm told the price of single admission to a club* or tourist attraction. I wear tweed without irony and for practical purposes, I wear a flat cap in the Winter and a grimace when the sun shines.
I label and identify myself as British. So when a group tells you that some minority isn't British because they act differently and come from somewhere else, tell them to sod off, because there's a fat man in a flat cap in Wapping that ticks all the boxes.
Having got that out of my system an interesting fact about Muslims in Tower Hamlets: they are more likely to identify as being British than anyone else in the borough and that is the only fact that matters.
Percentage of residents defining their national identity as 'British'
This is the proportion of residents who defined themselves as their nationality as being purely "British".
Percentage of residents defining part of their national identity as 'British'
This is the proportion of residents who defined themselves at least partially using any of the parts of the UK (E.g. British-Swedish, Welsh-English).
Source: LC2204EW - National Identity by religion
*Not strictly true
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