Activists are hosting a post-Brexit workshop of discussions, talks and events in Croydon this weekend.
Among the events at Take Back Control festival is a sold out screening of I, Daniel Blake and a Q+A with director Ken Loach in the council run tech hub TMRW today.
The event seeks to bridge the gap between leave and remain voters in areas they say are often ignored in the political establishment in a series of events by The World Transformed.
Caragh Skipper, an event organiser and contributor, said: “Our community certainly reflects the political climate but the reason why you see something like the riots happen in Croydon is because you have somewhere very reflective of what the environment is but without having a voice that can make a change.
“We need to get out there and show people how they can make their voice heard.”
The festival will host music, performances and comedy among the spoken word workshops.
Topics of the talks include the housing crisis, British values and the NHS – as well as various music, theatre and film screenings across the day.
The talk ‘Migrant Voices from the Frontline’ comes soon after an attack on 17 year old Kurdish-Iranian asylum seeker Reker Ahmed in Croydon.
Ms Skipper said: “We want to make sure things like that don’t happen.
“It has brought it home and reaffirmed how important it is to have that discussion as open as possible.
“It has to be a response from all of us as one. It’s not what we are about in Croydon – at all.”
Tickets for the event can be obtained at https://takebackrealcontrol.com/tickets/ with special £3 concession tickets for those on low income or free for special circumstances.
