Dining Across the Gap: An Meeting Between Opposing Viewpoints
Introducing the Individuals
First Participant: P., 34, London
Profession Former government employee, currently a student focusing on community health
Political history Voted Green last time (also a member of the party); previously Labour. Describes himself as “progressive, and internationalist rather than nationalist”
Interesting fact A drawing of a tea cup Peter did as a kid was once hung in the Irish National Gallery
Other Participant: Akshat, 43, from Harrow
Profession Risk manager in the construction sector
Voting record Originally from the Indian subcontinent, he has lived in the UK for five years, and voted Conservative. Identifies as “somewhat right of centre”
Interesting fact He self-learned to read and write the Urdu language. “I have no use for it, I simply found it intriguing”
Initial impressions
Akshat Over the last two decades, I’ve lived and worked in Qatar, South Korea, the United States. The issues Peter and I discussed are focused on Britain, but they are also global, because people's lives largely follows the same curve across the world. I was expecting someone very liberal, but he was quite measured – we engaged in a good, rational discussion. I had a couple of beers, Peter had mojitos.
The second participant We shared starters – fishy spring rolls, dumplings, radish cakes with sprouts, which were superb. I felt somewhat anxious, as I think he was too. Would he criticize me for being a snowflake? We each have immigrant backgrounds. My childhood was in Dublin; I’ve lived in the US and Spain. We bonded over our love of London.
Key disagreements
The first participant I look at migration like adding salt to a meal. With a small amount, the food tastes wonderful. Add too little or too much and the meal is either too bland or too salty.
The second participant He had a metaphor about salt. It would be a funny place to be if the government was choosing some ideal ethnic makeup of the country.
The first participant There are, unfortunately, individuals fleeing persecution, but many people coming to the UK are those seeking better finances who do not necessarily contribute much and can weigh on the benefit system. Nobody forces you to move to a different nation for prospects, so you ought to relocate if you can take care of yourself and your relatives.
The second participant We got lost with some of the facts. I don’t think it’s like you come over and are employed and then after five years you get permanent citizenship. No process is guaranteed. It’s been a hostile environment for some time, visa fees are quite expensive, you pay an healthcare levy, eligibility for support is restricted. There is no special treatment for anyone. And regarding the recent changes, whereby family reunification is restricted, it’s incredible to say: we desire your labor, but we reject you as a person. I think we have to have a certain level of humanity.
Common ground
The first participant Peter’s sceptical of unregulated markets. So am I, but at the same time, wealth creation helps communities and ought to be promoted.
The second participant We each have global outlooks. And we concurred that some parts of the community – politics, the press – thrive off stoking division. We did find shared understanding in basic principles and ethics.
Dessert and debate
The first participant Peter believes that because the UK profited from the colonial era, it ought to provide compensation to affected nations. I simply think: you cannot judge history with present day morality; times are different, modern people had no control of events decades or a century ago. Suppose the Britain was obliged to repay India, it would be a significant sum of money. Is Britain able to manage that? No.
Peter Until recently, I don’t think there was much reckoning with the colonial past. For example, upon my arrival to the United Kingdom, the public weren’t aware of the Great Famine and the role that imperial rule played in it. My view is decolonisation isn’t just about signing a cheque, it should be about looking at what went wrong and where we should be now.
Final thoughts
The first participant It won’t change the way I think, but I understand his worries. I converse with individuals regularly with opinions are opposite to my own. It’s about bringing everyone to the same page, in order that everyone can strive for the betterment of society.
The second participant We remained for two and a half hours. Akshat had dessert and I drank a Japanese dessert wine. I did not convince him of any point, but we both enjoyed the meal, so we might become more receptive to having conversations with others in the coming times.
