Tom Morello Weighs In On The London Riots

Rage guitarist tells us why it happened   11-Aug-11

Rage Against The Machine guitarist, Tom Morello, gave his opinion on why the London riots happened when he spoke to Rock Sound magazine last night.

"I have been following matters in the UK rather closely and I think it's no accident that over the course of the last year we've seen this kind of social unrest around the globe from the Arab Spring, to the riots in Spain and Greece caused by the austerity measures and the 100,000 people seen on the streets of Wisconsin as working class people stood up for their union rights. When people have the opportunity to look forward to a bright future with educational opportunities, safety, security and a positive economic outlook they do not take to the streets and riot. When people are standing at the lip of the abyss, looking into a future of poverty, deprivation and crime, that is when the powder-keg is set to be lit.

As the gap between rich and poor grows more grotesque around the globe it's really no surprise that the incidents we've seen in the UK recently are occurring. 

I originally found out about the unrest through emails and tweets from friends in the UK who were referencing certain Rage Against The Machine songs. How it impacts me emotionally is that firstly I'm concerned for the safety of everybody involved but overall it just deeply stirs the fire of my anger at the gross injustice that exists around the globe. In the midst of these austerity measures you know that the UK's billionaires are not turning their yachts in but the people in communities across the UK find themselves living in desperate economic conditions with no future to look forward to. On the one hand I'm concerned for safety but at the same time I understand. 

I think it's part of a bigger global picture. The people who run this planet just don't deserve to, and as long as the profit motive is primary in setting world affairs you are going to have this kind of gross inequality and this kind of response."

For more head to Rock Sound.

(Image courtesy of Creative Commons 3.0, author - Adrian Gregori)

Rich Beech
@sonicamped