Thanks to KiwiChic for sending in this email response to “A collision”.
My comments are at the bottom in brackets. J
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KiwiChic by email:
“Haha oh dear..
That is a snapshot of the true Stroud though.
It's easy to forget that the Stroud district has a long and not too distant history as an industrial town... working class, not much money, pretty much everyone was related to each other through one of a handful of huge families, not very high-quality education (in terms of that which was available to the average family), minimal potential for advancement, minimal support etc etc.
Stroud (esp 'Top of Town' and Cashes Green), Stonehouse, Nailsworth (esp Forest Green) were all rough as houses when I moved here 30 years ago - not quite as bad as Gloucester but not far off.
That's one of the reasons I never felt the need for self-defence classes before haha - growing up here I learnt to watch my back and to associate with people whose names and reputation would keep me from being touched.
It was (and is) all small-town stuff, petty crimes in comparison to the city crimes and gangs I saw after I moved to NZ, but still a far cry from the happy hippy and civilised upper-class dream it's painted as.
The real Stroudies (ie born and bred) are products of generation after generation living tough lives where they've had to fight (often literally) to gain or hold onto anything.. Generation after generation of trauma responses and unhealthy or destructive coping mechanisms.. alcoholism, drug use, abuse etc, it's all rife in the real Stroud and I'm interested to see what will happen over the coming years..
The influx of outsiders and the campaign to market/portray the Stroud Valleys as a desirable idyllic classy area is putting even more pressure on a demographic of people who don't have the money, skills or support to compete.
Will the Stroudies get squeezed out to places like Gloucester, or will they stay and we'll just continue to gloss over their existence until the pressure on them becomes too much and they escalate from their petty crimes -which for the most part are contained within their own circles- to attacking those who in their eyes brought the problems?
You don't have to listen hard to hear the rumblings of dissent and resentment already over how hard the 'rich outsiders' are making life here!”
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( Jeth: Thanks KiwiChic,
The list of Stroud locations you mention is pretty spot on – I have a list of not so nice memories of all of those places.
Cashes Green holds a special place in my heart as it was the setting for my first experience of being headbutted and then seriously beaten up when, in my early teens (14) I was set on by much older guys in a gang for not being from Cashes Green and going to the youth club for the first time. Karate lessons followed in quick order, becoming obsession and I sparred with grown men several times a week which helped me get over the fear of being victimised quite so easily the next time.
In fact from your list Forest Green is the only place I haven't had a negative personal experience of, as... I never go there. Through work I knew an elderly lady that did though and she was targeted for burglary as her husband had just died and undoubtedly it was known that she was now alone.
It's true that with the massive gentrification of the town that there is an unawareness or denial of the town's past and most definitely, it’s present, which is perhaps understandable as people wish to see only the best in what they've just sunk their life savings into after all. Why consider things that seem to be somewhere else and effecting someone else? The coming down turn may change that quite quickly.
And there is a definite and uncomfortable divide in the town in terms of population.
There is a darker side to that new influx of more affluent demographics and that is the county lines connection from places as far as London, Birmingham etc. You can see drug drop offs at the railway bridge on the way to our other training venue in Paganhill. Bags being passed to kids waiting on bicycles… there’s always been a large drug problem in the town.
Our venue itself was the scene of a stabbing murder, robberies and major drug arrests. Indeed, the main motivator for opening a second central Stroud venue for beginner training was that I couldn’t get any new clients - new people have told me that they wouldn’t attend workshops at the Paganhill location because of fear for their safety in that area and now junkies are robbing the new venue with more problems this week.
But as you say, small town stuff and I stress that, to my knowledge, none of my students were connected... ;-)
Thanks for your email!
Jeth)