Cut Short: Why We’re Failing Our Youth – and How to Fix It

by Ciaran Thapar

'I came away from this book enraged, enlightened and with a sense of urgency to do something' Annie Mac 'Lays down a transformative path to peace' David Lammy MP 'Compelling' The Sunday Times; 'Assured' Observer; 'Brilliantly written' Nikesh Shukla _________________________ Demetri wants to study criminology at university to understand why people around him carry knives. Jhemar is determined to advocate for his community following the murder of a loved one. Carl's exclusion leaves him vulnerable to the sinister school-to-prison pipeline, but he is resolute to defy expectations. Tony, the tireless manager of a community centre, is fighting not only for the lives of local young people, but to keep the centre's doors open. Drawing on the latest research and interviews with experts, this refreshingly nuanced and beautifully written book interweaves the stories of a cast of characters at the sharp end of the UK's serious youth violence epidemic, with chapters on subjects such as social media, gentrification and criminal justice. Showing how we are all connected to this tragedy, Cut Short is a gripping, urgent, sympathetic and often painful portrait of a society fracturing along lines of race, class and postcode. It is a blueprint for positive change, and a book we desperately need. _________________________ 'A devastating and beautifully-drawn tribute to the young boys that the media turns into statistics of knife crime' Candice Carty-Williams 'Makes you stop and think' Nick Robinson, BBC R4's Today programme 'This book strongly gives a voice to the voiceless . . . essential reading' Kenny Allstar 'Angry, impassioned, informed, accurate - the story behind the cutting short of public health and young lives' Danny Dorling 'Ciaran's work is informed by lived experience at the frontline of social change. It takes a sensitive and respectful look at the truths less often told' George the Poet

Genres: Nonfiction, Sociology, Race, Social Justice, Music, Politics

368 pages, Paperback

Published June 30, 2022

Reviews

[Georgie Chaudhry · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is so important. Focusing on the environments and experiences of London’s young people - specifically Black British male teenagers - who are continually exposed to the full force of youth violence, Thapar unpicks the various intricacies of the lives of these young people to give an honest account of why they can be so brutally exposed to violence and loss.
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There is so much packed into this book and all of it is equally important in building up a picture of the forces at play in the lives of London’s young people. From austerity and the cuts to youth services and mentoring schemes to the rise of social media and the power it holds. Thapar explores what it’s like to be a young person growing up in London’s poorest wards and housing estates, juxtaposed to the corporate skyscrapers and gentrified housing schemes that lie just roads away.
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As a teacher, of real interest to me was Thapar’s focus on schools and the roles they can play in perpetuating feelings of low self worth and embarrassment among students. This is especially prevalent when data is used as a catch-all measurement for achievement, ignoring the complexities of young people’s home lives and mental and emotional well-being.
Of equal importance was the damaging effect the phrase ‘knife crime’ can have. Thapar’s work focused more so on the experience of Black British male teenagers in London as this is the group he has had the most interaction with through various youth work and mentoring roles. What is clear is that, in the media especially, the term ‘knife crime’ has become subtly (or maybe not so) synonymous with Black teenagers residing in London, despite this not tallying with the wider national picture of Serious Youth Violence.
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There is so much to learn from this book and so many wonderful and inspirational young people to meet who have made so much of having so little. Thapar has produced something that is vital to understanding Youth Violence and the pressures of growing up in the city of London.

[Liam Gallagher · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent insight with a great story and without feeling preachy

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was recommended to me by a young person who works with Redthread, a youth outreach service that works in hospitals throughout London and the midlands. They do particular work with young people who have been hospitalised as a result of violence of some kind, or who have been exposed to it in some way.


I found this book particularly compelling because it is set in a part of London that is familiar to me, as I used to live and work there. It takes place across South London, from Brixton to Elephant and Castle, with a youth centre in Loughborough Junction as the main focus. King's College Hospital is just up the road, and my job in Paediatrics there - while I lived in Brixton - made a huge impression on me. I found the number of young people we saw with stab wounds pretty shocking, and unlike anywhere else I'd worked. (I also once witnessed the sort of events featured in the book first hand, when I saw a massive knife pulled during an altercation on a bus on Brixton Hill in the middle of the day.)


I wish I'd this book had been around to read while I was working at Kings.  It provides a deep dive into the world of young people growing up in these parts of London: the pressures they face, the atmosphere, the culture and the impact of racism and austerity. It introduces four young people, and then examines their circumstances through different contexts, including social media, gentrification, public health and the criminal justice system. There's a final section regarding COVID.


I'd strongly recommend this book, particularly to anyone who works with young people.

[Debs Erwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a well-written book, it's great to have a very readable piece of non-fiction that offers insight into the world of youth work in a way that is credible and that doesn't romanticise or feed a messiah complex about those who work with young people. Rather it is grounded in young people's lived experiences and refreshing in its collaborative approach to telling young people's stories by enabling them to be characters with their own agency rather than objects. Thapar is incisive in his analysis of various structural factors and inequalities and how they have devastating consequences for young people in his home city, and while it speaks to a context very different to my own, it carries a great deal of relevance. I was actually really moved by the Acknowledgements section at the end, because the book was borne out of the author's many valuable relationships and networks - maybe it's true to say that it takes a village to write a book. This is one with many important things to say about education, policing and criminal justice, austerity politics, social media, and public health to name just a few of the key issues addressed, and it will make you think regardless of whether you work or volunteer with young people or not.

[Leon · Rating 5 out of 5]

"If someone who has barely entered their teenage years feels the need to bring in a knife to defend themselves, even when they know full well they will be excluded if caught, what does this say about their relationship with their school? What does it say about their sense of safety while moving through wider society?

[Polly Stephens · Rating 5 out of 5]

I started working at a youth centre last year that does in depth work around homelessness and serious youth violence. I've been trying to gain more perspective and insight into the lived experiences of young Londoners that I could go my whole life never understanding due to my bubble of privilege. Grateful this book exists and a useful springboard into further learning I need to do

[Caitlin Tweddle · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love my job supporting young victims of violence and it is so crucial. This book so accurately reflects the reality that so many of our youth are living, down to the language used throughout. Ciaran gets his young people; the empathy, love, and understanding he shows towards them is inspirational.

Egotistically loved the mentions of Redthread too icl

[Tao Chen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thought provoking as it gave a unusually direct account of the issues, but repeated accusations of austerity are not well argued. There is also a balance between how much the society should take responsibility for the citizens, and how much individuals take responsibility for themselves.

[Joe Cook · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone who works with young people in PRUs delivering music making session this book was brilliant. A must read for anyone who works with young people and has fire to build a better society and future for you countries youth.

[Yasmin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this now!

[Max · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incisive view on contemporary youth violence. An absolute cracking read woven with personal experiences of people affected by social injustice

[Susannah Clarke · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is very powerful and outlines very well the social inequalities that lead young people to feel abandoned by their own communities. Read it and don't just feel outrage. Act !

[Tayler · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such an important book. It should be read by anyone working with young people or forming policy that affects young people. Brilliant

[Laura Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

Important. Urgent. Insightful. Passionate. A must read.

[Sasha Hodes · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 1/2

[Candice Lamb · Rating 5 out of 5]

For anyone who cares about children and young adults and how we as a society are letting them down creating a circle of damage then please read this … oh and volunteer to help out if you can

[Katherine Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

An incredible and important read.

[Alejandro · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating book and listen, that shines a light on London that many have heard of but not had understood.

[Elena Stanbrook · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this book.

[Jonny Brick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outstanding activist-journalism weaving human interest, politics, youth culture and sociology. If not now, in terms of funding youth workers to stop the problems at source, when?

[Khush Pinda · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book ever

[Connie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I feel this is necessary reading for anyone that has anything to say about youth violence.

[Em Ands · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thinking on my rating!