cereal killer cafe vandalised

Cereal Killer Cafe owners Alan and Gary Keery –  image c/o Time Out London

NB: This neither falls into the category of music nor film. What it is however, is something so integral to London and it’s culture that we HAD to vent! Thanks to Jamie Osman for the photo!

Last night saw East London’s Brick Lane turn into a scene from Gangs Of New York.

OK, so there was far less violence and far more paint and cereal slinging, but the intimidating image of a 200 strong mob equipped with pigs’ heads and flaming torches was certainly not what residents or Saturday night revelers were anticipating.

The mob was targeting Shoreditch’s Cereal Killer Café, a small establishment set up by twin brothers Alan and Gary Keery in a bid to dish out breakfast delights from around the globe. It’s a rather docile affair where cereal can be bought for £3.20 a bowl, a far cry from the flame doused intimidation that greeted customers last night from beyond the threshold.

The group of activists eloquently labeling themselves the “f**k parade” not only terrified customers and staff, but gave the entire shop-front a renovation with the help of paint buckets and packets of cereal. “There were children there – they were terrified” remarked Alan Keery to The Evening Standard, “The staff were absolutely terrified. They had torches and pigs’ heads.”

What had the Keery brothers done to incite such anger you might be wondering? Well, it’s not so much what they’ve done, it’s more the “Gentrification” they stand for – apparently.

 



What I found most shocking was the way in which a small and thriving independent business faced such a backlash as a result of ingenuity and entrepreneurial spirit. In a country whose economy is thriving for the first time in years post-recession, a business such as this should stand to demonstrate the wonders of a free market economy, not become the target of envy. Too many sectors of society have become wrapped up in a hate mission, targeting those who are better off or have attained a certain level of success. Many of these success stories have built their businesses from the ground up, having started from nothing – as is the case with the Keery brothers. At what point did society deem it acceptable to deface a symbol of dedication and hard work because of a “you’ve got more than me” sense of entitlement? If it’s a political attack on the Tory’s, label it as such. Don’t go around vandalising someone’s livelihood, using it as a political scapegoat to vent your anger about the way a government run a country. It’s perfectly fair to deem £3.20 expensive for a bowl of cereal, after all you could buy a packet for that price. You could also choose toast over cereal or eggs and bacon, that’s the beauty of choice. If you don’t like the option being served up, then don’t pay for it. It’s the basic concept of supply and demand. If the market wasn’t there, neither would the business be.    


 

What’s slightly concerning though, is the way in which some peoples anger levels push them to scrawl “Scum” across the outside of someone’s property and intimidate children. One twitter account could even be seen live-tweeting the nights events, with messages like “Ceareal Café. £5 for cereal when people are starving. F**k gentrification.” Appearing online, alongside “F**k cutesy boutiques and coffee shops. Homes for everyone.”

Freedom of speech is a wonderful thing, but in many ways these tweets sum up the whole hypocritical charade. These “cutesy boutiques and coffee shops” are people’s livelihoods, income-generating businesses whose success ultimately helps to fund the building of new homes among many other schemes through tax. Without these businesses unemployment would undoubtedly be far higher, there would be fewer jobs, more paid out in benefits and less money left in the kitty to invest in the exact things these tweets and protesters are demanding. Denouncing the success of coffee shops and boutiques is simply not the answer.

Maybe it’s time these flame-wielding anarchists started ranting about issues that really do affect the whole nation. Take up issue with the tax-avoiding multi-national corporations that are overrunning our high streets for instance, or the extortionate prices we pay for train tickets, not bloody bowls of cereal.