It seems that not a year goes by without the powers that be attempting to change Notting Hill Carnival. Year on year this is done by media creating a moral panic surrounding the levels of violence, alcohol consumption and drug usage at the event. Last year, Twitter was in uproar over the event being labelled as “frightening and intimidating”, leading to the event being watched by snipers and continued calls from police to end the event completely.
The 2016 report is no different, touting statistics like the fact that more than 400 people were arrested – apparently the highest since ’08 – and claiming that the number of violent offences has risen from 81 to 151.
Notting Hill Carnival is the biggest street festival in Europe and the government has sought to monetise the event for decades now. There is no doubt that violence occurs, but this is practically a given when you get massive groups of people together.
The end game is of course to turn Carnival into a ticketed event, much like the New Year’s Eve fireworks, particularly with the policing reports that are produced year after year condemning the event. The reports are supposed to make us believe that ticketing would be for our safety rather than profit, but fans of the events have their doubts. Revellers are concerned that ticketing would also take away the communal, all-are-welcome aspect of the weekend, causing it to lose stray from original intentions.
Jo Jordan was an unfortunate victim of this violence at Carnival last year, when he was robbed for his watch and stabbed in his arm as he attempted to get it back. He said that despite this terrible ordeal he doesn’t want anything to be changed at Carnival. “I know what happened to me wasn’t very nice but I wouldn’t want them to change carnival or the location of it or anything. It was just one of those things that could have happened to me anywhere. I’ve been coming every year for five years with my friends and we love the party atmosphere.”
We’re glad that Jo can see beyond the incident to still be able to celebrate the event, but the police are much less likely to have such a positive outlook.
To ensure you have the best time this year, read our Sideman’s #CarnivalGuide.