Ex-PTC commissioner Darren McGarvey has found his voice. The
book is a series of personal memoirs and reflections, often controversial, that
sometimes link and often go off at tangents. His mother’s early death from
alcohol and drug abuse is the framework on which he hangs a contrasting account
of the changes he has made in his own life, overcoming addictions and an
attitude of blaming everybody else. It’s a moving story and he tells with great
honesty.
But what makes the book compelling is his often angry
perspective on how the world looks from where he grew up in a troubled family
in Pollok. He suggests that child abuse and domestic violence, even if they are
not at the root of poverty, play a role in holding it in place. He describes
the stress of living in poverty, naming it as “the connective tissue between
social problems such as addiction, violence and chronic illness, as well as the
multiple crises in our public services”. There’s plenty to take in from the
perspective of the schemes.
So why Poverty Safari? I understand this to be Darren’s
interpretation of what middle class people are doing when they are paid to
“regenerate” working class areas. The well-meaning middle class folk are
parachuted in with middle class values and alien agendas prepared by remote
institutions. In a chapter called “The Outsiders” he illustrates the
discrepancy between government rhetoric and what is delivered on the ground,
and the consistent failure to meet local needs. PTC Commissioners should read
this chapter, even if they skip the rest.
It’s lucid and articulate, and a great read. I recommend it.
Patrick Boase
