Death in London

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http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-london-11639505

I tried posting this up when it happened, but something went wrong in the process. I am surprised I have not seen it here already. I was rather angry with the initial press coverage, which seemed to put the death of a fellow human behind such things as "MAN IN A DRESS!!!!!" and "Delays for Passengers"

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Coverage

Unsurprisingly, The Indy had a pretty fair article. Early reports, as indicated in The Telegraph and this account didn't initially pick up on the victim's gender. If you hadn't read the other articles, this one would leave you confused...

One thing that irks me about almost all of the articles is the use of the rather clunky phrase "A man wearing women's clothes" - but then again, since they didn't know if the victim was a cross-dresser or just dressed up for a party (the latter seems a little unlikely given the initial gender confusion). There also seem to be contradictory accounts of the events leading up to the push - with some claiming the pair were laughing and joking as they pushed each other, while others say they were having a very animated discussion (which sounds more like an argument to me).

 

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There are 10 kinds of people in the world - those who understand binary and those who don't...

As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!

Tricky

I remember, from the days when I either lived in London or travelled there regularly, that one got rapidly accustomed to seeing almost anything in the streets, in shops, or on public transport. One soon learned not to turn a hair.

Men wearing a dress? Quite common. One memory is of catching a train at Waterloo, and the train on the next platform had just arrived disgorging hundreds of men and women in various states of (female) undress - all going to a performance of 'The Rocky Horror Show'.

As I say, in London, nothing surprises anyone who knows the place.

Penny

I can concur

Rachel Greenham's picture

in this sense of London, having lived there myself, and in fact transitioned there. It felt safe to do so because, basically, in London, everyone's already seen it.

(Of course, Bristol's even better in that regard. I would say that because I live here, but a friend who moved from here to San Francisco reported back that it "felt" like Bristol, specifically in the easy way it has with people who are different. (Also the hills, the harbour, and the suspension bridge, though ours is the first, of course...))

I expect this case is going to turn out to be some personal dispute that came to a head between two people who knew each other, rather than a general or randomised hate crime.

Although one should always leaven that with caution. Just google "london nail bombing". :-}

Oh dear

Not just a human, but humane. This is even sadder than I feared. Poor girl, poor family.

*Sigh*...

And now they've spoiled it all by starting the dirt digging :(

 

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There are 10 kinds of people in the world - those who understand binary and those who don't...

As the right side of the brain controls the left side of the body, then only left-handers are in their right mind!

How far have we come?

Jemima Tychonaut's picture

Any death is a tragedy. I just hope that the press can handle this with the sensitivity due for the death of an innocent person and not turn it into some sort of circus. From the range of articles linked here and a quick google, I'm not holding out much hope that the tabloids will behave. The original Daily Mail article with its prominent concern that passengers were inconvenienced by Sonia's death was heartwarming. Not. :-(

On the positive side, the Met do seem to be approaching this with the right attitude and degree of sensitivity.

I guess one way or another, the coverage of the eventual trial will show us how far we've come collectively as a society. I'm hoping it's as far as I think.



"Life moves pretty fast. If you don't stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it."

It is sad

that someone appears to have been killed. This shows extreme insecurity on the part of the perpetrator.

What is also galling in the media is that you rarely, if ever, see the headline; "Woman wearing men's clothes."