🔗 Share this article Dining Over the Divide: An Meeting Between Different Viewpoints Meeting the Individuals One Participant: Peter, 34, London Occupation Ex- civil servant, currently a learner focusing on public health Voting record Supported Green recently (and a affiliate of the political group); formerly Labour. Identifies as “progressive, and globalist instead of patriotic” Interesting fact A sketch of a tea cup Peter did as a child was once hung in the National Gallery of Ireland Second Participant: A., 43, from Harrow Profession Risk analyst in the infrastructure industry Political history Hailing from the Indian subcontinent, he has lived in the United Kingdom for five years, and voted the Conservative Party. Describes himself as “somewhat moderate right” Amuse bouche Akshat taught himself to understand the Urdu language. “It has no practical use for me, I was just fascinated” For starters The first participant Over the last 20 years, I have resided and been employed in the Middle East, East Asia, the United States. The issues we talked about are focused on Britain, but they are also global, because people's lives more or less follows the same curve across the world. I was expecting someone very liberal, but Peter wasn’t all gung ho – we engaged in a good, rational discussion. I had a couple of beers, he opted for mojitos. The second participant We shared appetizers – seafood rolls, dumplings, radish cakes with sprouts, which were excellent. I was a little nervous, as I think he was too. Was he going to attack me for my sensitivity? We each have immigrant backgrounds. My childhood was in Dublin; I have resided in the US and Spain. We bonded over our affection for the capital. Key disagreements The first participant I look at immigration like adding salt to a meal. When you add a little bit, the dish is delicious. Use too little or too much and the dish is either too bland or too salty. The second participant He had a metaphor regarding salt. It would be a funny place to exist if the state was choosing some ideal ethnic makeup of the country. The first participant There are, unfortunately, people fleeing persecution, but a lot of migrants coming to the UK are economic migrants who do not necessarily contribute much and can burden the benefit system. Nobody forces you to move to a new country for opportunity, so you should only go if you can take care of your own needs and your family. The second participant We got lost with certain details. In my view it’s like you arrive and work and then after five years you get indefinite leave to remain. Nothing is automatic. The climate has been unwelcoming since Theresa May, application costs are quite expensive, you pay an healthcare levy, eligibility for support is limited. The red carpet isn’t rolled out for anybody. And concerning the recent changes, whereby you can’t bring your family over, it is astonishing to state: we want your work, but we don’t want you. I believe we have to have a degree of humanity. Sharing plate Akshat Peter questions unchecked capitalism. So am I, but simultaneously, economic growth helps communities and should be encouraged. The second participant We’re both internationalist. And we agreed that some parts of the community – government, the media – benefit from stoking division. We discovered shared understanding in fundamentals and values. Dessert and debate Akshat Peter believes that since the UK benefitted from colonial times, it ought to provide compensation to those countries. My view is simply: you cannot judge history with present day morality; times are different, modern people were not responsible of what happened decades or a century ago. Suppose the Britain had to compensate the Indian nation, it would be a huge amount of money. Is the UK in a position to manage that? Certainly not. Peter Until recently, I believe there was much reckoning with colonial history. As an instance, when I first moved to the UK, the public weren’t aware of the Irish famine and the part that colonialism played in it. My view is decolonization is not merely about signing a cheque, it should be about examining what went wrong and where we should be now. Final thoughts Akshat It may not alter the my perspective, but I appreciate Peter’s concerns. I talk to individuals every day with opinions are opposite to my own. The goal is bringing everyone to the common understanding, so that everyone can strive for the betterment of the community. The second participant We remained for 150 minutes. Akshat had dessert and I drank some sweet Japanese wine. I did not convince him of any point, but we each liked the meal, so we could hopefully be more open to engaging in dialogues with others in the coming times.