Oh London, Our Home.

Up in the clouds on Primrose Hill

I recently got involved in a conversation on social media about what it means to be a Londoner and how it can present. The discussion was sparked by a young white man whose dialect and twang caused quite a stir in the comments section. Some people thought he sounded like a “roadman,” others thought he sounded “Black,” whatever that means, but to me, he simply sounded like an inner London young person.

This got me thinking about a subset of the “London” identity that I don’t believe gets enough positive attention. It’s interesting how people assume that Londoners sound “posh,” that we all have “Made in Chelsea” accents, when the reality is far from that.

Whenever I travel and I'm asked where I'm from, I don't say 'UK'—I always say, 'I'm from London.' Being from London and being from the UK feel like two separate things. Yes, I know London is in the UK, it's the capital of England, but the culture here is so profoundly different from anything you will find outside of London that it’s not even comparable.

Being a Londoner is an identity of its own.

I am of African descent. My family is from Ghana. Many of my friends also come from African backgrounds, some Caribbean, and others white Irish or British. Growing up, reflecting on us in secondary school, sixth form, and then going to university and meeting even more Londoners, it was clear: London is more than a melting pot. It’s something very special.

We often discuss American culture, and it seems that our perception of it is frequently centered around the idea of being a New Yorker. When we think of Black American influence, the swag, the style, the lingo, it's largely shaped by the image of New York. This city stands at the forefront of how we envision America.

London is similar in its cultural significance. However, because England still has a cookie-cutter image to the world, people often associate it with poshness, tea, and the Queen, missing what London truly represents.

This is my take: being a Londoner means embodying a fusion of Caribbean, African, South Asian, and Cockney British culture. I see it in my students in the way they speak, in the language they use. My white working-class lad will switch to Patois effortlessly: "Wagwan, fam?" My South Asian student might say something very Cockney: "Yeah, you get me, mate?"

To be a Londoner is to hold all these cultural influences and make them your own.

And so, when you see people in London, people from various races, cultures, ethnicities, whatever, it might almost seem as if we’re cosplaying. Because the way in which we speak and the way we’re able to code-switch is borrowed from each other’s culture.

As a Black person raised in London, you can, to a great degree, feel cocooned from the negative experiences of other Black people across Britain. Black people have resided in UK for a long time, predominantly settling in the capital. We’ve assimilated into the identity of what it means to be British, but equally, British people have also assimilated into other identities in London. That’s something that doesn’t get spoken about enough.

I recently saw this programme, and there was a lady being interviewed. She was talking about how she’s teaching her daughter to “speak properly.” She made comments on how you meet kids who all seem to have similar vernacular, which is the opposite of posh, and she doesn’t want her daughter to grow up thinking that’s how she should sound. And you know what? To each their own. I completely understand what she’s saying. But what she observed is exactly what I’m emphasising: There is a culture that, regardless of where you're from, if you grow up in London, you inevitably become part of. This lady and her family were very middle class. But even for them, raising a child in London meant brushing up against a unique, shared way of speaking, of moving, of being. In school, young people pick up lingo and slang and rhythms borrowed from all over. That becomes part and parcel of their London identity.

I'm proud of this identity, because it speaks to the multitude of people who live here from different parts of the world. It celebrates that culture. It breaks down barriers. Because of it, we are better able to see each other, understand each other, appreciate each other. So yes, we’re all kind of neatly cocooned from what wider Great Britain might represent to some of us. And in this way, being a Londoner is a beautiful experience.

London Will Always Be Home

As much as I’m in a phase of life where I’m excited to leave the UK, where I’m looking to perhaps go back home or set roots elsewhere, I will never neglect London. I will never forsake London. When I speak of my experience as Black and British, I can never speak down on the positives that London has given me.

 London has helped shape my identity completely.

London has helped me know and appreciate so many cultures.

This place is special.

It’s unique.

It will always have a massive piece of my heart.

And it will always creep into my language, my thoughts and my memories. Because although London may not be my first home, it definitely is the first places I ever truly loved.