🔗 Share this article Dining Across the Divide: A Meeting Between Different Perspectives Meeting the Participants First Diner: P., 34, London Profession Ex- civil servant, currently a student studying public health Voting record Voted the Green Party recently (also a member of the political group); formerly Labour Party. Describes himself as “progressive, and internationalist instead of nationalist” Interesting fact A drawing of a teacup he created as a child was once displayed in the National Gallery of Ireland Second Participant: A., 43, from Harrow Profession Risk analyst in the construction sector Political history Originally from India, he has lived in the UK for half a decade, and voted Conservative. Describes himself as “somewhat moderate right” Amuse bouche Akshat self-learned to read and write the Urdu language. “I have no use for it, I simply found it intriguing” Initial impressions Akshat Over the last 20 years, I have resided and been employed in Qatar, South Korea, the United States. The issues we talked about are focused on Britain, but they are also global, because human life more or less follows the same curve across the world. I anticipated a staunch liberal, but Peter wasn’t all gung ho – we had a good, rational discussion. I drank beer, Peter had mojitos. Peter We split appetizers – fishy spring rolls, dumplings, daikon cakes with beansprouts, which were excellent. I was a little nervous, as I think he was too. Was he going to attack me for being a snowflake? We each have immigrant backgrounds. I grew up in Dublin; I’ve lived in the United States and the Iberian Peninsula. We bonded over our affection for the capital. The big beef The first participant I look at migration similar to adding salt to a meal. With a small amount, the food tastes wonderful. Use too little or too much and the meal is insipid or overly seasoned. Peter He used an analogy regarding salt. It would be a funny place to exist if the state was choosing some ideal ethnic makeup of the nation. Akshat There are, sadly, individuals fleeing persecution, but many migrants coming to the United Kingdom are those seeking better finances who do not necessarily add significant value and can burden the welfare system. Nobody forces you to go to a new country for opportunity, so you should only go if you can take care of your own needs and your relatives. Peter We became confused with some of the facts. In my view it is the case that you arrive and work and then following a half-decade you get indefinite leave to remain. Nothing is automatic. The climate has been unwelcoming for some time, application costs are quite expensive, there is an NHS surcharge, eligibility for support is restricted. The red carpet isn’t rolled out for anybody. And concerning the recent changes, whereby you can’t bring your family over, it’s incredible to say: we want your work, but we reject you as a person. I believe we must maintain a degree of compassion. Common ground The first participant Peter’s sceptical of unregulated markets. So am I, but at the same time, economic growth benefits society and ought to be promoted. Peter We’re both internationalist. And we concurred that some parts of society – government, the press – benefit from stoking division. We discovered shared understanding in fundamentals and ethics. Dessert and debate The first participant Peter believes that since the United Kingdom profited from the colonial era, it should pay compensation to those countries. I simply think: it is unfair to assess the past with present day morality; eras vary, modern people were not responsible of what happened 50 or 100 years ago. Let’s say the Britain had to compensate India, it would be a significant sum of money. Is Britain able to do that? No. The second participant In the past, I believe adequate reflection occurred with the colonial past. For example, when I first moved to the UK, the public had little knowledge of the Irish famine and the part that colonialism contributed to it. My view is decolonisation is not merely about signing a cheque, it should be about examining what went wrong and where we should be now. Takeaways Akshat It may not alter the way I think, but I understand his worries. I converse with people regularly with opinions are opposite to mine. It’s about uniting people to the same page, in order that all of us can work towards the improvement of society. The second participant We were there for 150 minutes. He enjoyed a sweet treat and I had a Japanese dessert wine. I didn’t persuade him of any point, but we both enjoyed the meal, so we could hopefully be more open to having conversations with others in the coming times.