It was a beautiful sunny afternoon. I had only been living in London for 10 days, and was still trying to figure out how cool -- can you still say cool? -- I needed to become to fit into my East London hood. Being part French, I suddenly found myself in what should be my natural environment : on the street protesting, unhappy with the government. But until last Saturday, yes, I was a "demonstration virgin".
When I joined the "Solidarity with refugees" march, I felt intimidated clinging on to my friend's arm who was quick to proclaim "say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here". People around us seemed to have come from all walks of life. There were families with children who had handcrafted heart-melting banners. There were bands playing along the way. It felt right to be among these friendly people voicing together concern that Britain -- and indeed Europe -- was not doing enough to welcome refugees. It was not long before I confidently joined in on the slogan-chanting.
The London march attracted, last Saturday, tens of thousands of people. Other events took place on the same day across the UK. Ahead of the European interior ministers summit in Brussels, the crowds sent a strong signal to the Home Secretary Theresa May: welcoming only 20,000 Syrian refugees over five years is a poor show for one of the world's leading powers.
However vocal we were, the demonstration was overshadowed by another event: Jeremy Corbyn winning the Labour party leadership election. It was the talk of the day across the country, not least among my fellow protesters. A woman standing in front of me had made a banner with a picture of the new left-wing leader surrounded by a red heart. I could not resist snapping a picture of her proudly holding Corbyn's head fixed to the end of a stick. I grabbed my friend by the shoulder busy shouting "David Cameron, shame on you!" in front of Downing street and cynically asked, "Where is Jez? Surely he should be with us today!" Little did I know he would be. And it would make some noise.
Upon reaching Parliament square, we all gathered around a lorry used as a stage, ready to listen to the organizers and others send a clear message to leaders across the EU. A fellow I must confess I had never heard of before, Billy Bragg, was playing pleasant folk tunes. He mentioned Corbyn once, twice, then went on to sing to the new Labour leader's glory for a good 20 minutes. After Billy finished singing "There is power in the union", rumors started to spread that Jeremy Corbyn, himself, would soon be making an appearance.
And there he was, the man of the day, welcomed as a pop star. He gave a brief speech. I did not catch half of it due in part to a faulty sound system, but especially to the cheers coming from the people around me. I had not signed up to join in on the Corbynmania. I suddenly found myself shouting "no politics", feeling betrayed by my new friends. During the march itself, I had noticed a few anti-austerity movement banners, which should have given me a clue as to how this might end up. I did however find solace in the words of Ros Ereira, the dynamic organizer of the march, who clearly reminded the crowd minutes before Corbyn took to the stage that this was not about party politics.
Walking away from Parliament square, I realized I had probably been naive in thinking that a march protesting against the government's lack of action would be free from partisan speeches -- especially on the day of the Labour leadership election results. I realized I had missed the point. This was not the issue. Jeremy Corbyn should be welcome to participate.
What should have been bothering me is the fact that most people in the crowd seemed to be Corbyn supporters. Is being welcoming to refugees a position which can only be supported by the Left? Where were the people who did vote for the Tories and who are disappointed in the way David Cameron is handling this humanitarian tragedy? Our common humanity requires unity on this one. It is only fair to say that some Conservative Members of Parliament have been vocal to remind David Cameron of his duty towards refugees.
The UK has a moral obligation to save people who are fleeing from war and persecution. It is as simple as that. We can discuss the modalities, but our generosity in welcoming them should not raise a single eyebrow. As a nation, this is a defining moment for Britain. The UK likes to think of itself as a country founded on Christian values. The Queen and indeed David Cameron himself have often reminded us of this heritage. As a Christian myself, I was struck by one of the banners a woman was carrying last Saturday. It read: "I was a stranger and you invited me in." Those are the words of Jesus Christ in the gospel of Matthew.
Billy Bragg can continue to sing so the Red Flag keeps flying. I don't care too much for the Red Flag. But I care for the refugees and that's what unites Billy, Jez and me.