Small businesses show their Christmas spirit despite the recession

The Beehive pub on St.John's Hill were getting into the Christmas spirit. Image: Jennifer Ebert

Local traders on St.Johns Hill, Wandsworth, came together yesterday to celebrate the festive season and provide shoppers with a Christmas extravaganza.

The event offered lots of fun activities and festive treats for all the family, including a Santa’s grotto and traditional favourites such as Christmas pudding, roasted chestnuts and minced pies.

Charles Farr talks security and terrorism

Director-General of Security and Counter-Terrorism Charles Farr visited a Somali community centre in Tottenham to talk about the public safety of Britain.

According to Farr, who was appointed Director General for Security and Counter-Terrorism by the Home Office in 2007: “Our job is to ensure your safety, by reducing the threat of terrorism”.

‘Cults can target anyone’

Cult leader Jim Jones committed suicide alongside 918 of his followers in 1978. Image: PBS

It took just four days for Londoner Ian Haworth to be brainwashed into joining a cult and he warns that it can happen to anyone, not just those living alone in big cities like London, as commonly thought.

“It’s a myth that only vulnerable people are at risk. Cults can target practically anyone,” says the 62-year-old communications consultant, who defines a cult as, “a group that removes free will in recruiting people.”

Thousands of Londoners say ‘no’ to food waste

Trafalgar Square saw a feast of Biblical proportions yesterday as over 5000 Londoners gathered for a free dinner made from fresh produce, that was previously destined for landfills.

Tristram Stuart, organiser of Feeding the 5000, planned the event to highlight the growing problem of food wastage. He said: “Instead of doing an angry protest, we decided to have a free lunch to show people just how much food is being wasted in Britain. All of the food being served today is perfectly fine but would have ended up in the bin just because it’s not the right shape or has a mark on it.”

London is the Honey Trap capital

Honey Traps are becoming popular for people who hope to catch out their cheating spouses. Image: Jason Angle

Stepping into a packed trendy London bar, a petite blonde dressed in a sophisticated little black dress and ridiculously high heels sets her sights on a businessman enjoying a drink with friends.

Homophobia versus Islamophobia

A gay pride demonstrator is holding a rainbow flag, sign of the LGBT movement. Image: Greenmelinda

London Voices tries not only to look at stories that have been completely ignored by the media, but also takes a closer look at news stories and digs deeper. While national newspapers have been full of stories about homophobia in London, we investigated whether there is a connection between the high homophobic crime reports and the Asian population in East London.

Latin American London: The People’s Project

Last month,  LADPP (Latin American Disabled People’s Project) celebrated 19 years of community work. In the occasion, big changes  were announced to tackle the economic crisis.

London Voices presents the last  article of the special  report on Latin American London.

Miss Somali UK: not your typical beauty contest

Somali women with “class, poise, and real beauty”. Image: Mohamed Liban

One of the first of its kind. Miss Somali UK organiser Mohamed Liban and winner Amina Ibrahim share their thoughts and experiences on the innovative event.

Miss Somali UK took place in Hammersmith, West London in October this year, promoting affirmative role models for Somalis living in Britain.

Latin American London: An undocumented worker’s struggle in the city

The Home Office estimated the number of undocumented workers in Britain to be 430,000 in 2005. Image: Giovana Zilli

The majority of the one million Latin Americans who are believed to reside in the UK work in London, many of them without proper documentation. Increasingly tougher immigration laws and the economic crisis have made life difficult for the “invisibles”, as they are called.

London Voices speaks to an undocumented worker who is feeling the pinch, as part of a special report on Latin American London.

Are we placing ourselves at the mercy of the state?

"It has been a threat of a level we have never seen before." Sir Ian Blair, when speaking on terrorism. Image: Giovana Zilli

Counter terrorism and the DNA National Database dominated a debate about civil liberties, hosted by the Hansard Society in the House of Commons last Wednesday.