Russell Brand gets angry about inequality at Hackney film screening
Charisma: Russell Brand at the opening of the Trew Era Cafe in March. Photograph: Ella Jessel
Russell Brand has declared that voting in the General Election is irrelevant in the face of inequality in the UK.
The comedian turned activist was speaking at Hackney Picturehouse on Tuesday night at a special screening of his new documentary The Emperor’s New Clothes.
The documentary, which is released in cinemas on 24 April, focuses on inequality in the UK and features interviews with low-paid and disabled workers about the effects of welfare cuts while attacking austerity, tax avoidance and bankers’ bonuses.
Talking to the Queen guitarist Brian May, who was at the screening, Brand defended his stance not to vote next month, saying: “I think people want me to talk about the election but watching it again it just makes me think there’s no justice, it’s dead.
“What I most support is people becoming activated.”
The film, made last year with director Michael Winterbottom, follows Brand from his home town of Grays, Essex, to London before heading to New York. Along the way Brand talks to economic experts and tries to question Lord Rothermere about his ‘non-dom’ tax status, as well as the heads of RBS and Lloyds bank about their bonuses.
“Watching it, I get angry again,” Brand added. “Because there’s an election it’s a good time to market a film about politics and people are more aware of politics.”
Russell Brand is to introduce another special screening of The Emperor’s New Clothes at the Rio Cinema on Wednesday.
He could hardly have chosen a worse place for his ‘special screening’ of doc which ‘focuses on inequality in the UK’ since the Picturehouse does not pay the living wage. The bosses of its parent company Cineworld are staunch defenders of zero-hours contracts. Slow handclap.
David Cameron has said he improved inequality – with backing of the ONS. I did not believe them as the rich have been compounding large pay rises up to 30% year on year and our poorest now have to use food banks in record numbers.
Because of this I analysed the Gini coefficient and found it a con. The ONS were evasive and would not confirm or deny my findings. FACT: Not only is Gini useless for comparing inequality of poor to rich, it is also useless for comparing one country to another country.
For those bad at maths – you only have to look at the attached graph. How can a country with a much more equal (and evenly spread) 6:1 income ratio have the same Gini coefficient as us here in the UK? Inequality is much worse than this example here. If the Gini measures inequality then it is patently unfit for purpose.
http://files.uk2sitebuilder.com/uk2group53213/image/1inequality32.3.png
Here is a video that explains in detail, which I made simple enough for most people with basic maths skills to understand – except for those at the ONS it seems:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x1Y_fUlYs-Q
How the rich are [not] squeezed:
http://files.uk2sitebuilder.com/uk2group253213/image/howsqueezed2.jpg
Come to a Trew Musings and hear me reading extracts from other authors book all carefully selected by my researchers -£15.
Buy a tee shirt ( name your own price) as long as it’s not less than £25.
Look out for a glimpse of me as I swish around the trendy/gentrified areas of East London in the back seat of my chauffeur driven Mercedes S Class.
Come to see my film at the cinema -£15.50
Rent my film from Apple iTunes Store , Google Playstore, Amazon (all massive corporations that aggressively avoid tax) or if that doesn’t suit your tastes rent it from Sky ( partially owned by Murdoch’s News International, with FOX also holding a 39% stake) – £5.99 for two whole days of viewing pleasure…
Take your pick, buy your ticket to the revolution here!!!!
Buy my goods, wear my wares, but don’t you ever not never listen to anyone who says that I’m a hypocrite – they’re all snides mate, I’m not in it for the money I’m a true revolutionary!!
Regardless of Brand’s dubious credentials and ethical inconsistencies, what remains true is that a two-tier economy is being allowed to develop in the UK almost by default. And the forthcoming General Election is largely a competition for whichever version of ‘austerity’ the British public is willing to accept.
Personally, I disgree with Brand’s anti-voting stance, but it’s interesting to see him recycling a classic Marxist argument against representative democracy, albeit in a watered-down fashion.
Gus – it is easy to make criticism of a wealthy man who hates the disparity in society.
He is at least trying.
I come from a poor background in Liverpool, born less than a decade after WW2 and am sickened that our rich country is getting worse. I try also, with analysis of Cameron’s and ONS lie that inequality is getting better – proving it is a con.
Here is a chart I did for those stupid people of low IQ at the ONS:
http://files.uk2sitebuilder.com/uk2group53213/image/1inequality32.3.png
What are you doing mate?