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Malcolm X, “Message to the Grassroots” (1963)
This is for or the Mandem. The “Mandem” being: the aunties, the uncles, the young bucks, the girls, the guys, the sisters, the akhis, the preachers and the sinners. Anyone and everyone that makes up our inner-city communities – everyone who calls the Ends, home – this is our manifesto.
We see what's happening. Shiny new flats rise where our Hoods used to stand. Boutique coffee shops pop up where the off-licenses were. They call it “regeneration” – but we know the truth. It’s gentrification, and it’s pushing our people out of the Ends. Year after year, policy after policy, we’ve watched our communities get displaced, our culture repackaged and sold, our Ends flogged to the highest bidder. This cannot continue.
And against all odds we’ve been out here thriving. We make something out of nothing every single day. Yet, despite our influence, we’re still treated like we’re monsters. We’re still the first to be affected by new laws, the first to be hit by cuts, the ones feared, ignored, and pushed aside. We’ve protested for decades, but our struggles continue. It’s clear: waiting on the state isn’t going to save the Ends. We have to save ourselves.
So, how do we preserve the Ends?
The answer: we privatise the Mandem.
And how do we ‘privatise the Mandem’?
The answer: we buy the Block.
Nobody can buy the Ends, if it ain’t for sale. Nobody can sell the Ends, if they don’t own it no more.
Privatise the Mandem is more than just wishful thinking – it’s a blueprint. This manifesto breaks down how we can buy the Block, own the Hood, and run the Ends. This book gives us a roadmap to follow. It’s full of actionable strategies for pooling our resources, organising our blocks, and taking back our estates step by step. No naive theories here – this is for us, by us.
This is a plan born from the Ends and the refusal to let our culture be erased. It’s about economic empowerment and cultural preservation. It’s about turning our resilience into results that last generations. It’s a call for political self-determination – we’re done depending on councils and charities to save us. We save ourselves by owning the land beneath our feed.
To find out how, get your copy of Privatise the Mandem (2021) and To Free the Ends (2024) here:
And be sure to hit up the privatisation line with any of your questions: