The Social Labs Revolution

PREFACE

Notes from a Practicing Heart

We will see

That day. . .

When the cruel mountains of injustice will blow away like cotton-wool. . .

We will see

—from Hum Dekhenge, by Faiz Ahmed Faiz

Since 1942 my family has fled from our home four times, leapfrogging from India across continents, twice within my own lifetime. On three occasions we witnessed civil war, communal violence, and mass murder. Each time, we’ve had to rebuild our lives, having left virtually everything behind. The fourth move came as tanks were rolling into Kuwait not far from where we lived, in the first Gulf War.

My childhood memories begin in 1970s South London. They include my uncle coming home out of breath and covered in blood after being attacked by skinheads on his way ...