'BRIXTON'S GONE TO POT'

Chris Claudius: "I used to really like the vibe here" How is Lambeth, in
south London, faring since police took a "softly softly" approach to
cannabis possession? Not well, says Chris Claudius, a 32-year-old music
producer, who has rallied fellow residents against rising crime.

I've lived in Brixton for five years and it's really changed in the past 10
months.

My road used to be a crack area and then got cleaned up. I could walk
around even at 3am with never any trouble.

But in the past year I've been mugged, my friends have been mugged and two
of the shops I go to have been held up.

The guy who runs my local off-licence got done over by eight guys with
guns; and the owner of the organic foods shop has spent about UKP 1,000 on
extra security since he was robbed.

I would tie this in with the relaxation of the law on possession. The
papers go on about crime falling but that's just ridiculous.

Some days there's up to three dealers on each street corner; while some are
quite sweet, others can be heavy handed. One guy threatened to cut me up if
I didn't buy off him.

Drugs Tourists

People have always smoked cannabis in Brixton - everyone knows that, people
have walked down the street smoking spliffs for years.

But now the word has spread around that it's legal in Lambeth - even though
it's not - we get people new to London coming here looking to score.

If I walk down Landor Rd or Coldharbour Lane, every 200 yards I'll be asked
if I want dope, if I want skunk. I say: 'Sorry, I've gone off that stuff,'
but still they hassle me.

I'm fed up with being approached and hassled all the time. That's why I
organised a petition of local residents, calling for CCTV and more police
on the beat.