We are still Zooming, and likely to be so for some time to come, so we are taking advantage of being able to access speakers who under normal circumstances would be unlikely to attend in person. The speaker for the September meeting was Howard Slater who took us on virtual journey through the East End of London from the Huguenots to the Bengalis. He gave us a definition of the East End, the area from Liverpool Street to Shoreditch and talked about the history of the area through waves of immigration which affected the economic activity and the culture of the area. Always an area defined by extreme poverty, the east end was also the home to many charities supporting the working classes including Toynbee Hall, the Citizens Advice Bureau and the Child Poverty Action Group. Howard then took us on a virtual walk around the streets from Liverpool Street Station through Spitalfields Market ending up in Brick Lane and Shoreditch High Street.
