Jack Merritt wore Doc Marten boots on his tireless feet
And he dressed just like his favourite pint - black and white and neat
And his smile was like the morning breaking on a boundless shore
And from the start his great big heart was like an open door
As I came over London Bridge, all the flowers had gone
But I swear I saw Jack Merritt's boots and they were marching on
Jack Merritt did a job he loved and he knew how love can heal
From a friendly glancе to a second chance, he knеw that change is real
And as he came over London Bridge, he was all that he could be
But he never knew that 25 was the oldest he would be
As I came over London Bridge, all the flowers had gone
But I swear I saw Jack Merritt's boots and they were marching on
We're not the clothes we're wearing or the world we're born into
We're not the scars we're bearing but the door we're walking through
As I came over London Bridge like long before I'd done
My smile became the morning and my breath became a song
And my heart leapt high as a waking sky above a mountain ridge
Like a pair of black Doc Marten boots over London Bridge
As I came over London Bridge, all the flowers had gone
But I swear I saw Jack Merritt's boots and they were marching on
As I came over London Bridge and out towards the sun
I will wear Jack Merritt's boots as I go marching on
And he dressed just like his favourite pint - black and white and neat
And his smile was like the morning breaking on a boundless shore
And from the start his great big heart was like an open door
As I came over London Bridge, all the flowers had gone
But I swear I saw Jack Merritt's boots and they were marching on
Jack Merritt did a job he loved and he knew how love can heal
From a friendly glancе to a second chance, he knеw that change is real
And as he came over London Bridge, he was all that he could be
But he never knew that 25 was the oldest he would be
As I came over London Bridge, all the flowers had gone
But I swear I saw Jack Merritt's boots and they were marching on
We're not the clothes we're wearing or the world we're born into
We're not the scars we're bearing but the door we're walking through
As I came over London Bridge like long before I'd done
My smile became the morning and my breath became a song
And my heart leapt high as a waking sky above a mountain ridge
Like a pair of black Doc Marten boots over London Bridge
As I came over London Bridge, all the flowers had gone
But I swear I saw Jack Merritt's boots and they were marching on
As I came over London Bridge and out towards the sun
I will wear Jack Merritt's boots as I go marching on
Contributed by Dq82 - 2024/8/21 - 11:48
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tiny notes
Jack Merritt ‘lived and breathed fire in pursuit of a better world for all humanity’. He worked for an organisation called Learning Together which put Cambridge undergraduates alongside prison inmates to share their unique perspectives on justice. On 29th November 2019 he was killed, along with his colleague Saskia Jones, in the Fishmonger’s Hall terror attack. He was 25. His dad, David Merritt, wrote an incredible tribute to his son in the Guardian a week later, urging people to ‘borrow his intelligence, share his drive, feel his passion, burn with his anger, and extinguish hatred with his kindness’ and to ‘walk through the door he has booted down with his black Doc Martens’.
genius
But Jack was also angry, frustrated, selfless, stubborn. He was angry because he saw our society failing those most in need. He was frustrated because the political elite have forgotten why it is important to be fair. He was selfless in his dedication to make things right in every second of his life. Jack devoted his energy to the purpose of Learning Together: a pioneering programme to bring students from university and prisons together to share their unique perspectives on justice. Unlike many of us, Jack did not just go to work. He lived and breathed fire in his pursuit of a better world for all humanity, particularly those most in need.
If Jack could comment on his death – and the tragic incident on Friday 29 November – he would be livid. We would see him ticking it over in his mind before a word was uttered between us. Jack would understand the political timing with visceral clarity.
He would be seething at his death, and his life, being used to perpetuate an agenda of hate that he gave his everything fighting against. We should never forget that. What Jack would want from this is for all of us to walk through the door he has booted down, in his black Doc Martens.
That door opens up a world where we do not lock up and throw away the key. Where we do not give indeterminate sentences, or convict people on joint enterprise. Where we do not slash prison budgets, and where we focus on rehabilitation not revenge. Where we do not consistently undermine our public services, the lifeline of our nation. Jack believed in the inherent goodness of humanity, and felt a deep social responsibility to protect that. Through us all, Jack marches on.
Borrow his intelligence, share his drive, feel his passion, burn with his anger, and extinguish hatred with his kindness. Never give up his fight.
To Jack Merritt. Now, and forever.
Guardian
theguardian.com