Zadie Smith links Britain’s cultural tensions to rising economic inequality
Zadie Smith told Dua Lipa that economic inequality has made cultural differences feel more threatening in Britain. Speaking at a London literature festival, she linked growing divisions to the decline of public services and worsening access to jobs, housing, schools and healthcare.
Smith reflected on the multicultural London of her 2000 debut novel, *White Teeth*, and said her state education had served her well. She argued that people facing greater hardship are more likely to see those around them as competitors, and urged renewed interest in the social democracy that once supported functioning public services. The conversation also covered her writing career and the value of literary criticism.
In short
- Smith linked sharper cultural divisions to rising inequality.
- She said strained services and housing make differences feel existential.
- She called for renewed commitment to social democracy.
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The case for
Smith’s account suggests that when jobs, housing, schools and healthcare become harder to access, people may feel they are competing for scarce resources, making cultural differences seem more threatening. On this view, stronger public services and a fairer distribution of opportunity could reduce insecurity and help people live together across differences.
The case against
Cultural tensions may have causes that cannot be explained mainly by economic inequality or declining public services, including disagreements over identity, values and the pace of social change. Improving material conditions could ease some pressures, but it may not resolve those disputes; treating inequality as the central cause risks overlooking people’s distinct concerns and the limits of public services in addressing them.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “Zadie Smith tells Dua Lipa inequality has made culture clashes feel ‘existential’”.