Two English tourists shot dead in Sarasota, Florida

Not exactly Car 54 Where Are You?

This is a tragedy all round. First of all two young bright intelligent men go on holiday to Florida. Somehow they found their way into a neighbourhood that isn't on the tourist trail. That's a euphemism for saying it's predominantly black. I guessed it might be as the major highway is named after Martin Luther King Jr. The day might come when a street in West Palm Beach is similarly named, but not yet. Captain Paul Sutton, of Sarasota Police, said the area was largely residential and not normally visited by tourists. "We are still investigating why they would have been in this area. It is very unusual to find tourists or visitors in this area. We do not know what brought them here at 3am." His words seem to confirm that segregation is to be expected.

These murders happened in Newtown. It's a shopless, barless vicinity, with a history of shootings, muggings and gang warfare. I see they might be getting a Wal-Mart. In all respects it's a struggling, possibly hopeless area. So why did two young tourists from England stray 15 odd miles from their holiday resort into this district? Nobody knows just yet. The police are working on it. Newtown needs improvement. Governor Jeb Bush recognised that. He set up the Front Porch Neighborhood program. That proves not all Republicans are socially unaware!

I have concerns about such cases as this double murder. Florida is seen as a fantastic tourist destination, and yes it is. I've been there, both coasts, and it is a state of beauty. The Keys are yet to come for me. But are all tourists aware of the undercurrents in the local society? I've some experience of life in America. In Atlanta, I never really felt the races mixed socially. It's still a divided society. However, I found that an English voice allowed me quite a bit of leeway in black areas. Somehow I was not seen as "the enemy". And I use that term wisely, I hope. I well remember, one balmy night, standing on a street corner near Little Five Points discussing one man's interpretation of his grandmother's recollections of slavery. I needed quite a bit of mental agility to keep on track without causing undue offence! Memories are rekindled with each generation, nuances added here and there.

There appear to be few warnings to British tourists about walking around town. The British Embassy in Washington has a light touch with information. Travel sites mainly offer discussions on beaches, bars and hotels. Newtown is off the radar. I'm probably advocating that more awareness needs to be available,without either scaring away tourists or offending neighbourhoods such as Newtown.

Let these deaths be the last. The young teenager held on account of the crime is likely to feel the full force of the law, as an adult and as a belligerently-minded outsider. Perhaps Newtown could be like a phoenix rising from these murderous ashes and offer new hope. After all Martin Luther King did have a dream. It just wasn't like this.