Author Archives: Alison Le Cornu

Letter to a friend: Why I’m so upset about the Referendum result

By Alison Le Cornu | Thu 30th June 2016 - 4:10 pm

No, my friend, my lodger. I don’t ‘feel better’ this evening than I did this morning, nor will I ‘get over’ this in a couple of days. Here’s why.

I want to express, calmly but passionately, why I am so distraught about the result of the referendum. I voted remain, primarily because I was, and am, intellectually convinced it was by far the better option, but also because I am, in my very being, a European. I am not arguing in any way against the outcome of the referendum. I am confident that it was fairly conducted. However, I am not comfortable about being asked, or sometimes told, that that’s the way democracy works and I just have to come to terms with it. Here are the reasons why.

I have a French surname. I was born and raised in Jersey, to a Jersey father and English mother. I learnt to speak French quickly. All our school trips were to France, sport competitions were against neighbouring French teams and we had partnerships with French youth orchestras. I was ‘adopted’ by a French family with whom I am still in contact. France is in my blood. In my twenties I moved to live there, in Angers. I bought a flat and had three of the happiest years of my life there. I was embraced by the French, got very involved in French life and have ongoing friendships with people there too. Looking back, I’m not sure why I left, but I moved to the UK to do a second degree. Apart from my three years at music college aged 19 to 22, it was the first time I’d lived in England.