'People are fed up with the violence,' Mayor Klein went on.
'Can you blame them? This unrest has been going on for almost 6 months.' I sympathised.
'And the image for the district is...well, I don't need to tell you it doesn't help investment for this to be on the nightly news, day in and day out.' he went on, blithely unaware that it was his policy decision which had sparked this crisis.
At the root of the unrest was the mayor's implementation of a curfew from Friday evening until Monday morning for foreign workers living in migrant hostels. A spike in burglaries had forced him to act - the fact that there was zero evidence to implicate the migrant workers notwithstanding - the mayor had chosen his scapegoat and was sticking to his guns.
The result had been increasingly disruptive protests in each of the migrant hostels of the district each weekend. The noise and damage was becoming too much for local residents to tolerate.
'I'm assigning you to the position of liaison officer for migrant workers,' he informed me coldly, 'you can sort out this mess.'
'But...but...that's impossible. We all know that it will go on until you lift the curfew!' I interjected, angrily aware of the man's vindictiveness.
I had just been elected to the city council - the youngest councillor for a generation - and the mayor's nose had been put out of joint because I had unseated his long-time colleague and brother-in-law. There was no doubt in my mind; this was payback.
'Nothing's impossible....isn't that your party's slogan?' he grinned smugly. 'It's the platform you were elected on...time to prove it.' I couldn't fault him, it was an unfortunate choice of words on my part. 'And if you don't get a handle on the issue in the next three months, you can kiss your public service career goodbye,' he added, standing up to get ready to show me to the door.
I was furious. I knew this man had it in for me, but this was worse than I feared. He had just handed me the most difficult brief in the city. In three months time, the selection for the national delegates would take place. Only the best performing councillors had a chance of getting selected and if I was looked over - the mayor was right - at only 23 years old it would effectively be the end of my career. I had to excel in my brief. I was determined to find a solution.
Each district of the city had a workers' hostel, our district - a historically immigrant neighbourhood - had three of them, hence why we had become the focus of this intractable issue on national TV screens every night. Each hostel housed approximately 25 immigrant men aged from 21 to around 45, principally from West Africa; Mali, Senegal, Niger, Guinee, Cameroun, among others. Conditions were not terrible inside, and the men living there were free to come and go as they pleased during the week, so it really boiled down to the curfew at the weekend.
The unrest usually started late, certainly after nightfall, so I had time that afternoon to reach out to the directors of the hostels - themselves former migrant workers who had managed to become representatives. They each graciously invited me to spend an evening with them over the next three days - starting that very evening. It was Friday and I'd agreed to a blind-date with a handsome doctor - at least that was how my former colleague had sold it to me. I'd been single for a while but my new found notoriety was apparently opening doors for me. I thought I'd be an hour at the hostel, maybe two hours max. I hopped under the shower and got ready for potentially getting dicked down later that night.
*******
I buzzed on a heavy, metal door which swung open just enough for me to slide behind and into the main foyer of the migrant hostel. From outside it was intimidating, but once inside it was surprisingly welcoming. It reminded me of student dorms.
'Mr. Vierge, welcome! I'm Amidou' I spun around on my heels to see a hunk of a man lunging towards me to shake my hand.
'Please, call me Alex,' I reached out and watched my hand almost disappear into his massive palm, he shook it vigorously and I felt inadequately small beside him. Without any further delay he led me into his office along the corridor.
I had intended to assert the council's demands, but the imposing presence of this man had thrown me off. Insead I found myself sitting meekly across from his desk listening to him as he guided the conversation.
'It's a pleasure to welcome you, Alex. And let me be the first to congratulate you on your election to the council. The first openly gay councillor in the district. It really is an achievement!' He glared at me and I couldn't tell if he was being facetious or not.
It was true that I had made no attempt to hide my sexuality, and in such a heavily immigrant neighbourhood some felt that it was the wrong strategy. Nonetheless I had proven them wrong, but now I carried this moniker of the "first gay" councillor like I would have to prove I could play with the real men. Amidou was glaring at me still and I watched him closely trying to get a grasp of who he was.
'Thank you, that's very kind of you.' I retorted, hoping to take back control of the conversation. 'Thank you for taking the time to meet with me, and I sincerely hope that we can find a solution to our current situation.'
'Ah aha ha!' Amidou laughed loudly, 'indeed, don't we all!'
'I'm going to be frank with you, Amidou. None of us in my coalition believe in this idiotic curfew introduced by Mayor Klein. He is up for reelection in less than 6 months and the polls strongly suggest that he'll be out. It would help to unseat him if I managed to get this whole situation under control. It's in both our interests.'
I sat back in the chair, feeling that I had amply set out my case. I needed the support of this man to solve this issue and save my own skin. He reflected a moment on what I had said and sighed heavily.
'Let me be frank with you, Alex.' He began, 'I've been a representative of this hostel for almost 10 years. I even came to live here myself as a newly arrived migrant from Mali 15 years ago, much like my colleagues in the other hostels. I know every coming and going, and I know exactly what the men here want and need.'
'Then I hope we will have...' I started.