Westbourne 'Mental' Hospital squatted in Brighton/Hove- ooooh, the irony!
chimp23 | 25.10.2006 02:52 | Free Spaces | Social Struggles | South Coast
A couple of weeks ago a large contingent of Brighton squatters got together and occupied a large disused 'mental' hospital. The occupation was ostensibly to provide a roof over the steadily growing number of people fed up and disillusioned with the non-choice offered under the rule of Capital, in the housing sphere as in every other sphere under this systematic death forced upon us; the opportunity will also, however, be used to demonstrate alternative ways of organising day to day, in the here and now, the praxis of the theory, which will take the shape of whatever those organising see fit and within whatever parameters they deem to be appropriate- or in other words, get down there and do something!
Ooooh, the beautiful poetic irony of it! The inmates have taken over the asylum!
Yet again in a post-modern, post-dadaist, post-situationist manifestation of the ridiculous, we (the criminals, the anarchists, the reprobates and those others 'crazy' and fortunate enough to transcend the current social order) have inadvertently (or not perhaps?) put ourselves exactly where those who try and pull our strings would love to 'officially' put us, except that this time we are the doctors and the patients, the screws and the inmates. We hold our own keys, and the only reason that we still hold them in our hands is to dangle them, tauntingly, in the faces of those who would love to snatch them back and put them to their 'original and proper' use.
And so, whilst we,some of the squatters of Brighton, have this opportunity to all live and thrive under the same roof for a while, we intend to further extend the living of our praxis: to move yet further away from those armchair activists (and indeed activists of any sort) who, unknowingly and with all the good intention in the world (and isn't that just the bitch of it?), cause so much damage to our daily struggle, our unceasing attack upon the system and its institutions which cause all to wither and die.
So, bring forth the clowns (and no, don't worry, not the clown army -good attempt, but mere distraction), the workshops, the study groups, film nights and parties, and, therefore of course, the inevitable meetings, arguments, fights, police harassment and Special Branch infiltration. But the rough with the smooth is the basis and beauty of chaos, and we welcome it all with open arms.
But, this can't just be done by us. We aren't in the busyness of putting on shows. The dichotomy of the watcher/watched is but one manifestation of control, of the logic of our enemy. We will be creating some opportunities, but the biggest opportunity is there already- the space and the time, which in turn create vast potential and endless possibilities.
The final ingredient is you. If you live in the area and would like to use the space for anything you feel would be constructive on any level whatsoever, then please turn up and ask. There is an open meeting every evening at 8:30 in the Dining Room (otherwise known as Del's Mirror Room), West Wing, Ground Floor to discuss any relevant topics. All are invited if they wish to take part, or simply to see non-hierarchical decision making in process).
And so- to the stirring of creative juices, may a tsunami of poetic possibilities sweep away those levees of apathy which guard the increasingly vulnerable foundations of our foe. And so- to the cultural barricades my sisters and my brothers, to the attack with ideas in hand and love and rage in head and heart.
To get there:- From Brighton, Churchill Square: head down Western Rd to Palmeira Sq, Hove, then keep heading toward Worthing, down Church St, past the cathedral of Tesco's on your left, past the next traffic lights onto New Church Rd, then down to the next set of traffic lights and the squat is there on the corner of New Church Rd and Westbourne Villas- Westborne Hospital- look for the skull and crossbones flying from the second floor.
Also, look out for timetabled events on Indymedia, in the Cowley Club and flyposted and flyered around town.
love n rage
tHE uRBAN iNCITEMENT pROJECT, the 325 Collective (representing several other groups involved in the project)
Yet again in a post-modern, post-dadaist, post-situationist manifestation of the ridiculous, we (the criminals, the anarchists, the reprobates and those others 'crazy' and fortunate enough to transcend the current social order) have inadvertently (or not perhaps?) put ourselves exactly where those who try and pull our strings would love to 'officially' put us, except that this time we are the doctors and the patients, the screws and the inmates. We hold our own keys, and the only reason that we still hold them in our hands is to dangle them, tauntingly, in the faces of those who would love to snatch them back and put them to their 'original and proper' use.
And so, whilst we,some of the squatters of Brighton, have this opportunity to all live and thrive under the same roof for a while, we intend to further extend the living of our praxis: to move yet further away from those armchair activists (and indeed activists of any sort) who, unknowingly and with all the good intention in the world (and isn't that just the bitch of it?), cause so much damage to our daily struggle, our unceasing attack upon the system and its institutions which cause all to wither and die.
So, bring forth the clowns (and no, don't worry, not the clown army -good attempt, but mere distraction), the workshops, the study groups, film nights and parties, and, therefore of course, the inevitable meetings, arguments, fights, police harassment and Special Branch infiltration. But the rough with the smooth is the basis and beauty of chaos, and we welcome it all with open arms.
But, this can't just be done by us. We aren't in the busyness of putting on shows. The dichotomy of the watcher/watched is but one manifestation of control, of the logic of our enemy. We will be creating some opportunities, but the biggest opportunity is there already- the space and the time, which in turn create vast potential and endless possibilities.
The final ingredient is you. If you live in the area and would like to use the space for anything you feel would be constructive on any level whatsoever, then please turn up and ask. There is an open meeting every evening at 8:30 in the Dining Room (otherwise known as Del's Mirror Room), West Wing, Ground Floor to discuss any relevant topics. All are invited if they wish to take part, or simply to see non-hierarchical decision making in process).
And so- to the stirring of creative juices, may a tsunami of poetic possibilities sweep away those levees of apathy which guard the increasingly vulnerable foundations of our foe. And so- to the cultural barricades my sisters and my brothers, to the attack with ideas in hand and love and rage in head and heart.
To get there:- From Brighton, Churchill Square: head down Western Rd to Palmeira Sq, Hove, then keep heading toward Worthing, down Church St, past the cathedral of Tesco's on your left, past the next traffic lights onto New Church Rd, then down to the next set of traffic lights and the squat is there on the corner of New Church Rd and Westbourne Villas- Westborne Hospital- look for the skull and crossbones flying from the second floor.
Also, look out for timetabled events on Indymedia, in the Cowley Club and flyposted and flyered around town.
love n rage
tHE uRBAN iNCITEMENT pROJECT, the 325 Collective (representing several other groups involved in the project)
chimp23
e-mail:
chimp23@hush.ai
Homepage:
http://325collective@hush.com
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