Occupy Everything!

Let's turn 26th March into a day of occupation. Here we are in our hundreds of thousands to fight the cuts. Now what do we do? Stand about in Hyde Park for a bit then go home? Or do something to send a real message and make a real difference.

Banks, shops, government buildings, mansions of evil dictators and corrupt billionaires, streets, train stations, power stations, .... you name it. Get together with your friends, or just people you meet in the street, find a building or a crossroads, make a plan, take action.

Why occupy?

In recent months students and movements like UK Uncut have grabbed the headlines and our imaginations with a wave of occupations. Turning universities into spaces for really free education. Turning shops into schools, banks into libraries. Resisting local cuts, people have occupied town halls, jobcentres, schools and health centres threatened with closure.

But this is not just about protesting. By occupying, taking control of the spaces in which we live, work, study, play, we directly take control of our lives.

Who owns our workplaces? The bosses or us?
Who owns our homes? The landlords or us?
Who owns schools and universities? The markets or us?
who owns the streets? The police or us?

Use and Create

Some occupations meet our most basic needs. From April we will see hundreds of thousands of people forced from their homes by council rent rises and housing benefit changes. Why not get together with your neighbours and fight eviction?

Other occupations send a message. But once you've taken a space, don't just sit there: think of something useful and creative to do with it. Some of the occupations on March 26 might just last an hour, make a headline. Others might last longer and turn into schools, workshops, homes, cinemas, spaces to build the long-term resistance against the cuts ... and to build a new future.


... How to do it ...

**You only need a handful of people to get started. Then once you're inside, call on others to come and support you. Hang banners out the window ("Occupied!") to attract the crowd; use texts, twitter, or the Sukey map.

**Trespass itself is NOT a crime, it's a civil matter between you and the owner and the police shouldn't get involved. However there are other offences like "criminal damage" or "aggravated trespass" you should be aware of. See the websites listed below for more information.

**The police will often try and intimidate you, even if the law is on your side. Let them know you won't be pushed around. Film them, take pictures, take notes, threaten to make complaints.

**Secure the space. Take your tools. And locks, D-locks, screwdrivers, screws, superglue. Then look around you for things to make barricades.

**A comfortable occupation is an occupation that can last. Think about water, food, sleeping bags, phone chargers.

**Make your point. Prepare a statement to let people know what you are doing and why.

**Link up. Have a charged phone with credit, maybe a special contact number for the day. Hook up with other occupations and support each other.

**Join in. Even if you don't start your own occupation, you can join in and support others. Get in and join them or form a crowd outside, take food, watch the police, make a human chain, get ready to resist.

For more info:

 http://www.ukuncut.org.uk/
 http://thethirdestate.net/2010/11/occupation-information-and-legal-advice/
 http://www.squatter.org.uk/
 http://greenandblackcross.org/
 http://www.sukey.org/

Who ya gonna call?
Green & Black Cross Legal Support: 07946 541511