The colchester social centre was evicted yesterday after a siege lasting 6 hours. Early in the morning security guards employed by the owners Royal London turned up to evict the squatters who had been creating a free art space for 4 days. The security were there to stop people entering the building at collwyn house. After recieving numerous threats of violence from the security abd nearly 6 hours besieged in the building, several police vans turned up with around 20 police to force entry under a claim of criminal damage by the owners. This was after the owners put a hoax call in to the fire brigade and offered them bribes to try to enter the building to search for fire and let the owners in at the same time. This was resisted and the fire service refused to enter the building at the request of the owners.
The previous day the owners threatend the squaters with an illegal eviction and even offered £300 for the squatters to leave. This was seriously considered but refused, despite the ideas of putting the money into another squat.
We will be back though and hopefully other social centers around the area can be opened up to more successful ends
The previous day the owners threatend the squaters with an illegal eviction and even offered £300 for the squatters to leave. This was seriously considered but refused, despite the ideas of putting the money into another squat.
We will be back though and hopefully other social centers around the area can be opened up to more successful ends
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More info on http://www.easf.org.uk
11.09.2004 17:41
Pity about the eviction, as we were going to have a guerilla cinema showing of the film - Farenheit 9/11 at the Colchester Social Centre today. Never the less, about 60 people did attend an earlier Colchester Peace Campaign event today.
Barry Kade
social networking
12.09.2004 13:27
19761976
Yep
12.09.2004 18:47
Here is a picture of some of Colchester's smiling happy protesters this saturday! (11-09-04)
Would have been so brilliant to have gone to the shortlived Colchester Social Centre after this protest! The planned anti-capitalist cinema show with 'FAHRENHEIT 9/11' would have been just right! One more day and it could have happened!
Oh well, it can all be done in any small town or anywhere! Resistance is fertile!
See also:
and of course:
whojimaflipp
...
13.09.2004 12:53
seems like the state's trying to hit every social centre it can find
at the moment, were in court on wed for the Bournebrook Nursery social centre
good luck for the next space.
Kidda
State repression plus our sides stupidity!
13.09.2004 15:15
Basically the owners would have taken days or weeks to get a court order to get people out....and that would have been long enough for a 'temporary autonomous zone'.
But instead the leading squatters decided to cover this posh looking prime site office building with spray paint graffitti!
This convieniently gave the police the excuse they needed to threaten everyone with arrest for criminal damage - which was intimidation enough to end the squat!
It also successfully stops the public appreciating what you are doing. You dont get to be seen as creative young people reclaiming a space for the community from greedy capitalists...who, as we know, let loads of empty buildings rot.
Instead the squatters are seen as the vandals. Thus spray paint is a wonderfull tool for confirming popular sterotypes about squatters and undermining the whole point!
HANDY HINTS!
If people must spray paint, then do it on sheets and make wall hangings! Duh! These can be got cheap at charity shops, jumbles...then you can have a banner/ wall hanging making workshop.
I think the most subversive thing you can do in a squat is to clean windows, hang nice curtains, mow lawns, arrange potted plants in tubs, fix and repair....and people don't even see you as squatters! They just like the community centre! That would be real subversion, real 'propaganda of the deed'!
But some kidz really do luv the spray paint 'squat aesthetic' to convince themselves that they have really rebelled and escaped from their comfortable but stifling middle class parents homes just around the corner!
But in the end, all credit to them! I don't wanna be too harsh! At least this young bunch of Colchester Squatters took some risks getting in and doing it! And actually tried to do something creative and cool! - so well done...but ffs! really - and at least one of them was experienced enough to know the score!
johnny moron
Clean, sparkly squats
14.09.2004 08:44
Who do those squatters and parasites who do this think they are kidding? Behaving like anti-social moron's ain't big and it ain't clever. It is also something activists and other squatters shouldn't put up with. I have no solidarity with someone who behaves like a vandal, causes damage and nuisance and then claims it's all in the name of idealism.
It just doesn't help.
Anita
shut up you hippy
14.09.2004 10:24
If you don't like the scumzone get out into the yuppieville.
Nihilists! One more effort to be revolutionaries!
dirty squatters