Open publishing was disabled on this site in mid-July 2016 as there was a very low volume of original grass roots news reports from activists being posted and the collective running the site was dwindling as people were working on other things. From 1st May 2017 this site is a static archive and will no longer be updated.

The history of UK Indymedia is somewhat documented under the Indymedia topic but the full history is yet to be written and perhaps never will be... but this archive will remain available.

See you in the streets!

It is now almost five years since Indymedia London came to life as part of the United Kollectives network of IMC's throughout the UK. Now, in 2008, things have moved on; the reality in the streets is very different from that of 2003, and so there has also been a change in the way people experience the internet. The kollective in London has been working hard for the last few months to adapt Indymedia London to these new realities, and now we are very happy to announce that the New Indymedia London website is ready for action!

The new Site, that was launched with a presentation at the Anarchist Bookfair 2008, aims to include more political events and media alongside the direct action reporting from the streets, and a better method of video uploading. Note: If you went to check out the new site and you were put off by a security warning in your browser, please try again. More information about Security Certificates here. Click at the 'Full article' link to know more ....

Ever wondered just how indymedia started? or where it came from?

Free Event - Monday 5th May

As part of a season of events exploring the political and cultural legacies of 1968, this free Monday Love Special at the Roxy Bar & Screen will present the history of indymedia,
from the hills of Chiapas to Reclaim The Streets, Genoa and the G8

with guest attendant and Master of Ceremonies, MC Lee Harris, footsoulja of '68

Live music, DJ's and anarchy till 1am

On Tuesday Tuesday 30 October protestors returned to the London Mexican Embassy to remember Brad Will and those who died in last year's civil uprising in Oaxaca, Mexico. William Bradley Roland was an Indymedia New York activist who was shot dead by paramilitaries whilst documenting the uprising in Oaxaca city [ Brad Will's last video]

Even though the protest was small, the message was still there, that Brad Will and all the other victims of repression during the Oaxaca uprising are not forgotten, and that justice is still due. This year's protest at the Mexican embassy passed peacefully, contary to the scenes of police violence that greeted protesters in 2006.

Links:: Brad Will: Open Letter International | IMC-UK's Oaxaca topic page | CMI- Mexico | CMI- Oaxaca

A second round of Indymedia Oaxaca infonite in the UK is starting, focussing on the experiences and struggless the people of Oaxaca's rebellion. The tour will begin in Cardiff at the PAD social centre on the 9th where it will also visit people who are fighting the Brecon Beacons gas pipeline. In London it will take part in the Disarm DSEi mobilisations, as well as a planned infonite at the LARC on the 12th. Then it will visit Nottingham on Friday the 14th at the Sumac Centre to continue to Liverpool on the 16th to join in the celebration of the new social centre Next To Nowhere, the Common Ground Community Garden in Reading on the 18th, and it will end at the No Border Camp in Gatwick on the 21st.

There will be talks and discussions with our compañero from Indymedia Oaxaca as well as the presentation of 'True To My Pledge', a video made by MALDEOJOTV to rise funds in support of the women made widows in Oaxaca due to state repression. Click at the Full article link for background information, and see IMC-UK Oaxaca topic page for reports on the Oaxaca Uprising.

Reports: Nottingham (with audio) | Liverpool

Indymedia Oaxaca, the network in the UK of Zapatista solidarity groups along with anticapitalist collectives launch a tour of information and debate on the issues surrounding the people of Oaxaca's rebellion. The Tour will be visiting Birmingham on 16th May 16th, Liverpool on the 17th, Bradford on the 18th, Manchester on the 19th, Edinburgh on the 20th, Bristol on the 22nd, and finally in London's Rampart Social Centre on the 24th before jumping over to Europe. There will be films, talks and discussions with a guest from Indymedia Oaxaca.

The right to rebel is sacred, as exercising it is indispensable to break the obstacles that oppose the right to life. (Ricardo Flores Magon)

Our guest for the tour is a member of the Indymedia Oaxaca collective, and a free radio maker for the communities in the mountains north of the state. He is also a collaborator of Radio Jenpoj (Wind of Fire ). Playing the role that independent media does in the popular struggle in Oaxaca means living alongside a constant threat of targeted repression.

Click at the Full article link for background information on the current situation in Oaxaca, and see IMC-UK Oaxaca topic page for reports on the Oaxaca Uprising.

Local Indymedia groups (IMCs) exist all over the UK. Some have existed longer than others and some are more active than others, but they all have one thing in common: they need your help. If you're interested in working on independent media on a local level, or if you have technical skills, why not become involved? Help organise film screenings, benefit events, or report on local issues, compile features and do admin work on the websites. There is a lot to be done!

Local IMC kollectives have regular meetings which are open to anyone interested. These include:
Bristol: Monday 19th Feb, 8pm at the Hillgrove Pub, Kingsdown, Bristol
Cambridge: Monday 19th Feb, 7:30pm at 3 Fletchers Terrace Cambridge (more on meetings)
Manchester: Wednesday 14th Feb, 7.30pm at Basement Social Centre, 24 Lever St, Manchester, M11DZ

Click at the 'Full article' link above to know more about the local kollectives and how to get involved.

A peaceful demonstration to show support and solidarity with the Oaxaca people currently suffering violent police and military repression by the Mexican state took place in front of the Mexican Embassy in London on Monday [Press release]. Around 60 people including drummers and Indymedia supporters gathered in front of the Embassy with banners, and murdered indymedia videographer Brad Will's final footage was projected directly onto the Embassy's facade - all eventually violently interrupted by a massive police presence resulting in eight arrests. Reports: 1 | 2 | Photos: 1 | 2 | 3 | Videos: 1 | 2 | Updates on the London arrests: Tuesday and Wednesday.

On Wednesday night red paint was thrown on the walls, stairs and doors of the Mexican Embassy in London to symbolise the blood of the people of Oaxaca. On Thursday another demonstration took place outside London's Mexican embassy [Photos] Later in the evening, discussion and screening of films related to Brad and the situation in Oaxaca took at rampART Social Centre and another one is planned for Saturday 4th (E4E).

There were also protests at embassies and consulates around the world, with 14 demos in the US including direct action at the Mexican consulate in New York City | demos in Rio de Janeiro, Soa Paolo, Brasilia, and Fortaleza in Brazil | Madrid | an embassy occupation in Barcelona | an embassy occupation in Napoli | and several actions in Berlin.

Further information: Last Communique from NYC Indymedia Journalist Brad Will | NYC Indymedia | IMC Mexico | Narco News | CML | La Jornada | APPO Radio Live Broadcast (Sp) | Live Radio Transcript (Eng)

• Tue Oct 10 - London - RampART - 15-17 Rampart St (starts 8pm)
• Wed Oct 11 - Brighton - The Cowley Club - 12 London Road
• Thu Oct 12 - Nottingham - The Sumac Centre - 245 Gladstone Street, 7.30pm (read article | report and audio from screening)
• Sat Oct 14 - Glasgow - Document 4 Intl. Human Rights Film Festival
• Sun Oct 15 - Edinburgh - Quaker Meeting House, Victoria Terrace, 7pm
• Mon Oct 16 - Edinburgh - Forest Café, 3 Bristo Place, 7.30 pm

This is an open invitation to participate in Indymedia London in whatever aspect you think you could help out. There are many ways and projects you could get involved with: from helping out with the technical aspect of developing the website, or helping to maintain the Open Publishing right hand side column (the newswire), or producing features for the middle column, to a variety of offline activities such as film screenings, stalls at events, reporting from the streets and whatever else you may come up with. Possibilities are endless!

The IMC London collective has regular face to face open meetings, and they currently take place on the last Wednesday of every month.

The next two planned meetings will be on:

• Wednesday 31 May
• Wednesday 28 June

Where:The Square Social Centre
21 Russell Square, London WC1 [Map]
Meetings start at 7.30pm.

Please feel free to come and share your ideas, knowledge and skills. The agendas for these meetings are proposed and discussed in the IMC-London email list. This is an open list that anyone can subscribe to, and where the day to day running of the project takes place. Check it out.

Also, for those interested in getting to grips with how the Indymedia 'back office' works, there are montlhy training workshops available and open to everyone. These generally take place on the Sunday before the meetings, so people have a chance to familiarise with different aspects of the project.

The next planned Indymedia training workshop will be on:

• Sunday 28 May

Where: RampART Social Centre
15-17 Rampart Street, London E1 [Map]
Workshops start at 3pm.

Finally, any contribution to the running and development of IMC-London is always much appreciated. The same as with any other local IMC within the IMC-UK Network, IMC-London can only be as relevant and useful to the people, campaigns, initiatives, groups and networks of London as we all make it!

Indymedia always needs more volunteers and at the moment the IMC UK network in particular is seeking more tech help so that it can be more active in the development of the content management program used by many IMC sites. It is really important to increase the developer pool since many proposals made for improving the site are stalling at the tech bottleneck.

If you think you could help please get in touch with your local collective or email imc-uk-tech. You could also mention this to anyone else you think might be able to help.

If you'd like to develop your own tech skills, you might be interested in the various Hacklab projects around the country which host regular training and workshops. The rampART lab for example provides a useful venue for anyone wanting to become more involved in indymedia.

On Saturday 25th the London Hacklabs Collective is putting on a benefit event to help cover the cost of the broadband both at the rampART and Freedom Book Shop. You can find more details about the event from the rampART or the Hacklabs website. The event will be a workshop about IMC tech and various IMC projects.

Related Articles : IMC Needs You, Bad time for indymedia servers, rampART hacklab report, evolution and changes to IMC UK.

Outside Links : London Hacklabs Collective, Aktivix, Sheffield Hacklab, International Hacklabs.

• Lights, Camera, Direct Action - a PDF DIY guide
• Call for regular activist shorts
• IMC-UK Video Projects Page (out of date)

You may notice we have changed the way comments to articles are displayed. If you want to know why and how, please read the full article.

On Monday, June 27th, Indymedia Bristol's server was seized by the police. An Indymedia volunteer was arrested during the raid on suspicion of incitement to criminal damage. He is now on bail. See Indymedia Bristol Statement (28th June 05):

"We are outraged at the actions of the police. They have completely disabled the entire Bristol Indymedia news service. By their actions they have undermined the principle of open publishing and free access to the media, thereby removing people's opportunity to read and report their own news. This situation has serious implications for anyone providing a news service on the Internet. We do not intend to let this stop us from continuing the project."

IMC Bristol statements [1 | 2] | Imc Bristol Solidarity Page | Full Feature | donate to imc uk | Autistici Server Surveillance | Mainstream Media Coverage

Indymedia, together with other grass roots and alternative media groups are preparing for the G8 2005 Summit in Scotland in July. Several physical IMC centres are being planned to facilitate DIY reporting of the events around the G8.

Want to get involved? Have equipment you can lend or donate? Get in touch and find out more on the info page for the G8 Independent Media Convergence event. The convergence was held at the Institute for Autonomy social centre in London 14-15th May.

Money is also needed to help secure venues, vehicles for mobile media facilities and equipment - please consider donating money to Indymedia.

[ Convergence Call and Registration | Convergence Video Invite ]

Indymedia London is organising a five day long Middle East film festival. Starting on Tuesday 26 until Saturday 30 of April, the festival will include films and talks form and about Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel and more.

The festival is at RampART Creative Centre, Rampart Street, London E1. Events will start from 7pm each evening on Tuesday 26th to Friday 29th, and from 5pm Saturday 30th. It will include presentations by solidarity groups, international activists, film-makers, music, and food.

PROGRAMME:

TUESDAY 26th: MEDIA DISTORTION - 'Planet Of The Arabs' and main feature 'Control Room' a documentary on Al-Jazeera's coverage of the US/Iraq war.
WEDNESDAY 27th: IRAQ - 'The Oil Factor'
THURSDAY 28TH: LEBANON & AFGHANISTAN - film by Indymedia Beirut and 'Afghan Massacre'.
FRIDAY 29TH: PALESTINE/ISRAEL - 'The Sun Doesn't Shine In The Camp' a documentary on life in Balata Refugee Camp filmed by international activists and Palestinians. Followed by 'Gaza Strip'.
SATURDAY 30TH: PALESTINE/ISRAEL - 'Democracy Isn't Built On Demonstrators Bodies' a film from Anarchists Against The Wall. Followed by 'Behind The Fence'.

Suggested donation of £3 for entry each evening (but noone turned away for lack of funds) For more information about Indymedia film projects see Indymedia Cinema page.

Indymedia UK and the Institute For Autonomy are currently preparing for an international alternative media convergence in London on May 14 and 15. The convergence is set to bring the alternative reporting machine up to speed for non-corporate media corverage of the G8 summit in Scotland.

In the spirit of a project declared by the Zaptistas in 1997, they are inviting everybody with an interest in participation:

"We will make a network of communication among all our struggles and resistances. An intercontinental network of alternative communications against neoliberalism…(and) for humanity ... This intercontinental network of alternative communication will search to weave the channels so that words may travel all the roads that resist…(it) will be the medium by which distinct resistances communicate with one another ... This intercontinental network of alternative communication is not an organizing structure, nor has a central head or decision maker, nor does it have a central command or hierarchies. We are the network, all of us who speak and listen." [Second Declaration of La Realidad for Humanity Against Neoliberalism]

Click "Read more" for additional info.

Indymedia Cinema presents a five-day festival of radical and independent film from Argentina, Venezuela, Colombia, Mexico, Cuba, Bolivia, Chile, Peru and more. There will also be talks and presentations by Latin American solidarity groups, international activists, and film-makers, as well as Latin American food, drink, and music.

When: The festival takes place from Tuesday 22nd to Saturday 26th February. Programme starts daily at 7pm, and on Saturday there's a doouble session starting at 2pm. All sessions are free but donations are encouraged.
Where: RampArt Creative centre, Rampart Street (off Commercial Rd), London E1. Nearest tube Whitechapel, buses 115, 15, 25, 254, 205.

FULL PROGRAMME:

Tuesday 22:
'EYE OF THE STORM' (Argentina Indymedia Resistance Film) and 'THE TAKE' (film about a worker-occupied factory in Argentina by Avi Lewis asn Naomi Klein)
Wednesday 23:
Short films from Cuba, and 'VENEZUELA FROM BELOW' (a film by Dario Azzelini and Oliver Ressler on the latest developments of the Venezuelan Revolution) With film-makers Q&A.
Thursday 24:
'BOLIVIA BASTA' (a film about gas privatisation in Bolivia) and 'PLAN COLOMBIA' (a film about US intervention in Colombia)
Friday 25:
Two short films from visiting CIPO-RFM Mexican Indigenous activists from the state of Oxaca, plus two Zapatista films 'EL FUEGO Y LA PALABRA' and 'CARACOLES'.
Saturday 26 (from 2pm):
'TRADING FREEDOM' indymedia film on the FTAA (Free Trade Area of the Americas) and 'EL DERECHO DE VIVIR EN PAZ' (the story of the assassination and torture of popular singer and composer Victor Jara by Pinochet regime in Chile) With singer Silvia Rox singing Victor Jara. plus Peruvian film and Peruvian singer Sofia Buchuck...
Then, from 7pm:
Cuban and Colombian HIP-HOP films and Live Music: 'INVENTOS: HIP HOP CUBANO' provides a unique insight into the realities and politics of contemporary Cuba. And 'ZONA MARGINAL', a documentary about the hip-hop group Zona Marginal and their work with the communities in Colombia.

Activists from Mexican indigenous direct action group CIPO-RFM will be visiting the UK for the first time on a 5 date speaking tour to promote their struggle against globalisation in Oaxaca.

Admission to all the dates are free and two short films made by activists will also be shown. They hope to raise awareness about the recent increase in state repression being suffered by Mexican activists. There will also be a benefit gig on feb 18th in London.

More information

• Fun-Da-Mental
  
• Rhythms of Resistance Samba Band
  
• The Rub (electronic set)
  
• Penny Rimbaud (Crass)
  
• The Unpeople
  
• The Internationalz
  
• Angel
  
• Special guest: the Federal Bureau of Investigation

This Sunday, Venezuelans will vote on whether to keep their controversial president, Hugo Chávez. Elected with a promise to redistribute Venezuela's enormous oil wealth (before Chávez it was the number one supplier to the US) this referendum will be a chance to find out if he still has the support of the people. Having failed to oust him with a traditional (US backed)coup in 2002, and a general "strike" (bosses lock-out) the following Christmas, the opposition's referendum might actually end up strengthening his legitimacy.

This week, groups in London held a week of solidarity with the Venezuelan people and their right to self-determination without US interference. Daily events (see programme) took place at the rampART creative centre in Whitechapel, starting on Monday 9th with the opening of a "Latinamerican Liberation" exhibition. The main event is a picket of the US Embassy on the day of the referendum, Sunday 15th, from 2pm; meet beforehand in Hyde Park near Speakers' Corner for a 'Bolivarian picnic'.

Final event at the rampART from 6pm sunday, party and what next, plus indymedia access point.

Check out: Latest programme details | Rampart venue website | MultiMap venue map |
opening night review, photos | day two | full week review

New topic created: See Venezuela 2004 for all related posts.