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Defend our autonomous spaces!

Ungdomshuset (Youth house) in Copenhagen, Denmark, is an autonomous space run according to anti-authoritarian and anti-capitalist principles. Ungdomshuset is used for various activities such as DIY concerts and festivals (including the K-town festival), soup kitchens, radical meetings, bookstore/info shop, screen-printing, rehearsing rooms and studio, city garden, and much more; all arranged and run by the people who use the house.

Ungdomshuset was given to the autonomous/squatter movement in 1982, after a long struggle with government and police, for a self-organized youth center. In 1999 the government put the house on the market. The official reason was: \223The house is only used by 25 subcultural youths\224. This is not the case! The truth is that it is used by several hundreds of different people and has since birth, been a thorn in the side of the government!

The house was bought by a fundamentalist Christian group called Faderhuset (The Father house), whose goal is to start a church and save us all from Satan. Of course we will not accept this! Since 2001 Faderhuset has dragged us through the courtroom circus. The verdict is set for September 18th, but no matter what they decide we are here to stay!

For 24 years the house has been an active part in the fight against normalization and apathy and a place for people to be themselves outside the oppressive norms of society.

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A private owned company bought the Ungdomshuset from the council of Kopenhagen. The company Human A/S does not want to give specific information about the future plans.

The youth house was bought by the council in 1982 to give a place for young people. This was a reaction upon the actions of the local squatters movement. Now the council decided to sell the building.

Human A/S is owned by a group of unknown private people who say they want to prevent a violent end and give the users influence on the future of the building. The users say that Human A/S not only bought the house but will also get 500 autonomous stone casting violent psychopats in the same deal.

According to the Ungdomshuset the council has got a responsibility in this case. In this opininion the get support from the director of the KUC. The KUC has got responisibility for the ‘medborgerhuse’ included the undomshuset. He says that the council can’t just sell the stones and think that everything is all right. He stated that there are many good things happening at the ungdomshuset.

The mayor of culture has got a different opinion. According to him the new private owner will be able to cooperate better with the users than the council:’ Now the kids are not able to play with the fact that their owner is splitted and can’t talk with one voice.’ According to him the council was devided because the political left-wing always protected the Ungdomshuset.

According to the Ungdomshuset the negotiations with the users of the building were fake. The transaction was already planned. The plans are just a step in the gentrification of the neighbourhood which the ungdomshuset always fought against.’ Ungdomshuset: -private money in a political fight is not acceptable-

more information on their website: http://www.ungeren.dk/

search via http://squat.net/tools/on ‘ungdomshuset’ and you’ll find previous [squat!net] information in different languages.

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original Danish text at: http://squat.net/nl/news/ungdom311099.html

English summary:

This weekend the Ungdomshuset was celebrating their 17 years existence. Just before the council decided not to sell the Ungdomshuset to a green fund who wants to keep the Ungdomshus like it is. It is decided that the building will be sold to the highest bidder.

At the same time the decision was made there was a demonstration for the Ungdomshus. There were about three hundred people at the demonstration. The police tried to control the demonstration but had to give up. Later on they got attacked with paintbombs

The struggle for Ungdomshuset continues

more ungdomshuset at http://ungdomshuset.punk-ska.com

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We call up for a demonstration thursday the 20th of may 17 o´clock from Ungdomshuset tagtvet 69 Copenhagen, Denmark

To The cityhall of Neoliberalistic Politics. Fell free to wear mask and join the black block.

We do not want a violent demobut if we`re attacked we´ll defend the right to demonstrate and the right to live in our house!

There will be places to sleep for people from outside.!!!

In The month of November 1998 some rigthwing politicians of the city council of Copebhagen, came up with the stupid idea to suggest a closedown of our activities in “UNGDOMSHUSET”. Their first argument they brought up was that the house isn´t prepared enough to the Firebrigades restrictions for a house in wich public events take place.

Soon some scene activists worked on makig the house acceptable for this law. However that didn`t stop the politicians in terrorizing us, they soon invented some new problems:

• only 25 people of the subcultural scene use the house
• It will cost 12-14 000 000 Danish Krones (DKR) to renovate the house
• The house is an ugly ruin attact by fungus, rats and rot

1. soupkitchen, infocafe, bookshop, cheap concerts, juggling rehearsing, discos, bar, workaholic union and latest demonstration against thier decision counted over 600 people (what is a lot for Copenhagen). 2. The city councils estimation of the cost for a renovation is completly insane. We dont want a yuppie house, or a supermarket, we are able to renovade the house ourselves for less than 500000 DKR, and that is what we are planing to do. 3. Most of the Rats are thamed domestic animals, the fungus attack is below two meters of wood.The only rot we know is that one in the minds of politicians.

The house was build by the labour movement over a hundred years ago it is absolutly worthy of preservation. Not at least because many historical events have taken place here in the history of the resistance movement. For instance it was here where the German feminist Clara Zetkin during the second International Womens Congress in 1910 made the motion to set up the 8th of march as the womans international action day. UNGDOMSHUSET is one of the few free spaces left in Copenhagen. The Fight for the house is not a question of renovation or the sympathy, it is a political princip.

We will make actions/demos and continue our usual activities untill they will give up and leave us in peace.

SOLIDARITY IS OUR STRENGHT!

Contact:
UNGDOMSHUSET
Jagtvej 69
DK 2200 KBH.N
Phone: +4535839611
Fax: +4535837311
Web: http://www.angelfire.com/ny2/undomshuset/

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