Yesterday (1 April) the DiY Kodak Collective (previously on S!N) were again illegally evicted from a building. This is the second time in a week. This time it was a squatted basement flat, part of the complex which used to be the Hostelpoint at Pool Valley coach station in central Brighton.
Three men claiming to be the owners came by at noon to threaten violence unless the squatters left by 9am on 2 April. They then came back at 7pm the same day with a sledgehammer and smashed their way in. While they did so, a passerby flagged down a police car. Instead of arresting the angry men brandishing a sledgehammer, the police entered the squat, quoting PACE 17 which is complete nonsense. The legal warning was on the door stating that anyone using force to enter was breaking the law. No-one wanted to stay and wait for more violence to come, so we decided to leave.
As a sidenote, none of the four police or three other men wore any masks or gloves, and they weren’t social distancing. Also, we’ve lost a lot of stuff in this eviction. It’s no surprise that owners act like thugs or that police don’t respect the law. It is a shame that local media create an atmosphere where this can happen by happily reporting on the illegal eviction of the former Globe pub a week ago.
Thanks to Canary and Freedom for publishing decent news.
Thanks to all our supporters!
Solidarity to all squatters!
DiY Kodak Collective
(link to fundraiser)
