Why?
We want to point it out straight: the eviction of an occupied space, always looking outward rather than inward, always opposing those who would aspire to creating a bedroom/streetlife town, won’t leave us astonished, for sure. Yet we are astonished: at the impressive solidarity we’ve received after just a day.
The reason why we’ve got evicted is political: the owners don’t know what to do of their building, they have no projects on it other than the odd and vague idea of commercial sites, roads, misty and weird projects at all that.
Nothing to be astonished about, too. We are not a threat – as the cops’ propaganda would have as – for the people of Saronno, but we pose a real threat to the order of the Almighty Ones: the order of those owning a wealth of empty buildings in our town, waiting for the right time to speculate on them, the order of those who prohibit any way to live the streets, the order of those who, behind their desks and in their comfy suit think they could fidget with the lives and the spaces of others, the order of those who believe that the whole world should be someone’s property to be ruled on, to the order of the Carabinieri (a military corps carrying out policing activities) and the police, filthy slaves and defenders of this hideous status quo. It was the captain of the Carabinieri of Saronno himself to order the eviction, asking the police headquarters for permission, because – in his opinion – Saronno had run amok because of the Telos’ people, doing just as they pleased. To make a long story short: the cops ordered the eviction because we were a nuisance to them.
Once the politicians got news of the incoming eviction (there’s a fast track running between them and the police), they played their tune accordingly, giving rise to a true media lynching: they were playing safe, since they knew that the eviction’s date had already been set. Indeed.
How?
The last evictions in Saronno clearly indicate a turn of the screw repression-wise. Once the cops got aware of their own awkwardness and untimeliness (evictions prolonged for hours or days and, in the last years, with people resisting on the roof), they changed tactics. An eviction is not the scenario for muscle showing and spotlights: nowadays, it’s something treacherous and wily. They didn’t come with tons of cars, tools, shears, stairs, etc. They came a couple of cars, forty Digos (MDPs) and other filth and with a stratagem they managed to enter the Telos. We would like to describe their trick to spread awareness as much as possible: around 4.30 a.m. some Telos’ inhabitants see some strange lights and fireworks cracking out of the window, someone crosses over the barricaded window leading to the terrace to see what was happening and is immediately caught by around twenty Digos waiting in the shadows: they rush in, kick the dog and stop all people in the building, who nonetheless succeed in making a call.
The cops thought they managed to carry on their eviction without the comrades knowing it: too bad! A roaring firecracker reminds them of the comrades few seconds after they’re in.
Outside, around 5.15 a.m. some comrades arrive and try to get closer to know how the people inside are faring. At once, they’re assaulted, and some chased, by the cops. A comrade is stopped, threatened and driven to the motorway entrance, where the cops leave him.
The rest of the morning goes by pretty quietly: we mainly aim at carrying out most stuff and having our seven comrades who are temporarily detained back.
A small march in the town market make known what’s happening, and the car drivers stuck in a traffic jam are informed as well.
In the late afternoon, a small demo turns into a savage, passionate rally. The cops provoke and are kept at bay, in their dutiful place: behind us. Chants and booming noises break the silence, the Telos is on its way.
When the rally has ended, we greet each other: we shall think about the next days and the actions to take.
And then?
They evicted a building where the Telos resided, but the Telos is alive and kicking. We will get used to the new condition. All the things we planned to do at the Telos will get done anyway, just somewhere else in Saronno. On Thursday night there’ll be a movie night in the market place, on Friday night we’ll be having dinner in via Don Monza, on Saturday night there’ ll be a taz the all day long.
The Telos were the relationships and actions made together, we never felt as “owners”, taht means that anybody caring or having cared for the Telos feels involved, feels he or she should find a way to carry on its struggles and its presence in town.
And then? And then… we still have got something to say vis-à-vis, it’s a surprise, especially (we hope so!) for the cops.
TeLOS is moving.
27th Septembre: rally in Saronno.
Other activites will be communicated in due time…
Collettivo la Fenice
https://collafenice.wordpress.com/2014/09/12/sullo-sgombero-del-telos/
