So, far now the security thugs have stepped down after a 15hour siege. The security guards woke us up at 5am and they illegally entered our home. We swiftly acted and informed them about the law and legislation that they should have been following. After we ushered them out they maintained their presence and blocked the front and back doors, denying people access all day. By this time our friends and comrades were on their way to help and together we successfully made them stand down after an intense stand off. Today highlighted that unity is strength and when people stand together we can overcome intimidation and win important victories. We are still here, in this huge building, that before us, sat here dormant collecting dust in the middle of a supposed “housing crisis”. Bollocks to that! The building now is an activist hub and a free home. Free from bailiffs, landlords and the ruling class. We one day hope that all of society will be arranged like this, free from all hierarchy and domination. [Read More]
London: Claim for attack on cop van on the Aylesbury Estate
A crack was formed in the prison wall during the eviction eve demo on 2nd April for Chiltern House, a building that has been occupied by squatters in solidarity with residents in the near abandoned Aylesbury estate, which is earmarked for demolition by Southwark council. A whole estate that is now surrounded by a wall & patrolled by private security* which is all part of the the forced but also self imposed prison society. As anarchists we see the Southwark council, just as our friends who are occupying the estate do, as part of the wave of gentrification that is sweeping vast parts of the capital urban hell, moulding the cityscape more to authoritarian control, pushing the excluded further to the outer reaches, out of sight, out of mind as they say! [Read More]
Aylesbury Estate, London: Down with the fences
Several hundred people responded to our call-out for an “Eviction Eve solidarity demo”.
Solidarity with the remaining residents, who are still living in the enclosure (aka “First Development Site”), and will be for months to come.
For the past few weeks, the presence of the fences and security guards has made life intolerable for these people.
London: £140,000 Aylesbury Estate fence torn down
Today [April 2nd], a rabble of around 150 people tore down sections of the 8ft-tall spiked fence surrounding the Aylesbury occupation and other blocks of flats on the West of the estate (see video).
Today was also the day the court hearing for a possession order to evict the occupation. So predictable is the outcome of the legal process, that no-one bothered to pay Southwark Council’s third possession order any attention. Instead they opted for direct action.
The 700m ‘Aylesbury Alcatraz’ fence was hastily erected as a response to the successive occupations of three blocks of flats on the ‘First Development Site’. First in line to be demolished, this area is now largely depopulated. Yet the remaining tenants have been forced to live in the fortress-like conditions, with a large 24 hour security presence and long detours to a single gate in order to be let in and out. [Read More]
London: The Sweets Way social centre has moved!
Sweets Way Resists responds to a predictably unfair legal decision and gets on with fighting social cleansing.
Today [March30] one of the most long-standing principles of British law was reinforced: that private property rights hold greater importance than human rights. A Barnet County Court judge decided to rule against our protest and social centre occupation on the Sweets Way estate, in favour of social cleansing property firm, Annington, even though agreeing with most of our arguments in the courtroom.
[Read More]
London: Sweets Way calls for support against evictions
Barnet Housing Action Group are a group campaigning around housing issues in The Borough of Barnet, North London. We have been working with the Our West Hendon campaign for the past year and have recently joined the Focus E15 Mums in occupying a house on the Sweets Way Estate in the North of the borough in protest against the evictions which have taken place there by Annington Homes Ltd, the owners of the houses and land.
West Hendon is a council estate alongside a reservoir and conservation area known as ‘the Welsh Harp’. The estate comprises of a mix of 650 properties some secure tenancies, some private, some temporary non-secure tenants and also leaseholders. All of these homes are going to be bulldozed and replaced with 2000 luxury apartments – 214 of which – the non luxury of course – will be council flats.
[Read More]
London: Anarchists occupy former Directors’ Institute near Buckingham Palace
Horror arrives at London Evening Standard by the pen of Matt Watts, supposedly a journalist, a posh and naive pawn, for whose neoliberal minds for whom it is difficult to understand the meaning of gentrification and class struggle.
<< A group of “five stars squatters” has taken over a historic office block just yards from Buckingham Palace. Activists who have entered the former HQ of the Institute of Directors at 123 Pall Mall today vowed to stay “as long as they can”. The six-storey, multimillion-pound office block is 700 yards from Buckingham Palace. The squatters moved in last week and have renamed it as the Instutute of Dissidents. [Read More]
London: Sweets Way occupation
[Posted March 19] A beautiful house has been occupied on the Sweets Way estate in Barnet. Come down to check out the estate, chat to some local residents, and help create a community space! [Read More]
London: Aylesbury Occupations – 12 story block seized for homeless
March 15, 2015 – Rabble news
Yesterday (14 March) there was a “March for the Aylesbury” demo, called by “Southwark Defend Council Housing”. At 12 noon on a cold grey day, 150 plus people gathered in Burgess Park on the corner of Old Kent Road and Albany Road. We took the road and marched off through the Aylesbury, past the new yuppy developments springing up around the area, then along the busy Walworth road where there were lots of people out doing their shopping, taking leaflets, shouting greetings and honking horns and some joining in the march. [Read More]
Aylesbury Estate (London): The Occupation Keeps on Moving!
Southwark Council now have an Interim Possession Order for 69-76 Chartridge on the Aylesbury Estate. It becomes illegal for anyone to ‘trespass’ in those eight flats after 14.55 tomorrow. The police may turn up at this time to enforce it.
We are now in occupation of the disused council offices at the base of Chiltern house on the corner of Albany Road and Portland Street (SE17). [Read More]
London: New week, new building
New week and a new building has been cracked open and occupied by Love Activists London, this is our fourth which we currently hold in and around Westminster.
Building number 15 is quite something else, three floors and a basement our initial plans are to use the space to outreach into the community and organise meetings, workshops and in general activism.
We have decided that the new building is to become a community hub only, staffed by live-in volunteers and activists and following very sadly months of dealing with homeless people who have brought with them many problems that we are unable or have the time to deal with, which in itself is a diversion from what we intended to do as a protest and campaigning group, it could be drink or drugs of some description or other and on top of being homeless, as one activist has said: “I’m not equipped to be a social worker”. [Read More]
London: Regeneration Is Violence
Published on Southwark Notes Feb 21 with lots of images
How is it in London in 2015 that people who reside in public housing can be subject to such extremes of subtle and unsubtle violence? When we use the word violence what do we mean? Well for starters we mean the slow burning, long-term violence done to those who are being forced out of their homes in the name of ‘regeneration’ with it’s routine accompanying upheavals, anxieties, stresses and affects on physical and mental ill health.
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