13th May ‘a little piece of liberty’ newsletter
Posted by therampart on May 14, 2008
Summary
Diners Club / Activist Networking Social - this Weds 14th, 7pm Intersquat London pre-meeting - this Thursday 15th, 8pm Radical Theory Group - Friday 30th 6pm Dissident Island - this Friday 16th, 9pm Anarcho-Feminists meeting Sunday 18th Five Ring Circus Weds 21st City of Sun Art Exibition, 23rd - 25th Opposing planning permission for Rampart St Early notice of ramPARTY, 6th June
INTERACTIVE DINERS CLUB
Wed 14th, 7pm, Bowl Court Liberty Zone We've been threatening for ages to put on a radical assembly, an opportunity to for activists in London and beyond to speak about campaigns they are involved in and learn about other projects taking place. Well it's already happening and you are hereby invited to the 2nd Interactive Diners Club! This is a social and networking event for activists that takes the form of a go-round where everybody present gets to introduce themselves and the campaigns or projects they are involved in. Everyone then tucks into food and everyone gets to chat, plot and conspire. The idea is to inspire and re-energise each other, form new links, strengthen old alliances, share skills and resources, raise awareness and get people involved. Those who experienced the original pre CJA Interactive Diners Club in the early nineties, the RTS meetings or the late 90's London Underground meetings etc. will know what kind of thing to expect. It takes place on WED 14TH MAY, 7pm at the new squatted social centre in Shoreditch. The address is 6 Bowl Court, off Plough Yard which is next to the Drunken Monkey at the junction of Great Eastern Street and Shoreditch High Street. Nearest tubes are Old Street and Liverpool Street. Please bring (vegan) food to share along with leaflets, flyers, posters etc for upcoming events. It is hoped that these assemblies will happen every month at different autonomous spaces around London. Please network this widely to make it happen.
Anti-Olympics Film Screening
@Bowl Court, Norton Folgate Liberty SquatWednesday May 21, 2008 @ 8:00 pm Film Showing “Five Ring Circus” (http://www.thefiveringcircus.com) A film on the campaigns against the 2010 Olympics in Canada with someone from the film for Q&A/discussion.
Pre InterSpace meet up
Following on from the last international squat and autonomous spaces meeting in Dijon, France last November, comes the second meeting: this time on the outskirts of Berlin, 24th - 26th May 2008 Some of the rampART collective will be attending the. If you would like to contribute something but cannot go, we are having a pre-meeting to discuss this at 6 Bowl Court, on Thursday 15th at 8pm.
Radical Theory Reading Group
Friday May 30th at Bowl Court, 6pm
The readings for the next meeting are both by RD Laing: Ch 1 of The
Divided Self ('The Existential-Phenomenological Foundations for a
Science of Persons') and Ch 1 of The Politics of Experience and the
Bird of Paradise ('Persons and Experience').
Downloads here:
http://www.box.net/shared/static/rpoq8yn0gk.pdf
http://www.box.net/shared/static/y4abqs6kow.pdf
DiSSiDENT iSL@ND
Broadcasting from Bowl Court, this weeks show features an interview with someone from Keep it in the Ground talking about actions against a new coal mine being planned in Derby, as well as someone from the Lakenheath Action Group talking about 'Three strikes and you're out' which is part of a larger campaign for the withdrawal of US bombs from Britain. We'll have an activist from the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW) in to talk to us about getting organised at work, upcoming events and campaigns, and the relevance of trade unions in today's society. And, we have DJ Slippahz on the decks with some dubstep later too....so it promises to be a wicked show. Tune in on Friday from 9pm on www.dissidentisland.org Or, if you miss it, you can download the show from our site….available from Saturday.
City of the Sun, art exhibition 23rd, 24th, 25th
@Bowl Court With London as the theme, the works depict some of the many possible ways to live this city from different points of view that usually are not represented by the mainstream. "Many of us came here not long ago from other countries. What are we looking for? What sort of dreams are we trying to make real? Why have we left our ''cities of sun'' behind? As foreigners we usually keep strong links with our countries of origin. As a consequence we look at London without forgetting what is happening simultaneously in other parts of the world and with a special attention for what is different from what we were used to, back home. Is the urban space meeting the needs of its inhabitants? Our artworks are our way to deal with the many dysfunctional elements of this city and with the extreme sense of alienation that we often experience in the disorientating geography of London." Friday 6pm -12 opening, drinks and djs Sat 1pm - 12 with live music from 6pm Sun 1pm - 12 sound performance and video
Other News
Early notice of ramPARTY
6th June - @ Rampart Street ramPARTY for the 4TH anniversary of the creation of the rampART social centre - films, cabaret, performances, poetry, bands. Possibly a benefit to start a seed fund for new social centers or a social center fighting fund. (Planning meeting 2 pm Fri 16th in rampart street.) Which reminds me. In the last newsletter we mentioned plans to compile a book about the four years of the rampART as a way of recording our history and experiences. If you have something you would like to contribute; a Rampart related story to tell, photographs, old flyers, advice, how-to-guides, etc. then email us. Photos and video would be great as we can produce some kind of a presentation for the 4th anniversary.
Planning rampARTS demise
Developers have put in an application for change of use and redevelopment of 15-17 Rampart Street, the warehouse that has been home to the rampART social centre for the last four year. Objections must be submitted by 28th May (although this deadline is unlawfully short as the notices only went up on the 8th). Please email us if you'd like to write an objection. More details next week on or indymedia.
Welcome to the Liberty Zone
Speaking of objectionable developments, the campaign against the construction of 645,000 square feet of skyscraper offices, 310 flats and a hotel behind Bowl Court has stepped up a notch with residents declaring an ancient right to self-determination! Maps in the City of London Guildhall Library show the neighbourhood has the status of a distinct district with liberty and independence from central planning law in the capital. Although this was meant to have been rescinded, documents have been discovered that apparently question whether the little piece of liberty might still stand. Madness singer Suggs is to release an album called The Liberty of Norton Folgate (http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=111508026&blogID=393664545 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YXFJVsjpfg8) and we’re tempted to consider appropriating the term to name our still nameless social centre. see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norton_Folgate
Phone and Net at Bowl Court
Finally, as mentioned last week, we've been working on providing phone and internet at the new place without the need to install a fixed line and contract. That's now done.... it's good to talk
