A round up recent anarchist activity in and around London
This year’s prestigious Portobello Film Festival was opened with a full length feature film by local anarchist troublemaker and creative genius Greg Hall. Entitled SSDD: Same Shit Different Day its overt political message played to a packed house of filmgoers in west London in a makeshift cinema beneath the Westway flyover. Evoking the ghost of Joe Strummer the venue was an ideal setting and served as an excellent platform for a truly remarkable film – not least because it was made on a zero budget.
The great and the good of the London anarchist scene came out to support Greg, who is a member of the Whitechapel Anarchist Group, and witness the world premiere of his third feature, a film of growing maturity and brilliant technical execution. Set in the East End it follows the paths of several likely lads as they drift through their day in a world of little hope and no opportunities all eventually coming together for the final electric scenes in a grim backstreet pub where scores are settled, soapboxes are climbed on and fragile romances emerge. As anarchist propaganda it excelled, as a moving tribute to the working class of downtrodden London it beats with a tender heart.
Same Shit Different Day: http://www.brokebutmakingfilms.blogspot.com/
Radical London – the network of local groups covering the Greater London area met for its last organising meeting before the annual London anarchist bookfair. The idea of Radical London is to co-ordinate the activities of locally based anarchist groups, building solid community bases to support ongoing local initiatives from a radical perspective.
One such initiative is the campaign to save Wanstead flats from being taken over as part of the 2012 Olympics development. There was a mass community picnic on Saturday 5th September to galvanise local support and highlight the issues. Local residents living near Wanstead Flats have been demanding answers about plans by the City of London Corporation to allow the Metropolitan Police to base its Olympics operational centre on the Flats. There has been no consultation, even though the plans involve locating a fenced, – high security compound – with buildings, parking areas, stables and apparently even police holding cells – for at least 120 days and so close to residential neighbourhoods.
Radical London: http://www.radicallondon.net/
Save Wanstead Flats: http://www.savewansteadflats.org.uk/
Another initiative recently started is a London strike support group. Tentatively called Practical Solidarity it seeks to establish links between anarchists and the workers movement by offering practical support during times of conflict i.e. strikes, occupations etc. They organised people to attend picket lines for the recent tube workers strike.
