Corporations v communities; education & activism
Occupy London is gearing up for Occupy May – details to be announced soon – but this weekend sees a host of events happening at its existing camps as well as around London.
Highlight events include:
5.30pm Friday 23 March – Disrupt Dirty Power Roving General Assembly visiting Tate Modern and the Southbank
On Friday 23 March, Occupy London’s roving General Assembly will focus on enabling local communities to protect themselves against the social, economic and environmental ravages caused by large corporations. Hosted by Occupy London’s Energy, Equity & Environment Working Group, the event ties in with the Disrupt Dirty Power actions happening around the world this weekend for the launch of Earth Month.
“Corporate rights should be subservient to the rights of the community, not the other way around,” commented Peter Coville of Occupy London’s Energy, Equity & Environment Working Group. “It is time to join the dots between the banks and funding fossil fuel corporations, which use their profits to hire lobbyists to pay off government officials to write legislation favouring big oil and big coal.”
* Meet 5.30pm at St Paul’s, then go across the Millennium Bridge to the Tate Modern for 6pm, where Liberate Tate collective (art activist collective exploring the role of creative intervention in social change) will give a brief presentation on BP’s sponsorship of the Arts.
* The assembly will then move along the South Bank to opposite the Shell Building for 7pm. Speakers will focus on Shell’s nefarious activities over recent decades, up to and including its present Arctic drilling operations. Melanie Strickland, solicitor and member of Wild Law and Occupy Law UK, will also present the idea of creating a Community Bill of Rights which gives power back to communities and to restrict corporate ‘rights’. As well as the speakers, there will be breakout discussion groups focusing on concrete actions. Facebook event – https://www.facebook.com/events/255697251186406/
2pm – Saturday 24 March – Occupy London General Assembly by the steps of St Paul’s. All are welcome to attend.
Noon Sunday 25 March – Occupy London’s Tent City University talk focusing on education and activism. By the steps of St Paul’s.
This Sunday, Tent City University invite you to come and compare notes with Mzonke Poni – Chairperson of Abahlali baseMjondolo Western Cape, the inspirational South African movement of shack dwellers, who will talk about activism, movement building, community organising and techniques of occupying and resisting through alternative and resistant education. Facebook event – https://www.facebook.com/events/256059027819429/
Mzonke Poni has been described by the Sunday Times as “the face of an ANC nightmare – an angry activist mobilising the township masses to protest at what he calls the government’s failure to create a better life for the poor.”
More about Abahlali baseMjondolo – http://abahlali.org/; More about Abahlali Western Cape go to http://www.khayelitshastruggles.com/