Geen Stem Voor Racisme
Hier kun je discussieren over Geen Stem Voor Racisme.
I was optimistic during the initial manifestation, even considering the fact it felt like a rally at first. As we began to march, a police escort consisting of; Armoured police on horseback, many silent police, surveillance vans and neighborhood cops assembled alongside the Anti-Fascist bloc. We marched for some time and eventually we passed a small, irrelevant group of angry white men (fascists) in balaclavas. Sticking up my middle finger at them was an adequate response, considering their numbers.1
Towards the end of the march, we turned right in the direction of museumplein (next to the fire station). At this moment a police surveillance van drove directly into the Anti-Fascist bloc near the back of the demonstration. The surveillance van wanted to split the demo, weaken the front row of the bloc, and continue recording faces. The driver had little consideration for those who were on the road, and was even laughing as he bumped into people. People had to cover the wind shield of the car with a banner in order to stop the vehicle. The police came over immediately to protect the van. There were cameras and some fuss but eventually the situation calmed and people joined the rest of the manifestation at museumplein.
We had assumed everything had calmed down at that point so we decided to leave. As we walked away we noticed a small group of people in black leaving the demo. At the same time we noticed around 30-40 silent cops run in there direction. As the police attacked them from behind, a police van pulled up alongside to block off any vision from the demonstration (a very well timed, sneaky manoeuvre). We had to run around the IAMSTERDAM sign to try and see what was happening. One individual had their face crushed into the ground with 4 police on top of them, and another person was already being loaded into a cage on wheels. The thought that I was surrounded by stillen, sent chills down the back of my spine.
When the SP (political party) left in groups and red jackets, they were not attacked violently by thugs.
Yet when my comrades left wearing black jackets in a group, they were seized upon en masse, brutally arrested, and parceled into vans.2
So what is the criteria for profiling and arresting people? And who decides?
Are you surprised these people left in a group when they are treated in this way?
We can tell ourselves that “they must have done something”, but this is a toxic thought, and it kills.
We have to understand the gravity of police intervention, this was a “legal” demonstration and it was not over. The disruption they caused to the demo was Illegal. The mentality that police officers have is very dangerous and there disregard for human life is even more so. The fact that there is no way to hold this person accountable, or to know if they were acting this way because they were ordered to do so, is equally alarming. We have no way to protect ourselves from police officers when we are assaulted and/or arrested.
The overwhelming presence of the police and surveillance shattered the few fragments of equality we have been constructing in recent times. It was comparable to the practice we have seen in Den Haag the last years (probably a lot longer). Which is not so strange considering the former mayor of Den Haag, Jozias van Aartsen (VVD), is now the temporary mayor of Amsterdam. Such oppressive practice is currently the norm, and our right to protest comes only at the mercy of those in power. As a result social progress is halted. We are all equally responsible for allowing this to happen. It is shocking that at a large Anti Racist demo, a group of people can be so heavily discriminated, and another remain so silent. We must support each other, not segregate ourselves further.
As said in the beginning, I was optimistic when I arrived, but by the time I left I had not witnessed any political or social equality on that day, and therefore no democracy.
Not even vegan BACON!3
1. I also want to point out that some of the fascists were wearing balaclavas, which is illegal during demonstrations. This has been the exact reason demonstrations (large and small) in the past have been repressed or dispersed. There is a double standard there, and we should be conscious of that.
2. Previously demonstrators have been explicitly told they have to leave alone or in pairs, or be arrested on the spot.
3. Bacon is often used as a slur for police officers, originating from a comparison between them and pigs.
Volgende keer graag een
Volgende keer graag een vertaling in Nederlands er bij. Ook voor meer draagvlak . Kijk als niet iedereen in zwart is dan heeft black block minder effect. Die open deur trap ik maar even in.
Volgende keer iedereen in rode jasjes net als de SP ? Nee natuurlijk niet. Mogelijk moet je de blackblock evalueren en mogelijk is blackblock achterhaalt. Eind 90 er jaren waren er al politiek radicale krakers die als het nodig was in C&A gekleed en dito kapsel demonstreerden. Herinner ik me vaag niet veel maar het is gebeurd denk ik. Er is al heel lang haat bij de politie smeris pigs of hoe je ze noemt in Amsterdam tegen wat ze inschatten als poltiek radicaal Links dat is toegenomen na de " Kroningsrellen " waar radicale krakers notabene voor een groot deel niks mee te maken hadden denk ik. Er zijn toen wat " politie medewerkers " gewond geraakt heb ik de indruk. Ook houd de politie er niet van als ze het nakijken hebben politiek Links radicalen ze te slim af zijn.
Graag een video van het gebeuren van het busje / auto die op demonstranten inreed. Zo dat een advocaat er meer mee kan. SP is gevestigde orde dat is het verschil met blackblock je kan daar over klagen maar het is realiteit.
Crust punks wear black . For
Crust punks wear black . For the occasion of a AFA demo you better go to the thrift shop and get your self some C&A folks. Just a thought. Blackblock in NL is not a working strategy any more ? Look this is not Greece or Hamburg. You are in conservative bourgeois NL just a reminder. You can not deliver huge numbers here and are therefore vulnerable more vulnerable to police attacks. Just saying. I respect your contribution to the good cause of AFA and regret to have to read about the police attack. You know that that will happen again such an attack be prepared. Alerta ! Oprotten crypto Nazis en soorgelijke griezels.
Some info for young foreign
Some info for young foreign activists : If you consider the number of people that could be gathered when a demo or an eviction was taken place in the cities Amsterdam Utrecht also in a smaller town like Leiden and Nijmegen at least untill the end of the 1990 s then today is a some what different situation to say the least.
The origin of this is the squat ban " kraak verbod " to some extent I think almost no " vrij plaatsen " any more.
No sociaal benefits " uitkering "any more for people up to 27 years of age and for students all kinds of presure to finish their studies especially university as soon as possible de eeuwige student is no longer possible. Four years of university or at most six thats all.
I think this squat ban was also to weaken the radical left. How many people react to an Alarm these days ?
The fall of the East Block and the open border with eastern Europe has something to do also with this.
The influx of people from the former East block shook up the more or less established situation with squating I think. Also the traditional Left in NL was weakened by the fall of the Stalinist East BLock . The traditional "main stream " Left like PvdA allowed squating through a " gedoog beleid " . These unlikely " allies " hated and distrusted by Left radicals like radical squaters are today almost disappearing with one exception the Groen Links party . I doubt it that Groen Links in Amsterdam will be able to reverse the anti kraak wet localy. NL used to be more Left minded today the Rightwing has the support of lots of people that would not have even have considered supporting a crypto facist party. This has been growing for years. And so on. This is only my analysis / observation not scientific or something like that and not complete. You will find more info at he Staats archief at the Amsterdam https://socialhistory.org/nl if you are interested in the background of radical squating in NL and radical politics in NL. Also the Witboek kraken a dutch publication will give some background.
these kind of arrests are
these kind of arrests are nothing new and protocol. if you dont know stillen/AE/romeo: get some research done and so on before you start telling whats wrong in holland during demonstrations.
What also appears to be
What also appears to be getting protocol, rather old and tiresome, is arrogant bullshit reactions to stuff people post on Indymedia.
I have been protesting in NL for ten years and have lived here all my life, and although what is described above is definitely bot unheard of, to describe it as 'normal' is ridiculous. What's more, it is no way to respond to a comrade who took her/his time to describe and try to analyse a very problematic situation.
I am grateful for the information provided in the story above, which to my knowledge isnt available anywhere else online. If anyone considers themself an expert on these things, by all means enlighten us instead of arrogantly proclaiming "do some research", without even saying where you could do that research.
I agree with the statement above that it would be good of the above story is (also) in Dutch. At the same time, this seems to be a story from an individual (not an organisation), who cannot speak Dutch (sufficiently to tell above story).
It is the great strength of Indymedia to provide a collective platform on which individuals and informal groups can publish, without having to pass through a filter of some organisation. In a very practical way, it brings things like anarchy and autonomy closer. Please stop abusing the lack of a filter to put other people down, slowly destroying Indymedia. Or else just fuck off to Geenstijl, will you.