The Hackney Social Centre was evicted May 16, 2008, after two unsuccessful eviction attempts in April. Many of the people living at the Social Centre have returned to their countries, and many are still in London, involved in different projects. The Social Centre was a brief but valuable experiment in active resistance and active defense of a large autonomous space in Hackney.

The Hackney space has a little bit of money left from the vegan cafes and from donations from the different groups that hosted events in the building. All of this money is going to fund direct action activies in London and abroad. Last month, £300 was given to comrades in Vancouver, organizing militant direct action resistance to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. In Hackney, squats and low-income housing are directly threatened by the Olympic re-development plans. The militancy of the Canadian activists is....inspirational.
URGENT UPDATE! The Hackney Social Centre is still under **THREAT OF EVICTION!** In March, the building's owners were given a Warrant of Possession by the courts. The Social Centre's scheduled eviction was successfully resisted on Monday 21 April by over 60 people - both inside and outside the building. Bailiffs are now expected to return to the building at any time.

Wednesday 30 January 2008

Photos from the Police Attack








New Social Centre Under Seige!

After four weeks in the building we were shocked by two sets of violent attacks - first by purported representatives of Howun Estates Ltd (the company the owns the property) and then by the Hackney Metropolitain Police! The attacks of last week (on the 22nd and 23rd of January) definitely shook the building and its occupants, but have only left us more convicted and committed. Within 11minutes of the first attack nearly 30 members of the local activist community had arrived on the premises. Our network is strong, and we look forward to many many days exploring the potential and possibilities of Hackney's newest autonomous zone. See our article on indymedia for more details about the attacks: (http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2008/01/390114.html?c=on#c188332)