Montreuil: Oct 29-30 – Solidarity Weekend for Prisoners of the Social War
Posted: October 18th, 2016 | Author: THI | Filed under: Leaflets | Comments Off on Montreuil: Oct 29-30 – Solidarity Weekend for Prisoners of the Social WarSolidarity Weekend for Prisoners of Social War
Saturday October 29 and Sunday October 30
How do we demonstrate our solidarity with shared acts of revolt, even in the face of repression?
In this period of war and of generally heightened tension, the unbearable conditions under which we’re made to live are maintained by fear. Fear of losing your job and of coming up short at the end of the month, fear of police, fear of prison. This feeling is driven home by the indefinite extension of the state of emergency and by locking away for ever longer those who remain recalcitrant. And yet, there are so many reasons to revolt against this world of cash and cops, and so no wonder that many people don’t give in to resignation and continue to take action against it all, in small groups or in a crowd, by day or by night. Because the social war against the deadly rule of state and capital, there can be no truce: attacks against borders, rebellions in jail, escapes from detention centres, sabotage against the construction of airports or of high-tension power lines. Ransacking schools, burning construction equipment or the cables that permit the flow of information and transportation. Destroying campaign offices, riots following yet another police killing, daily hustles to avoid wage slavery… Beyond any law, whether earthly or divine, this routine disorder is able to flourish freely.
These past months, many of us have been thrilled to see the spread of offensive street actions, including in unpermitted marches not organized by unions or parties. From clashes with the guard dogs of the state and property and to the fiery destruction of their tools of the trade; from the smashed windows of businesses and the occasional looting of their contents, to burning Porsches and AutoLibs(1), and to blockades of high schools; even the occasional attack on snitch journalists and managing to break free of the union marshals — all this has come to shake up the arrogance of the powerful. In all (these) forms of struggle, not just those of the current “social movement”, self-organization and direct action are essential to break from the passification imposed by consumer relations and the terrorism of the state. After all, to claim that it’s inconceivable for people to strike directly at the existing order is just another way of saying that social revolt is simply impossible.
Although these attacks warmed our hearts, ten or so people are still incarcerated, notably in preventative detention following the burning of a cop car this past May in Paris (2). This means we need to not only continue to publicly defend these actions and the thousand and one good reasons for them, but to also continue the hostilities as a form of active solidarity. It doesn’t matter (to us) whether those accused are innocent or guilty — let’s leave these classifications to the ghoulish hands holding the gavel and their supporters. Within the demos or outside them, let’s make our solidarity a force by refusing to stay quiet and play the role of victim, by aiming to break the isolation power seeks to impose and by developing a consistency between ideas and acts of revolt.
To encourage discussion about the destruction of all prisons and the world they create and that needs them, we invite you to a weekend of solidarity with prisoners of the social war!
Two days featuring discussions, distros, and a fundraiser concert for the Kalimero fund, all on the theme: How to demonstrate our solidarity with shared acts of revolt, even in the face of repression? These two days will take place on Saturday, October 29, and Sunday, October 30, at La Parole Errante, 9 rue François Debergue in Montreuil (metro station Croix de Chavaux).
Saturday October 29 at 1pm
Discussion. Cops, judges, media, unions — all play their part in crushing revolt. However, not all of them receive the same level of criticism or hostility. They often push us into a defensive position defined itself by power. How do we escape the impasse of repression/anti-repression?
Saturday October 29 at 4pm
Discussion. What is solidarity and how do we make it an essential part of our struggles?
Saturday October 29 at 9pm
Concert in support of the Kalimero fund. Kalimero is a solidarity fund for prisoners of social war established in 2007 and that sends a stipend to incarcerated individuals, notably some of those captured these past months during the recent demonstrations in Paris.
Punk from Binamé, rap from Cerna, electropunk from La Marmite, and an open mic
Sunday October 30, 3pm
Discussion. How to be present where we’re least expected when confronting the many forms and mechanisms of social control and incarceration?
Notes
1) A car share program for electric vehicles