Call to action for a West Coast G8 regional mobilization in San Francisco from June 3 - June 10.

Call to action for a West Coast G8 regional mobilization in San Francisco from June 3 - June 10.

Solidarity with Venezuela

Squats often take the form of community centers, as squats are often the result of community action. Also, it is a good idea to offer the neighborhood around the squat some preemptive benefits, to quell their complaints about the squat, if they were to occur. Additionally, present-day squatting alliances, such as “Homes Not Jails� (www.homesnotjails.org) in the US, who identify and set up squats for people who are homeless, and the Advisory Service for Squatters/ASS (www.squat.freeserve.co.uk) in England, have helped encourage and coordinate recent squats. In Barcelona, Spain, 1996, squatters took over a farm, refusing electricity to protest dams and nukes, and began a self-sufficiency project with organic farming and community workshops. They made their own bread, and sold it to other squatted centers in the area. It is not uncommon to find squats incorporating soup kitchens, libraries, workshops, free stores, zines and publications, work collectives, etc. in their goals and immediate actions. I heard a story about some punks working in Mexico with squatters. The punks had bright hair and wild clothes, and worked as teachers in their school. At first the community was hesitant to trust them, but in time, they grew to be family, and now when the kids from that settlement see a picture of a punk, they point, and say “maestro,� or “teacher.�

what he really accomplished