Combating Brixton Gentrification – On Saturday twenty fifth April 2015 the local people in Brixton held a day of actions to reclaim its social & cultural variety, threatened by growing rents and property improvement which are forcing out native companies and residents.
I’d arrived early for primary ‘Reclaim Brixton’ occasion in Windrush Sq. and first made my technique to Atlantic Highway the place long-established native companies have been being compelled out from the railway arches which line one aspect of the street. They have been beneath risk from Community Rail who with help from Lambeth Council have been finishing up a refurbishment programme which might consequence of their retailers being closed and the rents for the retailers after being 3 times as excessive, pricing the low value native companies out of the world.
All of the shops have been closed for 2 hours throughout lunchtime in protest, and mural artists had been invited to work on their metallic shutters. In 2015 I wrote: ‘On Stella’s Unique Hair & Magnificence Salon an artist was engaged on a mural for the United Households and Buddies marketing campaign, celebrating Cherry Groce, Sean Rigg and Ricky Bishop, all killed by Brixton police. All of the retailers on each side of the arches have been closed, and most had white sheets with the title of the enterprise and a punning message concerning the evictions. A few of them have traded right here for a few years – Denmay Materials since 1948, and L S Mash and Sons have been fishmongers right here since 1932. Their message to Community Rail – ‘Don’t rip the soul outta my place”
Avenue theatre teams walked previous on their technique to ‘Reclaim Brixton’ some in unique gown carrying cardboard houses and others with posters towards the risk to Communities, Properties, Companies from Lambeth Council.
I walked alongside to the gentrified Brixton Village, an intensive arcade between Atlantic Highway and Coldharbour Lane, to seek out that police and safety have been maintaining out protesters who, led by London Black Revs, had deliberate to undergo the market in a peaceable march.
I discovered Class Struggle at Brixton Station and walked again with them to Brixton Village, the place different campaigners together with some from the Ayslesbury Property the place I had photographed yesterday making their banner and different South London housing campaigners have been arriving for the march.
Somewhat to my shock the march when it lastly began was a brief and pretty direct one to Windrush Sq., turning off Coldharbour Lane to enter the sq. by way of Rushcroft Highway.
Near the mansion flats which had been squatted for 32 years earlier than residents have been violently evicted in July 2013 individuals accompanying the lengthy black banner of B.A.G.A.G.E (Brixton Motion Group In opposition to Gentrification and Evictions) with its message ‘Refuse to Transfer – Resist the Evictions – Assist your Neighbours’ and others let off a number of pink flares.
Windrush Sq. in entrance of the Tate Library and reverse Lambeth City Corridor was a number of years earlier re-landscaped by Lambeth Council, who intentionally turned what had been a preferred place for locals right into a bleak and unwelcoming windswept space to discourage the casual gatherings that came about there.
Maybe it was partly on account of this that the occasion going down there appeared to lack any actual cohesion with varied teams doing their very own factor in numerous elements of the big space and largely ignoring the speeches and performances on the Unite Group stage.
After an hour or so with not very a lot occurring, activists determined it was time for a march and took to the street blocking visitors and walked up Brixton Highway.
They stopped for some time exterior Brixton Underground, drumming and dancing and shouting.
Then they marched alongside Atlantic Highway and somewhat to my shock returned on to Windrush Sq. alongside Coldharbour Lane.
I hung round for some time in Windrush Sq. the place nothing a lot was nonetheless occurring slowly and issues appeared peaceable. I made a decision I had achieved sufficient for the day and left.
This was a mistake. Shortly after (in all probability when Class Struggle got here out of the pub) sthings kicked off and a few individuals stormed and briefly occupied Lambeth City Corridor, a big window at Foxton’s property brokers was damaged, and some activists went into Brixton Village with banners.
Many extra footage on My London Diary:
London Black Revs ‘Reclaim Brixton ‘march
Reclaim Brixton celebrates Brixton
Take Again Brixton towards gentrification
Brixton Arches tenants protest eviction
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Tags: 2015, April 2015, Atlantic Rd, Aylesbury Property, BAGAGE, Brixton Buzz, Brixton Highway, Brixton Station, Brixton Village, Class Struggle, evictions, gentrification, graffiti, housing disaster, growing rents, Lambeth Council, London, London Black Revs, Love Brixton, march, Marcia Rigg, murals, Newtwork Rail, peter Marshall, protest, Railway arches, Reclaim Brixton, Rushcroft Rd, Sean Rigg’s sister, social & cultural variety, squatters, Windrush Sq.
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