Critical Mass London 27/7/12 .....Mass arrests as London police attack ‘Critical Mass’ cycle ride during Olympic ....

Between thirty and fifty people were arrested today 27/7  en-masse as a result of their participation in the traditional monthly critical mass.

pre-arrest detention

cop presence

London police have used pepper spray against “critical mass” cycle ride as the British capital holds the opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Games. “Large number of people” arrested said a police tweet.

Critical Mass is a cycling event typically held on the last Friday of every month all around the world.

Some witnesses said police pushed the cyclists aside to get David Beckham through traffic.

The helicopter was already tracing circles above Waterloo Bridge at 6.30pm. The mass left the meeting point earlier than the usual 7.30pm. A van with police inside was emitting some unintelligible words and there were police on bikes, too, something unseen in years now, even since the House of Lords decided that the mass was indeed not a protest.

Some people crossed Blackfriars Bridge, some others Southwark Bridge. London Bridge was blocked by police to traffic when the Critical Mass arrived there. A police officer said to all there: “Guess what's waiting for you on Tower Bridge!” There were some scuffles and what looked like an arrest. A small portion of the mass sneaked through the line on the pavement, which was then joined by the rest in the City.


The mass then proceeded without major incidents until Rick Roberts Way. All riders that had reached thispoint were kettled under section 12 of the "Public Order Act", for disobeying the order apparently given by police to stay South of the river, and about an hour later, arrested, taken to a police station in Central London in a bus hired by police, and have their bikes put on another bus.

Critical Mass is a mainly bike ride that has taken place from 6.30pm onwards on the last Friday of every month for the last 15 years. The House of Lords ruled in 2008 that it is not a protest but a customary ride.

criticalmass arrest buses 


 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WA8TNeHeBBw&sns=fb 

Mass arrests as London police attack 'Critical Mass' cycle ride during Olympic ceremony (VIDEO, PHOTOS) 
 http://www.rt.com/news/london-police-olympics-arrests-269/

During Critical Mass London, police escalate violence and aggression. Police took a rider around the corner and a mounted officer placed his horse between the other riders and the person they had on the ground. A rider in grey holding two bicycles steps off the road onto the pavement and is shouted at by the mounted officer. He is then dragged off the pavement by an officer who then attempts to take a bicycle he was holding. Another rider attempts to take the bicycle back which causes a struggle. A third rider who is facing away from a mounted police officer and posing no threat is then struck from behind by the mounted police officer with an extendable baton. Later this officer attempted to justify this by saying he was threatened. Near the end you will also see a person who is apparently a police officer in shorts showing people his warrant card. Earlier on he had assaulted a person and become involved in the situation without making it clear he was a police officer. We witnessed him grabbing a rider by the neck and only then said to uniformed officers that he was a police officer when they attempted to stop him assaulting a rider.

. Fuck the 2012 Olympics

Graffiti Raids Across London as Police Sanitise City Ready For Olympics

Update #1: The New Statesmen spoke to the British Transport Police about this story, who claimed that only four people were arrested, not thirty. The New Statesman shares our opinion, however that process should not be used as pre-emptive punishment. We posted the story as it was told to us, and do apologise if there are any inaccuracies.

 

It’s not uncommon for us to be contacted by respected ex-graffiti writers. That said, we certainly weren’t expecting the late night phone calls that we received from some past artists last night, who got in touch to tell us that they had been raided by the police yesterday (17th July). While graffiti writer’s homes being raided by the police is not a rare phenomenon, this series of raids came as quite a shock to many of the artists as most had given up painting illegal graffiti some 15 years ago.


Some of the people who were arrested had stopped painting graffiti without prior permission over a decade ago, and now paint commissioned artwork for corporate clients, while others haven’t touched a spray can at all in many years. For both types of ex-graffiti enthusiast, a knock on the door from the British Transport Police was the last thing they were expecting.


As they were escorted by officers back to the BTP headquaters in Victoria, the retired graffiti artists overheard radio chatter which made it clear to them that raids were being carried out on addresses across the length and breadth of London. Once they arrived at the station, the ex-graffiti writers spotted thirty or more familiar faces from the past – and realised that they weren’t the only ex-graff scene dweller to be arrested. Retired graffiti artists had been pulled in a big way.


It was around then that the graffiti artists realised what point the police were trying to make with them. Having been arrested, they were questioned about what they considered petty matters – accusations of criminal damage in the ’90s, questions about websites and magazines that they were involved in. After being briefly questioned about these seemingly irrelevant matters, they were told that they were to be bailed until November on the condition that they did not use any form of railway in London (overground, tube or tram), carry spray paint (or other graffiti tools, presumably) at any time, or travel within a mile of any Olympic area. That includes the Olympic Park, the ExCel center and other Earls Court locations, Greenwich park, Hampton Court Palace, Hyde Park, Lord’s Cricket Ground, North Greenwich Arena, The Mall, The Royal Artillery Barracks, Wembley Arena, Wembley Stadium, Wimbledon and a host of out-of-London locations.


They felt that they were arrested for one reason – in order to place bail restrictions upon them that would supposedly discourage graffiti from being painted during the Olympics.


It’s no secret that graffiti and street art are being targeted in the run up the London 2012 games. Each day stories emerge of artworks treasured by locals being removed by excited councils, or of graffiti that had remained untouched for years suddenly being washed brown by the over-zealous buff. Even so, we didn’t expect that unsolicited artwork would be considered such a threat to the image of the country that the authorities would manipulate the legal system to send a message out the graffiti artists – picking up anyone they could with a past in graffiti and slapping them with harsh bail conditions. Whether the BTP ‘s arrests served any genuine purpose, or if they were simply a tool used to issue people with draconian bail conditions, only they can say.


Assuming our contact was right, the British Transport Police were trying to send a message to them. A message that says graffiti would not be tolerated during the Olympics. Quite why the BTP decided to target a group of mainly retired writers, no one is quite sure. If they were trying to make a point to these men that they shouldn’t attempt to gain graffiti notoriety during the Olympics, they are most likely a decade or two too late to advise these men.


These men have told us that they are not currently involved in painting illegal graffiti. These men are living law-abiding lives, but can no longer travel on public transport or enter large areas of London due to harsh bail conditions. In addition, laptops, mobile phones and other devices were taken into evidence by police. How these men are supposed to work and look after their families under these conditions, they are not sure.


While thousands of people every year travel to cities like Barcelona, Los Angeles and Berlin to enjoy the graffiti and other vibrant youth movements, the heavy handed actions of government and law enforcement in London could see our fair capital descend into the cultural deadzone. The growing sanitisation of the city threatens it’s status as a creative hub, and now the authorities are harassing legitimate artists in their never ending pursuit of those who dare to create art without permission.

repost #olympics
 Homepage: http://www.thelondonvandal.com/2012/07/graffiti-raids-across-london-as-police-sanitise-city-ready-for-olympics/

Vandals target town's Olympic rings twice uk

E YORKS: Olympic rings installed at the clock tower in Boothferry precinct, Goole, have twice been attacked by vandals.

In the first incident they were damaged before the Olympic Torch parade, which brought thousands on to the streets of the town on June 19.
They were able to be repaired before the big moment came.
Then, the weekend after the relay, the rings, which had been installed by Goole College and made of plywood with a metal frame, were damaged again.
This time they cannot be repaired.
Elsewhere in Goole, graffiti has been scrawled on sports facilities in West Park.
The walls of the changing rooms have been spray-painted.
The buildings were installed as part of a joint initiative by Goole Town Council and the Football Foundation.
The regional mini- soccer facility cost £20,000.
Goole PCSO Mike Simpson was called to the scene but nobody has been arrested.
Despite looking a mess, the graffiti does not affect the operation of the changing facilities, which are still in use.

'Don't play games with our lives': Londoners protest against plans for Olympic defence systems on top of flats

The Rapier system has a world-class radar on it and is particularly good at picking up low and slow-moving objects in the sky.
'It means we’re able to get the very best picture of what is happening in the skies of London.'
Air Vice Marshall Stuart Atha added: 'We want the focus to be on Usain Bolt this summer and not us. We’re very proud to be part of this plan to deliver a safe and secure Olympics.'
The Lexington Building in Tower Hamlets as well as the Fred Wigg Tower in Waltham Forest, both in east London, have been identified as potential sites for the High Velocity Missiles.

Repurposed: The Fred Wigg Tower in Waltham Forest, London, has been chosen as one of six sites around London to form a 'ring of steel' to safeguard the Olympic Games

Rapier missiles would be positioned on Blackheath Common and in Oxleas Wood, both in south east London, and at William Girling Reservoir Chain in Enfield and Barn Hill at Netherhouse Farm in Epping Forest, both in north London, should the Air Security Plan be approved by the Government.
Col Campbell said the sites had been chosen to avoid having weapons inside the Olympic Park.
He added: 'We’re trying to de-militarise this and let the sport do the talking. The Lexington Building is the best available location away from the Olympic Park.'

Action stations: The army have a practice of how the surface-to-air missiles would be stationed, and if necessary, used to protect the games

Training time: A member of the Royal Artillery aims the Starstreak High Velocity Missile System, part of the ground based air defence systems that may be deployed during the Olympics, at Blackheath, London

Serco targeted in South Oxfordshire uk

An anonymous group targeted Serco, the detention profiteers (and all-round capitalist outsourcing wrong-uns) at their offices in Culham Science Park tonight. Several prominent signs were redecorated and bus stops nearby were postered explaining why.

large sign at the entrance painted

...and the other one too

another sign also flyposted - photo taken without flash then enhanced

..and the bus stops nearby - again without flash, sorry!

Corporate Watch have done plenty of good dirt-digging on Serco over the years; here's some background:
 http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=4264
 http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=4226
 http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=4082
 http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=4041
 http://www.corporatewatch.org/?lid=3534

Poster text:
++++++++++++++++++++
SERCO: TORTURING FOREIGNERS SINCE 2004

Serco run racist prisons

Serco runs Colnbrook and Yarls Wood Immigration Removal Centres, racist prisons where people whose only "crime" is to cross borders are locked up without time limit, sometimes for years. Many detainees have complained of abuse and assaults. In July 2010, two detainees in Colnbrook were found dead in their cells. Around the same time, a leaked memo by SERCO revealed that the company had dismissed similar incidents in Australia, instead accusing detainees of "creating a self-harm culture" and using it as a "bargaining tool".

Serco torture - now proven in court

An Algerian man ("FGP") was restrained and attached to Serco staff at all times, 24/7, during nearly 9 days hospitalisation.

This included while showering and using the toilet, as well as during medical consultations and treatment and while asleep. There was nothing in FGP's history to suggest he would abscond from custody. The High Court found that to have restrained FGP in this way throughout his admission to hospital was a violation of his right not to be subjected to inhuman and degrading treatment.

Prison guards shouldn't be landlords

Serco have won a £175 million contract to accommodate asylum seekers in Scotland, Ireland and the North West of England. While Serco rake it in, asylum seekers are forced to live in substandard housing and often face eviction and destitution if they do not, have a good lawyer or the UKBA makes a mistake in their case. Serco's involvement in detention makes their involvement in providing housing, health or welfare services totally inappropriate. As one Zimbabwean asylum seeker in Sheffield declared "I do not want a prison guard as my landlord."

Fuck Serco.
++++++++++++++++++++

wild rabbit

BP F***ing the Future subverts (uk)

With the Olympics now only three weeks away, protests against Olympic sponsor BP are escalating. Today dozens of BP logos across London were sabotaged, including the UK’s most prestigious billboard site at Cromwell Road. Around the capital, protesters hit petrol stations, BP-sponsored cultural institutions and advertising hoardings, protesting against one of the world’s most environmentally destructive companies being a major sponsor of the London Olympics. Signs were splattered with oil and BP’s tagline ‘Fuelling the Future’ was subvertised with the URL ‘f-ingthefuture.org.uk’.











BP has continuously been slammed for its systematic disregard for the environment, human rights and worker safety, including its failure to clean up after the Gulf of Mexico disaster of 2010, its decision to enter the devastating Canadian tar sands, and its plans to drill for Arctic oil. This criticism has increased dramatically since BP was announced ‘Sustainability Partner’ of the London 2012 games, and today’s protests follow a series of recent actions targeting BP’s Olympic sponsorship:
* On the eve of BP’s AGM in April, protest group CAMSOL posed online as LOCOG and announced BP had been dropped as Sustainability Partner.
* In April, the UK Tar Sands Network nominated BP in the Greenwash Gold campaign as ‘worst Olympic sponsor’.
* Since April, the Reclaim Shakespeare Company has been invading Shakespearean performances across the country to protest against BP’s sponsorship of the Cultural Olympiad.
* Last week, acclaimed actor Mark Rylance spoke out against BP’s sponsorship of the Games, revealing he had questioned his own involvement in the Opening Ceremony.
One of those taking part in the action, Brendan Pierce, said, “BP is paying tens of millions of pounds to clean up its tarnished image, in what could well be the most expensive use of propaganda in history. But with even its own business projections preparing for a six degree temperature rise, BP knows it is damning us to a future of runaway climate change.”
Another activist, Deborah Dudley, said “Reports suggest that BP’s sponsorship of the Olympics has been highly effective at laundering its filthy image, so we’re revealing the dirt behind the glossy branding. I’m proud to be taking direct action as part of a worldwide movement for climate justice. I encourage others to get involved.”
A website, f-ingthefuture.org.uk, shows pictures of the action and outlines the problems with BP’s sponsorship of the Olympics.
For more information, interviews and high-resolution photos, email: f.ingthefuture@gmail.com


What the website says:
-------------------------------------------
Why shouldn’t BP sponsor the Olympics?
BP’s green logo is plastered all over the Olympics. The company is ‘Official Fuel and Gas Provider’ and also sponsor of the Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival.
Worst of all BP is ‘Sustainability Partner’. That’s right, the organisers of the Olympics have decided to allow BP, one of the dirtiest companies on earth, the opportunity to rebrand itself as socially responsible and take an active role in proposing how society should approach climate change.
Do you remember images of oil gushing into the Gulf of Mexico from BP’s deep-sea Macondo well back in 2010, coating the ocean and its inhabitants? Have you heard of BP’s plans in the tar sands, the world’s second largest oil deposits after Saudi Arabia, that can only be extracted by using four times as much greenhouse gas and have been labelled the most destructive project on earth? Have you heard about BP’s deals to extract oil from the depths of the pristine Arctic, despite the potential risk of a catastrophic spill even harder to clean up than the Gulf?
Do you think BP has earned the right to be ‘Sustainability Partner’ to the London 2012 Olympics?
Does BP have the right to have any association whatsoever with the Games, whose founding statement speaks of ‘universal fundamental ethical principles’, whose 2011 Charter declares that the Games should be ‘promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity’, and require ‘mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play’?
Do you think oil and sport shouldn’t mix?
Do you sometimes have the feeling that wherever you turn these days, advertising has intruded a little further, uninvited, into your personal space?
BP is a corporation that feeds off injustice and the destruction of the natural world that we and countless other species rely on. That destruction comes most threateningly from the current brutal destabilisation of the world’s climate.
BP is deeply embedded in British society – our energy, our pensions, our investments, our culture… It pumps serious money and effort into keeping things this way. Marketing works. Shiny advertisements around the capital do change the way people perceive a company. By sponsoring activities like the Cultural Olympiad, the London 2012 Festival, the World Shakespeare Festival and the Games themselves, BP is able to continue its catastrophic, though increasingly profitable, operations. That’s why we had to act.
Remember, if you see any ‘improved’ BP advertisements, please take a photo and email them to f.ingthefuture@gmail.com – and don’t worry, we won’t assume that you have any responsibility for them!

Here are a few more things you can do:

• Take action for climate justice! See Rising Tide UK and Climate Justice Collective for ways to get involved.
• Learn more about BP’s enormous environmental and human rights atrocities. Start with tar sands.
• Move your money away from banks and other institutions who will lend it to fossil fuel-based projects
• Harness your creativity to a more caring, conscious future, possibly by contributing to Art Not Oil‘s ‘Cutural or Vultural 2012?’ gallery.
• Be part of a movement for real, deep, positive and lasting social and ecological change: http://www.occupyuk.info, http://occupylsx.org
• Cut your carbon! Cut out short-haul flights, minimize car use, minimize your meat consumption, insulate your house. There are plenty of things you can do…but whatever you do, try to challenge the overarching mindset and system that’s allowng this insanity to happen!

(NB. These links are not connected to us, we just like ‘em!)