Newtown square/The Hub was occupied today by anarchists, anti-authoritarians, antifascists and people in solidarity to make a demonstration against the Sydney Fascist Forum happening this weekend in Tempe.
Texts were distributed and banners were hung around reading "NO BORDERS", "NO NATIONS", "SOLIDARITY IS OUR WEAPON, WAR AGAINST THE WAR OF THE BOSSES", and "NO COMPROMISE WITH FASCISM".
Cops immediately tried to stop the people gathering in the square, they threatened to arrest people for swearing, hindering police, playing amplified music, obstructing the footpath, sitting in a tree, and gathering in public without a permit. They ordered that protesters would be arrested if they used their sound system. They tore down the "NO COMPROMISE WITH FASCISM" banner and stole it.
The police were also telling the passersby that the occupiers were violent but when the public opinion started to overwhelmingly turn against the police Sgt Vincent Azzopardi backed off. For hours a whole squad of police remained right in front trying to intimidate the demonstrators to leave. They even started bringing xeroxed police files down to the squad in the square where they compared photos, and made snide menacing remarks using the demonstrators names (sourced from police surveillance/records) in an effort to further harass and intimidate people.
The police actions are a clear attempt to prevent people meeting together in public space and communicating. This kind of police tactics must be met with strong social resistance.
Below is the text distributed today.
NO COMPROMISE WITH FASCISM
The annual Sydney Forum of Fascists is happening for the 9th time down the road in Tempe this weekend. It is the biggest fascist gathering in Australia and is held at ‘the bunker’ where Jim Saleam the fuhrer of the Australia First Party lives.
Reactionary, right-wing and anti-immigrant politics have become more mainstream again with the political parties and the media outbidding each other with their appalling spectacle. This has given confidence and created a space for the fascists and the far-right to organise.
The groups that gather there this weekend, proselytise vile anti-Muslim and anti-immigrant rhetoric, and have their histories in Hitler/ Nazi- worshipping anti-semitism. They are racist, homophobic, and are apologists for colonialism and Aboriginal genocide.
One of the other fascist groups, the Australian Protectionist Party also recently came here to promote themselves and to hand-out flyers in Newtown under the ‘I Have a Dream Mural’.
They were driven out by locals who would not accept their racist presence.
Fascists have also insidiously taken control of the Humanist Society and their building over in Chippendale. Which has been met with strong community opposition.
We want a community that practices solidarity intrinsically in daily life. We want to live in a place that welcomes diversity and that refuses to accept the isolation and atomisation of those that live and struggle in our community. A place where people aren’t complacent or afraid to stand up to racism, sexism and homophobia, and don’t allow the fascists a platform for their hate.
In a country that has been built on the violence of colonialism and genocide we must recognise the continuity of these practices and demonstrate our solidarity with Aboriginal struggle.
Our capacity to actualise this support, solidarity and resistance is under attack by the gentrification and commodification of all public space, alienating and removing us from our communal reality.The police act in their role of ensuring that this process runs smoothly for developers and business interests - they are the defenders that uphold the laws and interests of the powerful in this racist and exploitative society.
This is our community- these streets and squares don’t belong to the fascists or police. By occupying these public spaces to meet and talk with each other we make visible our potentiality to oppose the authority of those who would attempt to dominate us.
SOLIDARITY IS OUR WEAPON
WAR AGAINST THE WAR OF THE BOSSES
-Anarchists and Anti-authoritarians
Comments
Re: Anti-fascist Occupation of Newtown Square
I am on the Black Rose and Anti-deportation elists and knew nothing about the protests at Tempe or Newtown. Come on guys, are you just a bunch of mates getting your rocks off, or are you really trying to mobilise people?
You need to get out of your little cacoons and be a little less insular. That way, you may get more than a dozen people at a rally and be fucked by the cops.
Re: Anti-fascist occupation of Newtown Square
Yep. All a bit self-defeatest. Have a protest and tell no-one about it. Having more people is the only way to stop cop harasment.
Re: Anti-fascist occupation of Newtown Square
3rd the motion that you invite us next time, maybe post an event https://indymedia.org.au/node/add/event
but props to you for getting out there, i'm prob to lazy to turn up anyway :)
Re: Anti-fascist occupation of Newtown Square
Wasn't gonna bother... but seriously now there's 3 of ya, sorry for not sending out personal invites.
And apart from my instinct to be snide to these complaints here's what i reckon...
1) Even if the original assumption that this was just a group of mates was true, i don't have a prob with that. I'm all up for folk who hang out and are friends autonomously organising shit without having to go through the usual formal structures of the left.
Everytime we take up public space with friends can be a way to resist and make a statement of intent. It's not self-defeatist to think we might have to start small and through social networks that already exist. I prefer this option than the constant deluded attempts to call 'mass rallys' to which only a hundred or so people turn up and where no connections are made. Rather than whinging that y'all didn't get emailed invites maybe you should try organising stuff with the people you hang out with.
2) And to the 1st person... that you're on a couple of egroups doesn't mean you're gonna hear about everything that's going on. You think maybe there are people and groups organising things outside those spaces - and particulary not only on email lists? I reckon trying to organise stuff over the internet does nothing to encourage a practice and culture of self-organisation and autonomy and the gist of these criticisms confirms that for me.
Put yourself (in person, not in email) around these spaces a bit and i'm sure you'll find out about events like these. Trust and solidarity doesn't come from sending out notices over the internet. Again though, just naming two things you're on the egroup for doesn't necessarily mean that those places were involved in organising this. And i'd add it's potentially dangerous to suggest such a link considering the trolls that lurk on sites like this.
Don't get me wrong... knowing there's folk out there who woulda come if they heard about it, makes me wish that y'all had heard about it and is something to take on board.
But also get off your high horse a bit and just do shit.
cheers.
Re: Anti-fascist occupation of Newtown Square
"The police actions are a clear attempt to prevent people meeting together in public space and communicating. This kind of police tactics must be met with strong social resistance. "
Ironic they should whine about that, since they didn't give same to APP.
Re: Anti-fascist occupation of Newtown Square
"Ironic" that the police didn't meet the APP wastes of space with the same attempts at shut-down tactics.
Demonstrate *for* democracy?
I would be so happy to see such energy put into demonstrating *for* something - the democratic & humanistic values of our society for example.
Muslims who are supposedly integrated into our society are urged to shun democracy - the basis of our comfy life and the thing that makes demonstrations like yours even possible - and no one even pays attention, let alone demonstrates against it.
non pasarant!
Well, I guess this really is among those unusual cases, where even visitors, like myself, your average Jackson (who is not at all knowledgeable in this area) might readily find curiosity, as well as get a new desire to further pursue the subject... Usually these types of articles are created for the pundits only, and in that sense, may be very idiosyncratic. Not so here. Good job.
will not stand!
Well, I suppose this is certainly among those exceptional cases, in which even people, like me, your average Thomas (who is not at all knowledgeable in this area) may quickly discover curiosity, and perhaps get a new desire to further follow the niche... Often these kinds of articles are meant for the pundits only, and in that sense, might be very idiosyncratic. Not so here. Good job.