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Old Reclaim the Streets (M41) Footage on You Tube

It was a really important day for me! I was involved with the planning and ended up on the team that erected the scaffolding tripod. There was a fake car crash and we had to leap out in front of the traffic, take the poles out of the back of a lorry and put the tripod up in a few seconds so someone could climb up it before the police arrived! I remember I got my leg caught up in a rope and panicked a bit. But we did it! Then there was the long wait for people to arrive. We could see a line of police across the motorway and thought that the game was up! But then when I saw the crowd I felt absolutely elated! A natural high that went on all day!
 
editor said:
It was worth being old for...if, err, you get my drift. It was such an fun and empowering day, as were many of the other protests around the time.
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That seems to be the problem, back then you couldn't go out without ending up protesting about something or other, i i know we are old(er) and have jobs, but the fight seems to have gone out of younger people. Look what happened in the last decent protest (or just big kick-off) everybody ended up using it to rob a new pair of trainers or a Tv.
 
boohoo said:
I do think it would be a lot harder to do something like this today - look at all the property of the rich that needs protecting!!
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I remember the police bringing in there new at the time containment techniques for protests and it did change from running them ragged to suddenly finding yourself trapped in a circle of riot coppers so things did change and made it harder but we did still try !!!! Don`t know how the student things went have been abroad for a while and since back been looking for things to get involved with and i`m either looking the wrong way or people aren't as concerned about things as they used to be or just happy to get along. Please people out there prove me wrong ....
 
I remember first being kettled in about 1999. I was passing a protest and stopped to look! A load of them ran my way and I got caught up in the police lines! With my bike! It was a very uncomfortable 4 hours!!

Before that I remember the police struggling to control us when we protested but it all seemed to come together in the late 90s for them!

I gave up protesting about then as the consequences became far too scary and I had a young family to support!

Still!! I'm back in action now and hopefully have some experience to share!! :D
 
AuntiStella said:
I remember first being kettled in about 1999. I was passing a protest and stopped to look! A load of them ran my way and I got caught up in the police lines! With my bike! It was a very uncomfortable 4 hours!!

Before that I remember the police struggling to control us when we protested but it all seemed to come together in the late 90s for them!

I gave up protesting about then as the consequences became far too scary and I had a young family to support!

Still!! I'm back in action now and hopefully have some experience to share!! :D
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I`m in a similar boat hoping to be able to spread some ideas to people who may not have ever tried to avoid getting arrested. ha. Good luck to you Stella the world needs people like you getting back up and active....
 
andy.c said:
Why aren't we still doing these things now, life was such fun then....
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Couple of things I know that mean an RTS alike protest won't work now:

Police have worked out how to remove the tripods (by putting "roller skates" on the legs and rolling them out of the way), so you'd have to find a different way of blocking streets effectively.

Much harder to get a soundsystem in - my first (and only) RTS was the Birmingham 1998 G8 protest and they only managed to get a tiny system + decks in on the back of an estate car iirc, so the whole party/protest combination goes out of the window.


In terms of recent stuff, the student demos, UKUncut and Boycott Workfare actions ahve all been good, but none on the scale of RTS stuff, nor with the wider participation that came from the whole connections with the free party/travel/CJA stuff.
 
BigTom said:
Couple of things I know that mean an RTS alike protest won't work now:

Police have worked out how to remove the tripods (by putting "roller skates" on the legs and rolling them out of the way), so you'd have to find a different way of blocking streets effectively.

Much harder to get a soundsystem in - my first (and only) RTS was the Birmingham 1998 G8 protest and they only managed to get a tiny system + decks in on the back of an estate car iirc, so the whole party/protest combination goes out of the window.


In terms of recent stuff, the student demos, UKUncut and Boycott Workfare actions ahve all been good, but none on the scale of RTS stuff, nor with the wider participation that came from the whole connections with the free party/travel/CJA stuff.
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i think what you mean is that some auld tactics don't work and new ideas needed, which is a far cry from your claim that an rts protest couldn't be done today.
 
Pickman's model said:
i think what you mean is that some auld tactics don't work and new ideas needed, which is a far cry from your claim that an rts protest couldn't be done today.
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Yeah true, not sure what you'd do for a soundsystem though, portable ones aren't anywhere near loud enough.
 
With some of the new bluetooth mini speakers that you can `connect` up that idea has merits. Ok it`s not a big fat 10k rig but musics music, as long as it`s good and you can hear it people can dance and have fun.....
 
It's not such a crazy idea, no. Forget Bluetooth though, the range and reliability aren't up to it and it adds latency to the signal which will really put the DJ of their stride. FM degrades gracefully and the receivers are really cheap and simple.
 
Crispy said:
It's not such a crazy idea, no. Forget Bluetooth though, the range and reliability aren't up to it and it adds latency to the signal which will really put the DJ of their stride. FM degrades gracefully and the receivers are really cheap and simple.
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How much power do they need? Don't suppose you could run one off a USB port on a laptop? (actually I guess how much power they need will depend on how far you want the signal to go)
 
Is it possible to get hold of radio transmitters at reasonable cost ? Or could you use something like what is used for Cb radio`s ?
 
course it could be done, just requires some real balls, willingness to get nicked from the DJ, and a suicide rig and vehicle, plus a few hundred or thousand well up for it protestors / ravers.

but I've probably said too much already.
 
And the DJ can just use a tablet or a phone with the transmitter in a backpack. The whole thing can be mobile and can scatter at a moments' notice.
 
Crispy said:
And the DJ can just use a tablet or a phone with the transmitter in a backpack. The whole thing can be mobile and can scatter at a moments' notice.
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not really the same though.... but a good back up plan.

so erm, once more unto the breach?:hmm:
 
as an idea it`s more of an alternative as nothing can compare to a throbbing, belly rumbling big fat rig but better than NOT dancing about the place ??? Anyone been to the silent discos they do in Goa and other places now ? Seems like a rubbish idea, but your still out and about with people having a laugh and dancing so really it works out ok. (it just could be better)
 
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