Autumn 2015 Edition

Policy aim: Gun down the vulnerable – AUTUMN 2015 Send stuff to [email protected] The online archive can be found at Scum like us? randomartists.org/rupture.shtml It was that time of year again… een and the chaos surrounding it that frontation with the authorities in London. Halloween always brings with it the ensu- had both the national and social media lit 2010’s Squat Monster’s Ball, in a former ing mayhem of huge raves up and down up like an early bonfire. Controversy has Royal Mail depot right on New Oxford the country – and this year was no differ- tended to follow the Scum parties around Street in central London, similarly ended ent, with at least three large parties in the fairly consistently during its ten or so year in pictures of running clashes with riot parts of the country where the rave scene history of huge London raves; but this year police with accompanying appropriately is at its largest (London, the South West has perhaps raised the bar. disgusted headlines across an outraged and East Anglia-ish). In recent years, Scum organisers would media – ‘Rave hordes in 18 hour spree of However, once again, it was Scumow- appear to have thrived on creating con- Continued inside... “The kids they attracted don’t get the He said, “I don’t care mate, I’ve got fuck all In defence of scene and its values” - It’s all very well for going for me. No job, no home, fuck all.” the wealthy to drop out and do something “It makes things harder for parties” – the Scum: a bit off the beaten track, squat or live on Though there was a central London party EIGHT ARGUMENTS REFUTED site, but their interests ultimately lie with the the week before maybe it will be harder way things are. In the end, it’s the kids in for a while now, but overall the number of “They’re not part of the scene” – Untrue, the new trainers and neat hair that have an new people brought in by Scum Tek and its Scum Teks go back years, and have been interest in changing society completely – copycats far outweighs the police attention. huge, amazing parties with loads of well- encouraging and channeling their rebellion “Trouble puts people off” – Really? Then known rigs. They have attracted new peo- is a good thing. why were they 5,000 people attending on ple – and that’s clearly upset some heads “Trouble was inevitable with that loca- the Facebook page despite it being quite – but it doesn’t not make them part of the tion” – Who are we blaming for the riot, the clearly confrontational and the last event scene. kids or the police who attacked them with was a riot? Surely if that puts people off it “They’re glory hunters” – Yes and so batons for attempting to walk past them would have been smaller? The truth is peo- what? That’s what made the parties so big into an empty building for a dance? Also at ple want to rebel as they party; and actually and inspired the new wave of more main- the current time an anti-establishment party that’s what the scene is about as much as stream kiddy crews to give it a go. You opposite Westminster is just what we need; hedonism – right back to our origins in the don’t have to like those parties, but don’t see next point. anarcho-punk squat gigs 30 years ago. Un- be a dick about it: it’s great they exist. Rave “It caused a riot” – No, the police caused like the past decades, despite the fact that is for everyone. a riot; but yes – it was likely and lots of anti- capitalism is increasingly discredited, un- “They organised it on Facebook” – This government messages were posted before employment is at 3 million and homeless- indeed brought the parties to the atten- the event. Good. Austerity, the completely ness and social cleansing are wrecking our tion of the cops, but it also brought 100s bullshit idea that the world is ‘in debt’ and cities, we don’t have much of a rebellious of working-class kids into an underground, money for schools, hospitals, and job crea- culture. Anyone attempting to build one subversive scene; kids getting an idea that tion ‘isn’t available’ should mean riots just should be applauded. Scum Tek is dead – the existing property relations can be beat- like Thatcher’s neo-liberal policies caused long live the Scum! en if you have strength in numbers and are in the 80s. On the frontline I told a kid to at Read more red rubbish at: bold – and not just buildings, but in general. least put his hood up to avoid identification. facebook.com/redlondon17 Continued from the front... destruction’ read the Daily Mail. evicted, but it’s also inspiring for future This years Scumoween, openly promot- Map the lot plans. Check out Bzigeuleuschmeuldeu, ed on Facebook, once again resulted in As a historical project, we are mapping the Cambodian embassy, Dis’ASDA, the widespread clashes with police. With meet- squatted social centres for West Euro- Spiky thing with curves, the Wages for ing points in Kings Cross and Waterloo sta- pean cities. London currently has 263 Housework Campaign squats and many tions, 4000 people pledging to attend on projects dotted all over the capital, but more at maps.squat.net. Facebook and a location in a deprived there are of course many more still to be To add a squat or correct the infor- inner-city area, some level of confronta- added. Tekno party venues were normal- mation already on the maps you would tion was probably inevitable. Witnesses ly not added since there have been so be welcome to either send an email describe fairly serious violence on both many, although places such as Waterden [email protected] or use the com- sides; there’s videos in the media of heav- Road and the Odeon Parkway are listed ment system on the site. Note that for ily suited-and-booted Old Bill smashing since they did turn into social centres in a new project the minimum required in- an unarmed girl in the head with a baton a way (the term is used pretty loosely). formation to get onto to the map is: Ad- – which according to a journalist who wit- It’s sometimes been a bittersweet feel- dress / Date begun / Date ended (if end- nessed the incident appeared to provide a ing to read about all these amazing pro- ed). The more information on top of that ‘trigger for the subsequent trouble’ – and jects which have existed and then got the better, including links, photos etc. multiple accounts of riot cops attacking unarmed and peaceful attendees. Even Whatever the exact details of what hap- pictures of Halloweens events to wave in mainstream media reports have described pened, it would certainly appear that the the faces of politicians the next time they’re the police turning very violent very quickly, police were fairly keen on a fight when the prioritising their spending. Like after 2010, not particularly surprising in itself for those opportunity presented itself. At best, they its probably going to get fairly on-top when familiar with the Met. created an easily avoidable public order it comes to doing raves in London for a bit. The scale of the violence and destruc- situation by blocking off the entrance in But then, wasn’t it already? As London tion meted out by the crowd however is the face of huge crowds; and at worst de- becomes more and more of a playground perhaps the surprising – and more con- liberately engineered a riot. After 2010’s for the super rich, squatting becomes troversial – part. Scaffold bars, fire extin- Scumoween, and given the long and var- harder and underground culture continues guishers and, according to a sensationalist ied history of huge Scum raves in London, to feel the pinch, were Scum right to at- media at least, a petrol bomb were hurled it would be of no surprise if the Met and tempt to make some kind of stand? in the streets and from the roof of the party local authorities were keen for an excuse It’s debates over questions like this that building by a small minority of people intent to crush Scum – and the wider, now some- seemed to dominate Facebook (for about on serious violence. Many inside the party what declined, London squat party/rave a week anyway) and raver-related social tried to stop them and halt the violence, scene. Conversations officers had with media. Slightly ridiculously, many people from inside the venue at least, but with little those outside made it clear that they’d took the view that Scumtek organisers en- effect, as gangs of kids simply ran around been monitoring the event, and the number couraged the violence; seemingly taking the building causing havoc with little re- due to attend on Facebook, and had the the right wing’s headlines a bit too literally. gard for what anyone from the organisation riot squad prepared in advance. As several apparent Scum crew took to side thought. Out on the streets, in running Certainly, after whipping the national me- the pages of Time Out several days later to battles with the Old Bill, a local warehouse dia into a frenzy in the last week or two they point out, they had called out in their com- was trashed as well as cars totalled on the now have that excuse.

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