Re: <nettime> Sound System Politics: Bass Culture

[lotu5 <lotu5@resist.ca>]

this is a really interesting part of social movements that is mostly
absent here in the US: free culture parties:

http://www.indymedia.org.uk/en/2006/04/338471.html

The French city of Strasbourg became a 'free party area' on Saturday 15
April, when around 3000 people gathered for the "European Alternatives
Resistance" Sound-System Parade [Flyers]. The protest was called by Free
4 Euroalternatives, a loose coalition of sound systems, free party and
festival organisers, squats and people from around Europe.

The parade was a show of defiance to the increasing levels of repression
against non-commercial and autonomous forms of culture, and in
particular to protest about last summer's brutal attack by Czech police
against the Czechtek tekno festival. This event was widely considered as
the 'breaking point', when police in riot gear steamed into dancing
people with baton charges and tear gas attacks. As a result, two people
died and over 50 were seriously injured. [See Czech Teknival attack
feature]

The demonstration passed peacefully with people dancing to music played
by several mobile sound systems, and it ended with different parties
across Strasbourg. Some of the banners read "Nothing Stops People Who
Dance", "Free Party! Free People!", "Respect Our Rights" and "Against
Police Brutality". One of the organisers said: "We chose Strasbourg
because the city accommodates several European institutions, in
particular the European Court of the humans right, to which we intend to
immediately address a letter after the demonstration".



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