Nothing suits us better than a phase of reflection on action. So it is with YT after a very busy first half of 2024. Each step along the way has been stimulating and fruitful yet there is much to consider going forward, some of which we have yet resolve or respond to.
Fate of Britain seemed to lead the way early on in Manchester at Factory International with Jeremy Deller of Hard Arts taking on the difficult subjects of our time in the Work We Need to Do. Yet it’s not their voice we hear as July begins but the drone of political jerry mandering and reconfiguring for the next few years as we elect a next set of keepers for the UK in an overdue election after decades of corruption and ineptitude in government.
Here at home in UK it’s been testing enough but it’s the horror of war in Yeman, Ukraine and Gaza raging on, that will continue to call us out into the streets in support of all who face distress. Meanwhile work continues on social co-ordination and collaboration that brings people together to explore options and intervene on the rolling over of community hope, with positive engagement and cultural innovations.
Something has to give if the next decade is to be one we can hold to rather than hide from. We are all signed up to non violent action in the hope for reasonable change in our lives but as the light on recent realities fades red with distruction and dystopian reality, you may well wonder, what is it we can really do to shape decisions and effect cruicial transformations without more vigour in our reponses.
Pico Peers met in Berlin to review the state of change 20+ years since we drafted a Pico Peering agreement that was adopted by Community Wireless Network groups worldwide. Our hosts at C-Base and their regular patrons Freifunk made it possible for us to catch up, hear about new ideas and entertain friends on the roof in sunshine and showers with barbeque and beers.
We heard from Ramon Rocco of Guifi by remote link, a reminder that fragility and breakdown of belief was all too real. This was harshly highlighted as he described the cataclysmic community rip off that will bring their long standing successes across Catalan and Basque regions to a close fast. A huge portion of their valuable network infrastructure has been aggressively captured by commercial interests with little care for continuity or the wider disruption caused.
Citipunkt and Agit in Berlin both present community spaces in support of local struggles and social movements east and west of the city, with a combination of kitchen, meeting spaces and resource libraries. More public utility spaces are always welcome, with pressure on us all to navigate media and filter information in isolation, taking the time to meet and hear first hand from those who experience life differently or are in need of support is vital if we are to understand the changes needed.
Co-oPepys weekly artclub activities are not limited to crafting, though it’s the regular and long lasting persistance of community access to these spaces that is so treasured. Resident artists and Pepys Estate residents work together to host artclub activities and promote fresh interaction as well as review the legacy of many decades of open collaboration.
During a recent visit to Summerstown near Kings Cross we visited the Peoples Museum where the account of local action on depravation and mismanaged social resources is recorded.
Only last weekend, housing focussed community action groups met at preliminary session for Festival for Urban Liberation 2025 in the open at Aylesbury estate in Southwark where there was a very upbeat celebration of shared interests and commitment to reconvene in September for more detailed and inclusive interaction on London’s housing crisis.
The account of social struggles and urban exploitation has it’s pioneers. Mark Saunders has 40 years of independent TV and community video production experience which is archived at Spectacle’s studio in Lavender Hill. Get your legacy video tapes or film digitised, find out more about campaign histories or join a training course to get the most from that documentary film making idea.
“Why work?” is a critique that forges a perspective which cuts through the smoke screen of various specialist concerns around work. The role of work is re-examined to bring out the fundamental issues, often obscured and diffused by separated, isolated ideas of leisure, efficiency, careers, jobs creation, employment and unemployment. Work is a science, a religion, a culture and a way of life. As a society only five per cent of work is productive or socially useful. And with leisure being so important, why are we working harder than ever?
