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Stop the eviction of the Bloomsbury Social Centre!

By Bloomunist, 14 December 2011

The Bloomsbury Social Centre is currently under threat of violent eviction from SOAS management.  We need your help. We have been in existence now for three weeks. In that time we've helped organise towards the 30 November Strike, organised tenants' rights workshops, and co-ordinated with student occupations in Birmingham and Cambridge. We've hosted seminars and readings groups on the financial crisis, initiated Spanish classes to aid activists campaigning alongside migrant labour, screened political cinema, housed temporarily students, provided meeting space for students, workers and residents of Bloomsbury,  and – in general – have tried to push forward the struggle for better conditions of life both in this area and beyond it; both in the University and outside. During that time SOAS management made no attempt to negotiate with us. When post-graduates from the School came to talk about the future of the space, they did so on their own initiative. Two days ago we received a notice of possession. This evening representatives of the School arrived to serve us with a High Court Injunction. SOAS has no more intention than does the rest of the University of London to provide autonomous space for its constituents. Amid the proliferating commercial zones, outside the internal markets with their managers and their “booking systems”, spaces like this one are rare. Access to them is infrequent. Unless the attempt violently to eject us from the building is resisted, forcefully and with spirit, spaces like this might well cease to exist entirely. We write to request your support. The managements of SOAS (the current leaseholders) and the University of London (the previous, who left it to rot) can't be allowed to crush effortlessly all attempts to resist the markets they serve. By passing motions in your trade union branch or student union, you can raise the political cost of eviction. Below is a brief model text.  We would appreciate putting your name to it in a personal capacity, and/or passing through your branch in order to show support for the Social Centre.  To add your name reply to this email; we'd like to post the text on our blog today, with a short list of names to get the ball rolling. _________ Dear SOAS Management, We the undersigned believe that the Bloomsbury Social Centre represents a bright and necessary contrast to the market structures currently being imposed across UK Higher Education. It has been in existence now for three weeks. In that time it has helped to organise towards the 30 November Strike, organised tenants' rights workshops, and co-ordinated with student occupations in Birmingham and Cambridge. It has hosted seminars and readings groups on the financial crisis, initiated Spanish classes to aid students campaigning alongside migrant workers, screened political cinema, housed temporarily homeless students, provided meeting space for fellow trade unionists, and – in general – has tried to push forward the struggle for better conditions of life both in this area and beyond it; both in the University and outside. It is unreasonable and unjust to proceed with an eviction against students who are struggling to improve the education and conditions of life for their peers and their neighbours. The occupiers are willing to negotiate an exit in early January, which will allow them to complete their organising projects, and which will obviate the need for an expensive and potentially violent eviction. We urge you in the strongest possible terms to begin a process of negotiation with the Social Centre. There are political as well as monetary costs at stake.

 

AND:

Our response to SOAS management’s eviction threat

Dear SOAS management,

We write to express our disappointment that you have begun legal proceedings against us. We are aware that such proceedings can result in the use of violence against students; this is a situation we are very keen to avoid.

In addition to the SOAS students involved in the occupation from its beginning, many SOAS undergraduates, post-graduates and academics have flowed through our doors in the last three weeks. Most have been extremely supportive of (and many have been involved in) the activities here. The accessibility of this previously disused building, on lease from the University of London, has also been welcomed by students, lecturers and trade unionists from universities across the capital.

While you have claimed that you will suffer financial damages from our continued use of the building, this should be weighed against the political damages you may suffer in consequence of an eviction. This is a concern that has been raised in our discussions with affected SOAS post-graduate students, with whom our meetings and discussions have continued in a warm, friendly spirit.

We wish to continue our activities in the building for a time, not forgoing the peaceful, non-violent manner that – as you note in your application for an injunction – has characterised the Social Centre so far. To this end, we would like to negotiate a mutually agreeable time for our departure from the building. Our suggested date is January 10th 2012, at the beginning of the new SOAS term. This time would provide us with a few weeks in which to continue the necessary political work in which we are engaged with residents and employees in and around Bloomsbury.

We would appreciate a response before the court date on Thursday morning, as we believe that this kind of negotiation can save time and expenses for both of us.

Yours faithfully,

BSC

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If you would like to sign a statement in support of the Social Centre, please email bloomsburysocialcentre AT gmail DOT com