Not for Rent
Conversations with Creative Activists in the U.K.
Description:... Resistence is more important than ever. Living in a country with a president we did not elect, who is waging a war without popular support, vast numbers of Americans are feeling disempowered, alienated from our government leaders, and frightened. What can we do? The British activists from the 1990s documented in Not For Rent have some ideas to share with us. In 1995 the British Parliament passed a draconian new law which curtailed civil liberties to a shocking extent. The Criminal Justice Act essentially turned squatting, underground parties and raves, a nomadic lifestyle, and protesting into criminal acts. Travelling through England and Scotland the summer after this law went into effect, Stacy and Grrrt discovered that not only were squatting, protesting and parties still happening, the law had politicized an entire generation. More and more young people felt compelled to resist -- both to show their disregard for a government which did not represent them, and to create exciting, creative alternatives to the mainstream culture. The activist underground was thriving. The way Bush's government has used the events of September 11th to pick away at our civil liberties is reminiscent of this time. The numbers of frustrated people who have taken to the streets to protest his war show how widespread the disillusionment with his government is. But Not for Rent is not a book about unjust laws. It is a vibrant celebration of creative resistence, political alternatives, and social engagment. It is about what is possible when smart, socially conscious people get together and create communties on their own terms. Use it for inspiration!
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