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Anti-Homeless Spikes? Heartless. Cementing Over Them? Ingenious.
Londoners have made their feelings clear about a corporate "solution" to the problem of homelessness—and the company listened.
Jun 27, 2014
Early in the morning on June 12, a few members of a group known as the London Black Revolutionaries showed up in front of a Tesco shopping center on Regent Street in London and covered the store's "anti-homeless spikes" with home-made cement.
If the issue of spikes outside of Tesco hit a nerve, it could be because rates of homelessness in England have been rising.
A few days before the stunt, the spikes generated a firestorm of public criticism of the retail giant. The criticism largely took place online and centered around a series of photos of the spikes taken in October 2013 by photojournalist Joshua Preston.
The spikes were intended to deter "antisocial behavior," Tesco told The Guardian in response to the criticism. But Londoners were having none of that.
"We want homes not spikes," Preston said in a press release from the People's Assembly Against Austerity, an organization that campaigns against austerity policies--such as cuts to pensions and public spending. "We will show Tesco that its decision to victimize the homeless is shameful."
Interest in the issue grew quickly. When Preston organized a Facebook event to protest the spikes, more than 600 people agreed to demonstrate. The event was planned to coincide with a national anti-austerity protest in London on June 21.
But the Revolutionaries got to Tesco first, and their slap-dash cement-laying did the trick: Less than 24 hours after the stunt, Tesco removed the spikes from the Regent Street store, saying "We will find a different solution."
If the issue of spikes outside of Tesco hit a nerve, it could be because rates of homelessness in England have been steadily rising. And, according to The Guardian, austerity measures are at least partly to blame:
Homelessness has increased for three consecutive years, partly because of housing shortages and cuts to benefits, with an estimated 185,000 people a year now affected in England.
The actual number of people experiencing homelessness may be significantly higher than that. Research from the charity group Crisis suggests that about 62 percent of single homeless people may not show up in official figures.
One anonymous member of the London Black Revolutionaries offered Tesco a few spike-free ways to address homelessness.
"Give money to a local shelter organization, a food kitchen, or a food bank, because that's what's going to help," he told Vice News. "It's not going to solve the problem of homelessness, but it's going to alleviate some of the pain and suffering in these people's lives."
The Revolutionaries also said they will target other businesses in London that decide to install the spikes.
Molly Rusk wrote this article for YES! Magazine, a national, nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas with practical actions.
We are at a crossroads
This country and this world are at a monumental crossroads. US voters have an opportunity to beat back the forces of fascism and confront the billionaires who are rigging the economy, our media system, and our democracy, making it increasingly impossible for ordinary people to get by. We’re not just talking about the election. We’re talking about what must be done once these fascist elements are vanquished from power. We need a bolder set of solutions than what either major party has so far been willing to offer and a working-class movement ready to fight like hell for it. Trump didn't emerge from nowhere. The conditions that fueled MAGA authoritarianism were created by decades of radical neoliberal economic policies and a corrupt political system dominated by corporate interests. They slashed taxes on the super-rich, promising that the benefits would trickle down. They said giveaways to the corporate titans would make life more affordable for the rest of us. It was all bullshit. And when a bitter, betrayed populace searches for someone to blame, right-wing demagogues have little trouble finding scapegoats. People know when they're being lied to, but you won't hear any of this from the corporate media. Only independent journalism—powered and funded by people who believe in building a better world—can deliver truly trustworthy daily news. If you share our vision, please contribute whatever you can to sustain our work. |
This article was written for YES! Magazine, a national, nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas and practical actions. Licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 License.
Molly Rusk
Molly Rusk is a recent graduate of the program in Creative Writing at the University of Washington and an online reporting intern at YES! Magazine
Early in the morning on June 12, a few members of a group known as the London Black Revolutionaries showed up in front of a Tesco shopping center on Regent Street in London and covered the store's "anti-homeless spikes" with home-made cement.
If the issue of spikes outside of Tesco hit a nerve, it could be because rates of homelessness in England have been rising.
A few days before the stunt, the spikes generated a firestorm of public criticism of the retail giant. The criticism largely took place online and centered around a series of photos of the spikes taken in October 2013 by photojournalist Joshua Preston.
The spikes were intended to deter "antisocial behavior," Tesco told The Guardian in response to the criticism. But Londoners were having none of that.
"We want homes not spikes," Preston said in a press release from the People's Assembly Against Austerity, an organization that campaigns against austerity policies--such as cuts to pensions and public spending. "We will show Tesco that its decision to victimize the homeless is shameful."
Interest in the issue grew quickly. When Preston organized a Facebook event to protest the spikes, more than 600 people agreed to demonstrate. The event was planned to coincide with a national anti-austerity protest in London on June 21.
But the Revolutionaries got to Tesco first, and their slap-dash cement-laying did the trick: Less than 24 hours after the stunt, Tesco removed the spikes from the Regent Street store, saying "We will find a different solution."
If the issue of spikes outside of Tesco hit a nerve, it could be because rates of homelessness in England have been steadily rising. And, according to The Guardian, austerity measures are at least partly to blame:
Homelessness has increased for three consecutive years, partly because of housing shortages and cuts to benefits, with an estimated 185,000 people a year now affected in England.
The actual number of people experiencing homelessness may be significantly higher than that. Research from the charity group Crisis suggests that about 62 percent of single homeless people may not show up in official figures.
One anonymous member of the London Black Revolutionaries offered Tesco a few spike-free ways to address homelessness.
"Give money to a local shelter organization, a food kitchen, or a food bank, because that's what's going to help," he told Vice News. "It's not going to solve the problem of homelessness, but it's going to alleviate some of the pain and suffering in these people's lives."
The Revolutionaries also said they will target other businesses in London that decide to install the spikes.
Molly Rusk wrote this article for YES! Magazine, a national, nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas with practical actions.
Molly Rusk
Molly Rusk is a recent graduate of the program in Creative Writing at the University of Washington and an online reporting intern at YES! Magazine
Early in the morning on June 12, a few members of a group known as the London Black Revolutionaries showed up in front of a Tesco shopping center on Regent Street in London and covered the store's "anti-homeless spikes" with home-made cement.
If the issue of spikes outside of Tesco hit a nerve, it could be because rates of homelessness in England have been rising.
A few days before the stunt, the spikes generated a firestorm of public criticism of the retail giant. The criticism largely took place online and centered around a series of photos of the spikes taken in October 2013 by photojournalist Joshua Preston.
The spikes were intended to deter "antisocial behavior," Tesco told The Guardian in response to the criticism. But Londoners were having none of that.
"We want homes not spikes," Preston said in a press release from the People's Assembly Against Austerity, an organization that campaigns against austerity policies--such as cuts to pensions and public spending. "We will show Tesco that its decision to victimize the homeless is shameful."
Interest in the issue grew quickly. When Preston organized a Facebook event to protest the spikes, more than 600 people agreed to demonstrate. The event was planned to coincide with a national anti-austerity protest in London on June 21.
But the Revolutionaries got to Tesco first, and their slap-dash cement-laying did the trick: Less than 24 hours after the stunt, Tesco removed the spikes from the Regent Street store, saying "We will find a different solution."
If the issue of spikes outside of Tesco hit a nerve, it could be because rates of homelessness in England have been steadily rising. And, according to The Guardian, austerity measures are at least partly to blame:
Homelessness has increased for three consecutive years, partly because of housing shortages and cuts to benefits, with an estimated 185,000 people a year now affected in England.
The actual number of people experiencing homelessness may be significantly higher than that. Research from the charity group Crisis suggests that about 62 percent of single homeless people may not show up in official figures.
One anonymous member of the London Black Revolutionaries offered Tesco a few spike-free ways to address homelessness.
"Give money to a local shelter organization, a food kitchen, or a food bank, because that's what's going to help," he told Vice News. "It's not going to solve the problem of homelessness, but it's going to alleviate some of the pain and suffering in these people's lives."
The Revolutionaries also said they will target other businesses in London that decide to install the spikes.
Molly Rusk wrote this article for YES! Magazine, a national, nonprofit media organization that fuses powerful ideas with practical actions.
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