Trespass Journal
Volume 1 2017
Article: Punk and Anarchist Squats in Poland
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Punk and Anarchist Squats in Poland
Jim Donaghey
Abstract
Squats are of notable importance in the punk scene in Poland, and these spaces
are a key aspect of the relationship between anarchism and punk. However, the
overlap of squatting, punk, and anarchism is not without its tensions. This article,
drawn from ethnographic research carried out between 2013 and 2014, explores
the issues around punk and anarchist squats in Poland, looking at: criticisms
levelled at punk squats by ‘non-punk’ squatting activists (e.g. Przychodnia in
Warsaw); instances of squats as a hub for a wide spectrum of anarchist activity
(e.g. the ‘anarchist Mecca’ of Rozbrat in Poznań); and the repression of squatting
in Poland through eviction and legalisation (afecting all squats in some form).
(Other squats and social centres mentioned here include Elba and ADA Puławska
in Warsaw, Wagenburg and CRK in Wrocław, and Od:zysk in Poznań.) Among the
various squats, there were tensions around approaches and tactics identiied as
‘more anarchist’ or ‘less anarchist’ – this speaks to the supposed
‘workerist’/‘lifestylist’ dichotomy within anarchism more widely, but the lived
experience of the squatters is shown here to be far too complex to be
encompassed in any false binary.
Keywords
Squatting; anarchism; punk; Poland; repression; eviction; legalisation; lifestylism;
workerism.
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Introduction
Anarchism is a multifarious set of ideas which encompasses a myriad of
approaches and strategies – including strands which are (at least in theory)
mutually antagonistic. One such perceived antagonism is between ‘workerism’ 1
and ‘lifestylism’2 with their caricatured exclusive emphases on workplace
struggles and consumption practices, respectively. Squatting is very often
lumped-in with the ‘lifestylist’ pole of this supposed dichotomy, and usually in a
derogatory manner.
The article begins by laying out the connections between anarchism and
squatting (and also legally rented ‘social centres’), before moving on to look at
how these relationships play out in the context of Poland. Tensions around
diverging tactics and approaches between squats are examined, as well as issues
around repression of squats through eviction and legalisation. The key argument
here is that anarchist and punk squats are a bricks-and-mortar example of
anarchism in action, and that while they do perform a cultural and ‘lifestyle’
function, their impact is felt in a wide range of anarchist activisms, including
typically ‘workerist’ forms, which complicates the ‘workerist’/‘lifestylist’
dichotomy to the point of redundancy.
The interview and participant observation material which informs this article was
carried out in May/June 2013 and October 2014 as part of PhD research and
while on tour with a punk band.3 The research was based around several squats:
in Poznań – Rozbrat and Od:zysk; in Wrocław – Wagenburg and CRK; in Warsaw –
Przychodnia, and also interviews with people from the recently evicted Elba squat
1‘Workerism’ is used here to denote anarchist perspectives which focus exclusively on workplace
issues and materialist economic analyses (and not in relation to autonomist ‘operaismo’).
2‘Lifestylism’ denotes anarchist perspectives which focus on personal (and sometimes cultural)
aspects. While a few writers have attempted to recuperate the term (see: Laura Portwood-Stacer,
Lifestyle Politics and Radical Activism, (New York/London: Bloomsbury, 2013) and Matthew Wilson,
Biting the Hand that Feeds Us. In Defence of Lifestyle Politics, Dysophia Open Letter #2, (Leeds:
Dysophia, 2012)) it is generally used as a slur, often in terms echoing Murray Bookchin’s polemic
Social Anarchism or Lifestyle Anarchism. An unbridgeable chasm, (Edinburgh: AK Press, 1995).
3Grounded theory informs the research method, giving primacy to the perspectives of the squatters
and activists themselves, and an anarchist underpinning seeks to avoid exploitation of interviewees,
while remaining rigorous and critical.
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(who subsequently opened a new space named ADA Puławska). 4 One other squat
was also visited during the research, but after sending a draft version of the
article to the collective there they opted to exercise a veto over content relating
to them. This was partly driven by security concerns, and about fears of
damaging relations with the squatting community in their area, and while it is
disappointing not to be able to include their views and opinions here, their wishes
are, of course, respected.5
Squatting and anarchism
Squatting6 has numerous intrinsically anarchistic qualities, which are made
explicit in many squatting actions. The autonomist-Marxist writer Geronimo asks
(rhetorically) whether ‘squatting demonstrate[s] yet another form of libertariananarchist communism?’7 In Colin Ward’s view, certainly yes – he viewed the postWorld War II squatters’ movement in the UK ‘as an example of the human
tendency for direct and cooperative self-help, and thus a key model of “anarchy
in action”.’8 As Ward puts it: ‘Squatting is an example of direct action applied to
the housing problem in a non-revolutionary situation,’ 9 and Hans Pruijt suggests
that this activist mentality and expertise can be transferred into ‘sundry troubled
4Piotrowski notes that ‘there were and are also squats in Gdańsk, Toruń … Gliwice, and Białystok.’
(Grzegorz Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East: The Rozbrat Squat in Poland, 1994-2012,’ in Bart van
der Steen, Ask Katzeff, and Leendert van Hoogenhuijze (eds), The City Is Ours. Squatting and
autonomous movements in Europe from the 1970s to the present, (Oakland: PM Press, 2014), p. 233)
5For a more detailed discussion of ethical issues in similar contexts, and notes towards an anarchist
methodology to overcome (or at least ameliorate) such issues, see: Jim Donaghey, ‘Researching
“Punk Indonesia”: notes towards a non-exploitative insider methodology,’ Punk & Post-Punk, vol. 6,
no. 1, (forthcoming, Spring 2016)
6In many cases, squatting simply represents a practical solution to homelessness and occurs with no
‘political’ motivation (though the existence of homelessness in society is deeply ‘political’ in itself).
See: Colin Ward, Cotters and Squatters. Housing’s Hidden History, (Nottingham: Five Leaves, 2009
[2002]), pp. 167-168
7Geronimo, ‘Foreword,’ in The City Is Ours, p. xiii
8Carissa Honeywell, A British Anarchist Tradition. Herbert Read, Alex Comfort and Colin Ward,
(London: Continuum, 2011), p. 141, [emphasis added]
9Colin Ward, Housing: an anarchist approach, (London: Freedom Press, 1976), p. 25, [emphasis
added]
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Volume 1 2017
spots in society.’10 Ward describes squatting as ‘a political education,’ 11 which has
an important ‘efect on the participants’:
it ‘reveals a great deal about the state of mind that is induced by free and
independent action, and that which is induced by dependence and inertia: the
diference between people who initiate things and act for themselves and
people to whom things just happen.’12
The Squatters and Homeless Autonomy (SHA) Collective 13 in London argue that
squatting engenders an ‘[o]ppositional self-identity … [which] continues to make
squatting a threat to cultural power’ by adding to ‘larger cultures of resistance.’14
Pruijt concurs, but notes that:
[i]deology is only loosely coupled to practice … [which] allows for considerable
freedom when creating an ideology around squatting such as instant anarchism,
i.e. suddenly discovered with little inluence from the anarchist tradition, or
ideologies with an anti-capitalist or anti-property rights theme. 15
The Needle Collective and the Bash Street Kids also argue that the
squatting/direct action ‘scene’s politics are not always clear-cut or universal, but
they do revolve around such ideas as activism for social change, non-hierarchical
decision-making, and a DIY ethos.’16 The SHA Collective argue that squatting ‘has
always meant struggle’ and that there is a ‘permanent need to politicise’ these
struggles.17 In a communiqué titled Against Apolitical Squatting they stress that
squatting is only viable because it is ‘political’:
10Hans Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ in Squatting in Europe. Radical Spaces, Urban Struggles,
Squatting Europe Kollective (eds), (Wivenhoe: Minor Compositions, 2013), p. 29
11Ward, Housing: an anarchist approach, p. 125
12Colin Ward and David Goodway, Talking Anarchy, (Oakland: PM Press, 2014 [first published
Nottingham: Five Leaves Press, 2003]), pp. 81-82, [Anarchy In Action reference not given]
13Not to be confused with SHAC (Stop Huntingdon Animal Cruelty).
14SHA Collective communiqué, Against Apolitical Squatting,
https://www.facebook.com/squatterhomelessautonomy/ [accessed 11 th November 2015], [emphasis
added]
15Hans Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ in Squatting Europe Kollective (eds), Squatting in Europe.
Radical Spaces, Urban Struggles, (Wivenhoe: Minor Compositions, 2013), p. 28
16Needle Collective and Bash Street Kids, ‘Ebb and Flow: Autonomy and squatting in Brighton, 19732012,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 153
17SHA Collective communiqué, Against Apolitical Squatting
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A squatted space not used for politics soon loses the politics of squatted spaces.
Creating spaces intolerant to social hierarchy and state surveillance, for
organising and consciousness-raising, is integral to the creation of efective
resistance in squats and on the streets.18
So while the politics of squatting and the political motivation for particular
squatting actions might sometimes be hazy in terms of theory, it is possible to
recognise squats as ‘symbols of anarchist, “autonomous,” and “free” spaces,’19
which are an example of ‘the libertarian way of organising’ which has been a
constant in European ‘radical urban youth movements’ since 1968. 20
Eric Mattocks, a founder and treasurer of the Advisory Service for Squatters,
stressed that ‘squatting was not merely a demonstration, it was an initiator of
social change,’21 and, as the SHA Collective note, squatting is directly opposed to
the underlying hegemonic ideology of capitalism, and as such: ‘Squatting
continues to prove itself as direct action against power.’ 22 This challenge to
unequal distribution of property and the concept of private property itself is a
crucial aspect, because as Ward argues (quoting Kropotkin): ‘Once the principle
of the “Divine Right of Property” is shaken, no amount of theorising will prevent
its overthrow.’23 And in fact, state authorities adopting a stringently neo-liberal
view of private property rights repress squatting on exactly these grounds.
18Ibid. [emphasis added]
19Nazima Kadir, ‘Myth and Reality in the Amsterdam Squatters’ Movement,’ in The City Is Ours, p.
22, [emphasis added]
20Bart van der Steen, Ask Katzeff, and Leendert van Hoogenhuijze, ‘Introduction: Squatting and
Autonomous Action in Europe, 1980-2012,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 8
21In Colin Ward, Cotters and Squatters. Housing’s Hidden History, (Nottingham: Five Leaves, 2009
[2002]), p. 165, [emphasis added]
22SHA Collective communiqué, Against Apolitical Squatting
23Ward, Housing: an anarchist approach, p. 25, [Kropotkin reference not given]
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Image 1: Mural at Rozbrat, Poznań
Punk squats in Poland
So squatting has both practical and theoretical connections with anarchism, and
in the case of Poland,24 squats are also often associated with punk. Van der Steen,
Katzef, and van Hoogenhuijze emphasise ‘the link between radical politics and
subculture,’ arguing that in both ‘squatted houses’ and ‘rented social centres …
the focus on … youth and alternative lifestyles remains a constant’ – they identify
punk (and hardcore) as key examples of this.25 Lucy Finchett-Maddock argues
that punk ‘is automatically connected to the squatting movement through their
freeing of space and anti-authoritarian practices.’ 26 Indeed, in countries where
squatting movements have emerged more recently, such as Spain, punk has been
a crucial catalyst.27 Punks also introduced squatting to Poland, but even in
countries with longer squatter histories like the UK or the Netherlands, a
24See also: Dominika V. Polanska and Grzegorz Piotrowski, ‘The development of squatting in
Poland: local differences and the importance of cohesion and durability,’ Baltic Worlds, vols 1-2,
(2016), pp. 46-56
25Bart van der Steen, Ask Katzeff, Leendert van Hoogenhuijze, ‘Introduction: Squatting and
Autonomous Action in Europe, 1980-2012,’ in The City Is Ours, pp. 8-9
26Lucy Finchett-Maddock, ‘Squatting in London: Squatters’ Rights and Legal Movement(s),’ in The
City Is Ours, p. 220
27See Claudio Cattaneo and Enrique Tudela, ‘¡El Carrer Es Nostre! The Autonomous Movement in
Barcelona, 1980-2012,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 98
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‘prevalence of punk squats’28 developed by the 1980s. Van der Steen et al. argue
that punk’s impact was reciprocated, with ‘the punk subculture [being] nourished
by the 1980s squatter movement’29 in terms of providing infrastructure for punk
gigs while emphasising the political aspects of punk.
Image 2: Squat logo near Wagenburg, Wrocław
In other European countries there are signiicant parts of the squatting
movement with little or no connection to punk, but the overlap appears to be
nearly ubiquitous in Poland. Of course, there are at least a few squats in Poland
which are not connected to punk, and while squats are extremely important for
Polish punk scenes, punk gigs do often occur in commercial venues, such as bars
– however, these gigs are likely to be less engaged with anarchist politics. 30
Several interviewees stressed the punk/squat connection: respondent J 31 said,
‘squats in Poland equal punk;’ respondent I32 likewise stated, ‘all the squats are
punk squats;’ respondent H33 noted that, until very recently, ‘the squatter’s
28Finchett-Maddock, ‘Squatting in London,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 214
29van der Steen et al, ‘Introduction,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 11
30For more on anarchism in Poland see: Grzegorz Piotrowski and Magnus Wennerhag , ‘Always
against the state? An analysis of Polish and Swedish radical left-libertarian activists’ interactions with
institutionalized politics,’ PArtecipazione e COnflitto, vol. 8, no. 3, (2015), pp. 845-875
31Interview conducted 31/05/2013
32Interview conducted 27/05/2013
33Interview conducted 27/05/2013
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movement was very strictly connected with [the] punk scene.’34 Respondent F35
further backed this up, saying, ‘my irst experiences with anarchism and [the]
punk scene … were of course on the squat.’36 Grzegorz Piotrowski concurs,
writing that the squatting scene which ‘began in the mid-1990s, was limited to
anarchist and punk subcultures.’37 There are some exceptions to this conlation,
but even within such places the relationship between punk and squatting is
recognised as near-ubiquitous in Poland, so the connection is understood as being
very strong indeed. Squats are where Polish punk most tangibly experiences
repression, both in the form of attempts from the state and private landowners to
evict them, and in the form of physical attacks from street-level fascist groups. It
is impossible to properly understand the relationship between anarchism and
punk in Poland without due consideration of the inluence of squats.
As Piotrowski notes: ‘[s]quatting in the former communist bloc is a very diferent
phenomenon than its counterparts in Western Europe or in the United States’ 38
with ‘almost no [squatting] tradition in Central and Eastern Europe prior to
1989.39 Squatting in Poland is shaped by the country’s abrupt transition from
centrally (mis)managed socialist economy to rampant neo-liberal capitalism. This
rupture created the need to squat (since housing was no longer provided by the
state), the opportunities to squat (with property ownership often becoming a
contested or confused issue), but also created the most signiicant pressures
against squatting (primacy of private-property rights, gentriication, evictions).
(Squatting is illegal in Poland, but the law leaves some small leeway. 40)
34[emphasis added]
35Interview conducted 24/05/2013
36[emphasis added]
37Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 251
38Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 251
39Ibid. p. 249
40See Ibid. p. 233
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Buildings that had come under state control during the socialist regime are being
restituted to the descendents of their pre-1945 owners. 41 Regulations around
restitution are limited, and even where they do exist are manipulated to the
advantage of property developers. Typically, a building might be restituted to, say,
the grandchild of the pre-1945 owner, but this person is unlikely to have the
resources to maintain the upkeep of the building. At this point the property
developers, who are closely informed of these changes in ownership, step in to
ofer the new owners a lump sum for the property. As far as the new owners are
concerned, even if the ofer is signiicantly below market value, this is a good deal
– instant cash for a property they may not have known they owned (though of
course, many survivors know very well what their families lost), and the relief of
the responsibility of owning an old building likely in need of repair, and the rates
payable to the state. Once the property developers have control of the building
their primary concern is maximising their return, which means gentriication and
getting rid of the current tenants. Local squatting activists explained that
developers are often ruthless in this regard, forcing the eviction of sitting tenants
by raising the rent to extortionate levels, and cutting of the electricity and gas.
Piotrowski notes that, despite housing laws stating that ‘current tenants must be
given a three-year notice … companies have been established that specialise in
the “cleaning” of such houses, with workers cutting of electricity and water
pipes and using other means to get rid of the people living there.’ 42 Opposition to
this deliberate gentriication, which is particularly rapid in Warsaw, forms a main
political focus for squats in Poland (as elsewhere).
Squats also have political signiicance beyond the housing issues to which they
directly relate. Respondent G,43 who is involved with the Przychodnia collective,
emphasised the propagandistic value of squats:
They are also sending a message, which starts from ‘you can live in a diferent
way, and be happy, and you don’t have to take a loan which you will have to pay
of until you are seventy to have a place to live.’ And then they are also sending
41More information on this policy can be found here - http://propertyrestitution.pl/
[accessed 31st March 2015]
42Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 240
43Interview conducted 25/05/2013
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a message … to make a campaign against gentriication, make a campaign
against animal abuse … [T]hey are more visible, they are more interesting for
the media, so it’s easier for these places to spread [a] message about state
repression, for example.
So squats, in addition to their political value as squats, also provide organising
space and a platform for the beneit of other intersectionally related political
campaigns or causes. However, as Piotrowski notes, in the ‘ideological climate in
post-communist Poland,’ gaining support from the local community is sometimes
a challenge because of neo-liberal mind-sets and a suspicion of anything deemed
‘leftist.’44 So the ‘political’ aspect of squatting is crucial, both for those involved
and for those who would seek to repress it.
Hans Pruijt, in his overview of squatting in Western Europe, succinctly identiies
the ‘unique property’ of squatting as: ‘combining self-help with demonstrating an
alternative and a potential for protest.’45 He argues that squatting, particularly
when identiied as an alternative housing strategy: 46
seems to have everything going for it. It is open to everyone, regardless of
social class, it is interesting for resourceful activists but can simultaneously
ofer a haven for vulnerable people. It allows a wide range of skills to be
exercised, empowers and produces fun instead of a display of misery. 47
The issue of openness is not actually as straightforward as Pruijt suggests, but in
general this understanding of squats readily applies in Poland. However,
respondent G recognises that squat ‘havens’ are ‘all the time under pressure from
the system, from the capitalist system.’ In addition to the attempts by the state
and private landowners to shut down squats, capitalist economic and social
relations still inluence these anti-capitalist spaces. As respondent G notes:
44Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East,’ in The City Is Ours, 252
45Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ in Squatting in Europe, p. 51
46Pruijt divides squatting into ive identiiable types: deprivation-based squatting;
squatting as an alternative housing strategy; entrepreneurial squatting; conservational
squatting; political squatting. The punk squats more-or-less fall into Pruijt’s category of
squatting as an alternative housing strategy, but squats in Poland straddle squatting as
an alternative housing strategy, conservational squatting, and political squatting. And in
terms of defence of squats, the tactics Pruijt attributes to entrepreneurial squats are also
deployed by alternative housing strategy squats and political squats. So while the
typology is interesting from a theoretical perspective, in practice it fails to relect the
tactics and approaches of Polish squats.
47Ibid. p. 49
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‘People have to buy stuf, it requires money to run this kind of place. Even if you
get food from the dumpster [skip] or as much materials as you can, it’s kind of
impossible 100%, which produces new kinds of conlicts.’ But, even with these
limitations, respondent G argued that squatting ofers some socially
transformative potential:
I would call it like a laboratory or experimental area where we actually get to
see which kind of conlicts are generated by this kind of society, plus some extra
traditional conlicts from the capitalist society. [Y]ou see … how the transition
works, you get from the outside world and you get into here, how dificult it is
to internalise the local [squat] rules, to follow them … You can call it a model of
an ideal society. A very early model … a very simple one, and a very narrow one.
So while respondent G recognises the limitations placed on squatting by the
totalising capitalist system, he values the opportunity to live-out anarchist politics
on a practical level.
The manifestations of anarchism within these squats is, of course, not uniform,
with divergence in purpose and tactics – tensions which are frequently framed in
terms of being ‘more anarchist’ or ‘less anarchist.’ This echoes the supposed
‘lifestylist’/‘workerist’ dichotomy in anarchism more widely – but these tensions
play out with some important diferences, and the complexities herein completely
undermine the dichotomous analysis.
Tensions between punk squats and non-punk squats in Poland
While anarchism has an especially close association with squatting, a range of
ideologies motivate diferent squats and squatters, resulting in tensions between
difering approaches. One such point of disagreement is the use and function of
squats, e.g.: openness versus subcultural identity; space for activist purposes
versus squatting as an end in itself. Compromise (or opposition thereto) with the
authorities is another area of disagreement. As Ward makes clear, these tensions
go back to the 1960s at least, with disputes between ‘respectable’ and ‘hippy’
squatters.48 The more common dispute today is between ‘respectable’ squatters
48Ward, Housing: an anarchist approach, p. 30, quoting Ron Bailey, The Squatters,
(London: Penguin, 1973), [page number not given]
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and those prepared to employ violence to resist eviction. Ward argues that ‘as
time goes by … it becomes dificult to distinguish between the two categories of
squatter,’49 but on the contrary, it appears that disagreement and division
between diferent groups of squatters is a recurring theme. Nazima Kadir draws
another tension between ‘parasites’ and ‘politicos’ in Amsterdam, diferentiating
‘between activists who mainly identiied as squatters versus activists who resided
in squats but primarily invested their time and energy in other radical left
issues.’50
Pruijt notes the importance of ‘squatting as an end in itself [as] part of the
movement’s identity,’ which he argues ‘ofers a barrier against cooptation.’ 51
Respondent G made this point as well: ‘squats, social centres, they still do [have
an impact] because … they cannot be taken by capitalism, because that’s exactly
what [squats] are against … I can’t really imagine a way in which a place like this
could be commercialised.’ This sense of a squatting identity or culture that stands
apart from, and in opposition to, capitalism raises an important issue, and as
Pruijt writes this can result in ‘only attracting members of a highly exclusive
“scene”.’52 This criticism has been levelled at punk squats in Poland. Pruijt argues
that the absence of a particular squatter (i.e. punk) identity can result in
‘becoming culturally mainstream and non-political.’53 However, in terms of the
tension between punk squats and squats which aim to be accessible to the wider
public, Pruijt’s analysis does not it. In fact, the criticisms against the punk squats
is that they are not political enough, because they are overly concerned with
culture and identity, while the ‘activist’ squats make every efort to be open to the
general public in their political campaigns. As Piotrowski puts it, the tensions
centre around:
49Ibid.
50Kadir, ‘Myth and Reality in the Amsterdam Squatters’ Movement,’ in The City Is Ours,
p. 35
51Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ in Squatting in Europe, p. 51 [emphasis added]
52Ibid. p. 35
53Ibid. p. 35
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the question of the openness … and the balancing between the ‘subcultural
ghetto’ model (where the squat mainly serves a counter-cultural function for a
speciic group) and the ‘social centre’ model (which is more focussed on politics
and on mobilising broad coalitions of people).54
This tension is observable in the criticisms levelled at Przychodnia in Warsaw by
local non-punk squatting activists. Przychodnia is certainly identiiable as a punk
squat in terms of its residents, the activities it hosts, and its general aesthetic.
The building was irst squatted as part of a tenants’ movement demonstration in
the wake of the high-proile eviction of the long-running Elba squat. This was to
give a clear statement that if the state evicts one house, the activists would squat
‘ten more’ in reply. Other people started making use of the space and
Przychodnia became the main venue for punk gigs in the city, largely illing the
void that had been left by Elba in that respect. Local non-punk squatting activists
were concerned that the noisy gigs at Przychodnia were having a negative impact
on relations with the local community.
Respondent E, who is involved in the anarcho-syndicalist group Związek
Syndykalistów Polski (ZSP – Association of Polish Syndicalists) and with antifascist activities, was dismissive of squatting in general, saying, ‘I really don’t
care about squats,’ but ofered this analysis of Przychodnia:
Przychodnia is completely punk and not political … And [in] Przychodnia, [the]
people who started this squat were intelligent and ideological people, but after
[a] little time they left and people who stayed are only Jabol punx … Jabol is
very cheap wine prepared from apples, and [a] Jabol punk is a punk who only
drinks this wine … [Przychodnia is] only parties. Parties, punk rock, and nothing
more.55
A damning view, then, but the essential point here is that respondent E described
Przychodnia as ‘not political’ because of its association with punk. This relects
the framing of the supposed dichotomy between ‘lifestylist’ and ‘workerist’
anarchisms, but while respondent E’s stance is a typically ‘workerist’ antilifestylism, similar critiques have also been levelled at Przychodnia from within
the ‘lifestylist’ activism of squatting. So while the terms of the
54Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East,’ in The City Is Ours, pp. 242-243
55[emphasis added]
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‘lifestylist’/‘workerism’ tension are evident, the complexities here defy any simple
dichotomy.
The squatters at Przychodnia were conscious of the criticisms levelled at them.
Respondent H, who had lived at Elba and was now involved with Przychodnia,
summed up the diference: ‘Probably you feel it ... here is more like … punk and
subcultural, and creating the society actually … In [other places] it’s more about
like coming to the neighbours, especially the poor people in the neighbourhood.’
He diplomatically assessed that ‘both things are OK, and both things can have
problems.’ As well as hosting regular punk gigs, Przychodnia is involved in other
activities, such as public ‘pikniks,’ cinema showings, debates, meetings, hosts an
anti-fascist group and a queer group. Respondent I deined this function as a
‘cultural centre’ but asserted that ‘you can’t call it [a] social centre, absolutely
not.’ This emphasis on ‘culture’ is understood to mean less emphasis on ‘political’
activism. Respondent I continued: ‘here is a little bit like it was in Elba. They
were just, y’know, creating a small autonomy’:
Like we have our own world here and … we do here what we want. You don’t
like [it]? You don’t have to participate, this is our way of life, right? We like punk
rock, we like shows, sometimes we organise some meetings or debates ... or
festivals, like this political festival, Resistance Festival ... So it’s not like guys
here are completely out of politics.
But even the idea of ‘being political’ is not straight forward, as respondent I
explained:
Guys here are … not really into this political stuf. I mean, if you talk with [them]
they’re really political, and they have very y’know, straight ideas about life …
most of them [laughs] at least … Because punk rock … it’s [a] political thing. So …
it’s very dificult to say you are political or you are not political.
So, while Przychodnia is ‘political’ in a broad sense, it is recognised as being
more culturally focussed. Criticisms of this approach from some local non-punk
squatting activists was the source of some tension. Respondent I described the
situation as ‘completely freaky,’ because the divisions between groups meant
people ‘don’t give a shit,’ viewing other groups as ‘fuckers’ or ‘not true squatters,
or … not true anarchists,’56 as is clearly relected in the opinion expressed by
56[emphasis added]
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respondent E, above. Respondent I viewed that non-punk squatting activists had
attempted to interfere in the running of Przychodnia:
Actually it’s quite funny because they call themselves anarchists, and
sometimes it looks like they’re very authoritarian … It’s like when they come
here, for example, and say ‘OK, these are the rules and from now, you have to
obey these rules.’ Y’know, [the] position of someone who is looking from up to
down.
Respondent I continued:
It’s weird. Instead of supporting our activities and understand[ing] that
people ... have diferent needs … [they’re just] building these power-relations …
‘Cause their position is like … ‘we know better … what activism is, and what
squatting is’ and so on. That’s why people here [at Przychodnia] they just … feel
strange about it ... You can imagine that the idea is, ‘hey, it would be good if you
just move out and we will squat this place, because we know what to do with
such [a] great building, right, because … what you are doing with this building,
this is shit. It’s like wasting space and energy and everything.’
Respondent I said that this perceived patronising attitude made relations ‘really
… tense … [I]t was [a] really really bad situation. Right now it’s kind of better,’ so
relations were already improving at the time of research (and since that time this
improvement has continued). Respondent H defended Przychodnia’s activities in
terms of outreach and visibility:
Y’know, if 200 people come [here] for the concert, and 10% of them take a look
at the posters … and take this message, and one of them keeps it in mind, and
goes vegetarian and … maybe starts to also build something like this, it’s
already good.
He also argued that displaying a punk aesthetic was important, because it
symbolised a diferent lifestyle, and undermined the message of mainstream
conformity:
We didn’t want to paint the walls white to make people come and think that it’s
a normal place … Because when the anarchists ... try to ban subculture [in] the
movement, I think it’s a threat that it [will become] like any other movement …
We can prove with our lives that it’s possible to live in a diferent way.
This is archetypal ‘lifestylism’ but also resonates with the importance of a
‘squatter identity’ vaunted by the SHA Collective and Hans Pruijt, above.
Respondent I agreed that ‘this is … [a] very important part of this movement, of
punk rock, y’know, this anti-aesthetic stuf,’ but was conscious that this could
alienate ‘people from outside’: ‘Someone who is from the “normal” world [would
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think] this [place] is like a shit … It’s quite dificult for people just not to think
about all this mess and just focus [on] what we want to say.’ So, even within the
punk squat, they were conscious of the issue of ‘respectability’ and how their
aesthetic might be read by others.
The repeatedly expressed notion of certain activities as marking out ‘proper
anarchists’ speaks to the (erroneous) dichotomy between ‘workerist’ and
‘lifestylist’ anarchisms. Even though all squatters might be considered as
engaging in ‘lifestylist’ politics, there are clearly divisions at work within this
form of activism too. Of all the interviewees, respondent E’s views are closest to
the caricature ‘workerist,’ and as such felt that squats were largely irrelevant to
anarchist politics:
Most tenants don’t want to just boycott rent, they want to have lats. Most of
them are old people, or single women with little children … Squatting is the last
thing … they can do ... [ZSP] sometimes ... cooperate, but we have diferent
groups and diferent politics.57
This explains respondent E’s dismissal of squatting, above, but despite his
negative view, respondent E had helped with the attempted defence of Elba in
2012 and the successful defence of another squat in 2011, because, said
respondent E, ‘one of the people who lived there was my comrade from antifascist actions … Defending squats, I just learned how to ight with police
[laughs], nothing more. For me people who live on the squat are tenants, that’s
it.’ So, even as respondent E appears to subscribe to the ‘workerist’ stereotype in
his dismissal of squatting, he was still motivated to physically defend squats from
eviction out of solidarity for his squatter comrade, and because of a shared
opposition to state repression.
The tensions between Przychodnia and local non-punk squatting activists, though
both engaged in activism that might be described (or derided) as ‘lifestylist,’
point towards a wider dismissal of punk by some anarchists – respondent E here
included among them. However, the theoretical separation between ‘proper
anarchism’ and ‘bourgeois distractions,’ so clearly demarcated in online forum
communities, becomes much less clearly deined on the ground, where punk is
57[emphasis added]
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engaged with a difuse spectrum of anarchist perspectives – the
‘workerist’/‘lifestylist’ dichotomy simply doesn’t stack up in lived experience.
Image 3: Mural at Rozbrat, Poznań
The anarchist politics of punk squats in Poland
Another instance which confounds the supposed dichotomy between ‘workerism’
and ‘lifestylism’ is Rozbrat squat in Poznań – a large compound of warehouses,
out-buildings, DIY-built living quarters, and caravans, which began life as
opportunist housing for a group of punks in 1994, who later began putting on
gigs. Piotrowski writes that the punk gigs ‘were complemented by more political
public events and the squat became the centre of an eruption of social activism.’ 58
The space subsequently became the home of Federacja Anarchistyczna (Anarchist
Federation) in 1997, and, later, numerous other anarchist political and cultural
initiatives, including the syndicalist workers’ union OZZIP (National Union of
Workers Initiative). Rozbrat also houses a bike workshop, martial arts classes and
training gym, facilities for car repair, a library, computer and internet facilities,
meeting rooms, and more. It is the longest running squat in Poland, and is widely
recognised as an organisational hub for anarchism across the country.
Respondent A,59 a resident of Rozbrat, noted the importance of this:
This place is really like the best example for [the] whole [of] Poland I guess, and
everybody says that … We really help a lot, like we print posters and send them
58Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 235
59Interview conducted 15/05/2013
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to all [over] Poland and we have our Anarchist Review [journal] ... So we are
like this base ... One of the guys from the local government, who was really
against Rozbrat, he was terriied that Poznań [laughs] is like a Mecca of
anarchism. It’s really funny, I mean, but yeh, maybe it’s actually like that.
Image 4: Bike workshop at Rozbrat
Respondent C,60 a squatter at Rozbrat, is an example of the blurred
‘workerist’/‘lifestylist’ divide with her involvement in the syndicalist union OZZIP.
Respondent C viewed that when Federacja Anarchistyczna began regular weekly
meetings at Rozbrat in 1997, it ‘was kind of started in a contrast to the place,’
suggesting a consciousness of the potential tensions between a punk squat and
organised anarchist political groups. However, since then, Rozbrat’s importance
as a base for anarchist organising has grown, even while it continues to host
punk gigs and other culturally focussed initiatives. Respondent C was positive
about the mix of activities within the compound:
It really works, like when we for example do a syndicalist demonstration the
people who are organising gigs here, they would come and set-up the
microphone and speakers for us, like to provide infrastructure. Or, they would
invite us to come before some gig to talk about some action … demonstration,
or campaign … So, I think this particular place, it plays a role actually because
it is a space for concerts, it’s a living space, but it’s also a … political place, with
a place for meetings … I think because [of] this place really, it is [a] meeting
point, and it mix[es] everything.
Respondent A, whose interests might be described as more ‘lifestylist’ than
respondent C’s, echoed this:
There are a lot of people who [are] involved in diferent things, but it’s actually
all mixed together. Like for example, I’m not really involved in the workers’
60Interview conducted 17/05/2013
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unions stuf, but if we have [a] demonstration, even in the other city, I’m still
going there, because I feel like it’s the same struggles anyway. And like I’m an
anti-fascist and I’m struggling for animal rights and … for me, it’s the same
struggle … So I think it’s really important to work together.
So respondent A, who describes her own activist focus as anti-fascism and animal
rights – activisms which are often predominantly associated with punk – views
anarcho-syndicalist support for workers as part of ‘the same struggle.’
Respondent C was conscious of the theoretical tension between divergent
approaches, but felt that this could be transcended in practice. Piotrowski
emphasises the signiicance of OZZIP’s syndicalist organising within Rozbrat
squat, pointing to the establishing of connections with workers in a local factory
as a turning point,61 leading to a ‘new political agenda’ and ‘changes in political
style.’62 Typically anarcho-syndicalist activism was (and is) being organised within
the squat, with co-operation between squatters and workers. Respondent C
emphasised the immediate political signiicance of squatting: ‘We regularly
support the tenants’ struggles, not only in Poznań but also in other cities … The
issue of the houses is a political issue, and squatting is, for me, a political issue.’
Respondent C also recognised squatting as an important end in itself, but
considered it vital not to succumb to temptations to retreat into an ‘anarchist
ghetto’:
I think it’s very important to not sit in here all day, it’s nice, and I mean it’s an
easy way of living of course … I don’t have to pay rent and I don’t have to do
wage labour, so I can spend my time on supporting the movement … But we are
kind of consciously also trying to somehow also include the squatters’
movement, tenants’ movement and the workers’ movement … we try to put it
together on the practical level … But also we try to write and theorise on
connections between work, hous[ing] and … alternative culture, or squatting as
a means of survival in the capitalist economy.
61Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East,’ in The City Is Ours, p. 237
62Ibid. p. 240
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Image 5: Banner at Rozbrat in solidarity with Köpi (Berlin), Ungdomshuset (Copenhagen), Les
Tanneries (Dijon), Blitz (Oslo), Yfanet (Thessaloniki)
Squatting, then, provides an efective base for organising, in terms of resources
and space, and by freeing activists from wage slavery, enabling them to devote
more time and energy to their political activities. Respondent C’s point about
making a conscious efort to bring these strands together, both in practical and
theoretical terms, demonstrates that the broad mix of activities at Rozbrat is not
just some accidental arrangement. People at Rozbrat are actively challenging
divisions within the anarchist movement, such as those typically stereotyped as
‘workerists’ and ‘lifestylists.’ Piotrowski writes that because ‘Rozbrat was
founded by anarchists, anarchism still dominates the collective and has become
more visible and vibrant over time.’63 Respondent A argued that the various
initiatives and interests of Rozbrat were held together by this shared anarchist
identity:
with every kind of struggle it’s the most important to have this political identity,
always ... In the end … if you don’t have this political identity then … usually
you lose … It’s very important that you ident[ify] yourself as anarchist.
63Ibid. p. 234
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Respondent I, from Przychodnia, expressed admiration for Rozbrat’s ability to
connect with people from outside of the punk/squatter/anarchist milieu:
With Rozbrat, it’s a little bit [of a] diferent situation, because they are really
partners in the city … [with] local organisations and so on ... People started to
think, ‘hey, this is OK, I mean they look strange, the place is kind of strange, and
trashy and whatever, but they are saying … good things. They want to do
something good for … local, people’ ... But it took about ifteen, sixteen years
for local people to understand that.
This points to the importance of longevity in combination with community
engagement, and as Piotrowski notes: ‘[a]s a result of eighteen [and now more
than twenty] years of continuous activities and actions, Rozbrat is nowadays seen
as a counter-example for the neoliberal policies of local authorities.’ 64 In fact,
Rozbrat is so much a ‘partner in the city’ that its location is marked on the tourist
information maps distributed by Poznań city council, depite being an illegal
squat. However, this ‘oficial’ recognition belies the reality of the threat of
repression, with Rozbrat recently facing eviction by the city council. State
repression is a feature of squatting wherever it exists, and Poland is no exception.
Image 6: “Poznań not developers. Rozbrat, it’s not for sale.” Mural at Rozbrat
64Ibid. p. 240
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Repression of squatting in Poland – eviction and legalisation
Eviction is the most blatant tool of repression against squats, and against the
anarchist and punk communities that reside within and utilise them. As Martínez,
Piazza and Pruijt write: ‘squatters are in principle quite vulnerable because of the
strong legal protection of private property and the virtually unlimited repressive
powers of the state. Plus, the squatters who actually live in their squats … are
sitting ducks for the forces of repression.’ 65 As discussed above, squats are an
afront to the capitalist principle of private property – even where they are not
engaged in political activism, their very existence challenges the norms of
ownership. The legal frameworks of capitalist (and especially neo-liberal)
economies are set-up to protect and enforce private property rights, and squats
across Europe have come under increased pressure from eviction over the last
decade.66 Elba in Warsaw was one victim of this wave of repression. Respondent
H described the eviction:
A lot of police came to support this private owner, who came with the security.
But the security was not enough ... There was a lot of police including the water
cannons, and then the iremen [sic] to take us out of the roofs.
Respondent H was critical of the state’s role in what was essentially a private
ownership dispute:
It’s only a private business of the guy, but still the police came to support him,
which was actually illegal … If we have to leave this place the court should
decide, not just ‘oh, I have a problem, I need a lot of police’ [laughs].
Respondent C from Rozbrat described another instance of police violence being
used to evict squatters:
The people from the new squat [Od:zysk] … tried to squat another building and
there was [an] eviction … and ifty cops with machine guns came and then I was
teargassed. And one of us now is accus[ed] of spitting on the uniform of the cop.
And I mean, y’know, bullshit like this. It’s not really repression … that’s kind of
more intimidation or like, y’know, showing there are some limits.
65Miguel Martínez, Gianni Piazza and Hans Pruijt, ‘Introduction,’ in Squatting in Europe,
p. 15
66Resources like https://en.squat.net/ document the relentless eforts to evict squats
across Europe, and resistance to this repression.
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This constant threat of repression against squats creates a vigilant security
culture within them, as well as diverting considerable time and efort into
fortiication of the spaces. Another recognised outcome of this is the closing of of
squatted spaces from outsiders. The threat of attacks from fascists further
compounds this defensive mindedness and security consciousness.
The evictions of Elba and the irst Od:zysk squat were carried out with the weight
of state violence. However, in the case of Elba, this heavy handed response ‘was
also quite good press for us,’ said respondent H, ‘because it was [a] very
expensive action, y’know, there was 100 policemen or something.’ Despite the
eviction going ahead, respondent H said that ‘it went good, because it [put] … the
press also on our side.’ The eviction mobilised signiicant public support for Elba,
as respondent H notes: ‘many people came to support us … We did the big
demonstration … like more than 2,000 people there … (for Poland [this] is good)
against the eviction.’ This had an immediate efect in terms of forcing the city
council into negotiations over a new space for the evicted Elba collective, but also
staved-of subsequent eviction attempts at other squats in Warsaw. An eviction
attempt at Przychodnia was, again, supported by large numbers of police, but
respondent H noted that the squatters were able to resist the eviction ‘because ...
we had the good press, so the city didn’t want to make new riots. So … somehow
we kept this place.’ There is a dual threat to the city government here; negative
press coverage of its violent eviction tactics and the threat of highly disruptive
(and expensive) riots breaking out in retaliation for evictions. Natalia described
the response in Poznań to the threat of eviction against Rozbrat, which in 2009
and 2010 mobilised two:
big demonstration[s]. A lot of people came … maybe 2,000 … We have some
support from the other cities, I think that some people wanted to help us …
They were supporting us all the time. So for us [this] is very important, and we
have some … journalists … that are supporting us and … a lot of people involved
in culture, and some people involved in politics … and they are supporting us
[against] … the evict[ion].
E.T.C. Dee focuses on the ‘Robin Hood’ aspect of squats as a motivation for public
support, writing that ‘there is a certain public sympathy for those who squat
houses worth millions which are standing derelict. The need to protect private
property is coming into conlict with a basic belief which frames emptiness as
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itself criminal when people have a need for housing.’ 67 This certainly plays an
important role in the examples discussed above, but far more prominent in their
defence strategies is what Pruijt describes as the advancing of ‘a functionalist
frame, emphasising the valuable role of the project in the community, for example
as a breeding place for the creative class.’ 68 This was particularly the case with
Rozbrat, but not just as a plea for clemency from the state. Because of its
longevity, and its success in attracting people into the squat for various social,
cultural, and political functions, there is a pool of supporters, who might
ordinarily have little or no involvement with the squat, that can be called on to
defend Rozbrat in times of crisis. Respondent B,69 another resident of Rozbrat,
appreciated the signiicance of this popular support, but felt that it was
fundamentally limited: ‘When Rozbrat was in danger of eviction, then suddenly
everyone came for a demonstration … That’s also our problem, we would rather
treat Rozbrat as [an] aim to achieve some goals, and still, a lot of people … tend
to treat it as a goal [in] itself.’ Respondent G was more optimistic about
mobilisations to defend squats, considering their inherent opposition to state
forces as a good introduction to radical politics:
Many people know the place because they went to party here or they went to a
meeting here, they went to a lecture here, to a workshop, whatever. So when
one of those places is threatened … those situations always mobilise loads of
people ... And if people are smart then they can use this for mobilising people
for other events, because that’s often the irst demo people go to, or [the] irst
kind of struggle or physical struggle where they get involved. It’s also less
dangerous than, I dunno, going to beat some Nazis in the streets or get[ting]
involved into any other conlict where there is 2,000 people and all of them are
ready to ight for the place. It also shows people who are already involved in the
movement their strength, their possibility of mobilising many, many people to
ight for whatever they see as right.
So, as much as squats ofer opportunities to expose people to anarchist politics by
the fact of their existence, through their cultural roles, and through their political
activism, the confrontation generated with the state and with private capital
actually creates a further potential point of politicisation. These mobilisations
67E.T.C. Dee, ‘Moving Towards Criminalisation and Then What? Examining dominant
discourses on squatting in England,’ in Squatting in Europe, p. 253
68Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ in Squatting in Europe, p. 34
69Interview conducted 16/05/2013
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send a clear message to the parties interested in evicting squats, particularly the
state, which clearly alters how, or even if, they proceed with eviction attempts.
This is, then, a prime concern for squatters, as demonstrated in the repeatedly
expressed desire for ‘good press.’ But as respondent G notes, there is also a
beneicial efect from large mobilisations as politicising encounters, and an
expression of support which gives the squatter movement (and anarchist
movement more widely) increased conidence.
To avoid the potential repercussions of these confrontations, city councils and
local governments often attempt negotiation and accommodation as a tactic to
neutralise or contain squats. Legalisation can be viewed as a major success for
individual squats, ofering some level of security against eviction, but the
compromises made to reach this kind of agreement are contentious. Respondent
D70 from Od:zysk in Poznań discussed some of the compromises they had made in
order to extend the longevity of their squat:
People … from the city administration ... check[ed] the … state of the building,
like … is the building OK for making some gigs and so on … [The] bailif was
here too, two times … So yeh let’s say in [an] oficial way … they try to move us.
Respondent D recognised that co-operating with government oficials was a
compromise, but reasoned that:
by the law these people could come with police [and a locksmith], so in this way
the police could go inside [and] we don’t want them [to], of course. So we
decided to go by the law … and to let [the city oficials] in … We are thinking
that … behaving in that way we can stay here longer.
Image 7: Sign at Wagenburg, Wrocław.
Addition to the left reads: “Private area.
No trespassing.”
70Interview conducted 18/05/2013
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As mentioned already, Warsaw city council had been forced into negotiation with
the collective from the evicted Elba squat, in large part because of the mass
support the squatters had received. At the time of research these protracted
negotiations were still ongoing, but a legal ‘autonomous non-proit socio-cultural
centre’ has since been opened, called ADA Puławska. This move towards
legalisation created another area of tension for the Przychodnia squatters, this
time with the Elba collective, because one of the proposed conditions for the
opening of the legal social centre was the eviction of Przychodnia, meaning that
Prychodnia didn’t want Elba to sign the agreement – which respondent I
recognised as being somewhat ironic. Respondent H described the negotiations
with the city council as ‘bureaucratic shit’ and said that he ‘didn’t see a point’ in
running a ‘half-legal place.’ Pruijt identiies a major issue surrounding squat
legalisation as the potential ‘loss of the oppositional edge.’71 He cites a study of
squat legalisation in Amsterdam which ‘describes the commonly occurring efects
… as a loss of links to various societal structures, of ties with other free spaces,
and a decline in dynamism and political engagement.’ 72 As noted already, squats’
illegality imbues them with an intrinsic confrontational value, making them
politically signiicant places. A ‘half legal squat’ might still efectively operate as
a space for political organising, but it loses some of its intrinsic political
opposition, and as Pruijt notes this can also remove spaces from the networks of
support and solidarity that exist around squats. In this sense, legalisation can be
understood as a tool of repression, attempting to contain the squat within a legal
framework, and cutting of the opportunity for politicising confrontation.
Respondent K,73 who lives at Wagenburg in Wrocław, identiied this issue in the
legal status of CRK (Centrum Reanimacji Kultury – Centre for the Resuscitation of
Culture):
CRK is not, like, 100% squat anymore ... [the] city took … [a previous squat] and
instead they gave CRK, they exchange[d] place[s]. So CRK was not squatted,
they got this place from the city … like many houses in Europe in a similar
71Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ in Squatting in Europe, p. 34
72Ibid. citing Pieter Breek and Floris de Graad, Laast duizend vrijplaatsen bloeien. Onderzoek naar
vrijplaatsen in Amsterdam, (Amsterdam: De Vrije Ruimte, 2001), p. 77
73Interview conducted 02/06/2013
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situation. That’s why it’s now … legal … it’s just [an] ‘oficial alternative culture
house’ … And it’s, like, y’know, CRK is not centre of the anarchism in Wrocław.
There is [an] anarchist movement in Wrocław, but it’s not CRK.
So in this instance, legalisation meant a loss of connection to the local anarchist
movement. During the research, CRK was largely closed for major renovations,
being carried out by the city council. Respondent K was worried about this
situation, saying, ‘no one is really sure if we[‘re] gonna get this place back,’ and
felt that the centralised concentration of the movement’s energies into CRK has
left them vulnerable:
The thing is … of course all the squats have some limit time now … [but] if we
lost this place then I don’t think no one’s gonna make [a] new place. Maybe
because the place [existed for] too long … and [the] movement [has]
concret[ised] somehow, it’s like centralised ... They [take] just one direction, like
mak[ing] alternative culture, and not so much networking with local people.
So as Pruijt notes, and as may be the case for CRK, legalisation does not
necessarily guarantee security or permanence: ‘An important factor is the level of
control that occupants retain after legalisation.’ 74 As stated already, the legal
system is heavily biased in favour of private property, and an ‘oficial’ agreement
with squatters can actually provide the state with ammunition, such as written
lease agreements, to make a legal case for eviction. So the binary trade-of
between the ‘oppositional edge’ of illegality and the ‘security’ of legalisation is
often a false one. The unrest around the eviction of Elba in Warsaw led to the
promise of a new space being opened by the city – legalisation need not mean
meek compliance to the demands of the city government. Rather, it can be used
as a pragmatic tactic to create further squatting opportunities and to prolong the
life of existing spaces. Negotiation and resistance can go together in reality, even
while they are contradictory in theory. As Margit Mayer notes:
under speciic circumstances, some squatting movements have been able to
experiment with double track strategies and been able to go back and forth
between (or even apply simultaneously) direct action and negotiation, most
often in some kind of division of labour between radical core groups and more
moderate supporters, and thereby manage to extend their squats and with them
the infrastructures for their collective living, working, and political organising. 75
74Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ in Squatting in Europe, pp. 34-35, citing Breek and de Graad, Laast
duizend vrijplaatsen bloeien, p. 50
75Margit Mayer, ‘Preface,’ in Squatting in Europe, p. 3
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Image 8: Squat kayak, Wagenburg, Wrocław
So, even while entering into any compromise with the state (even something far
short of legalisation) looks like a fatal law for the anarchist political grounding of
squats, it can in fact be sensibly understood as a tactic of pragmatism. ‘Illegal’
squats are inevitably embroiled in legal wrangling in the courts anyway, and in
this regard are no more able to evade state interference than ‘compromising’
legally rented social centres. With consideration of the wider squatting movement
in Warsaw, this ‘double track strategy’ has been a particular success. Just a few
years ago, Elba was the only remaining squat in the city, but with diferent
collectives employing diverging yet complementary strategies, they now have
three spaces – two ‘illegal’ squats in Warsaw (one of which is Przychodnia), and
the ‘half-legal’ ADA Puławska. Negotiation with the city might not be a purist’s
idea of anarchist politics, but this combination of mobilising popular support,
resistance of evictions, and compromise with the city has resulted in signiicant
practical success. This doesn’t prevent the theoretical tensions having a real
impact, as was the case between Przychodnia and the Elba collective, but it does
emphasise the oft-observed gap between theoretical abstraction and practical
application. The repression of squatting is where the anarchist movement and
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punk scene in Poland are most tangibly repressed, so consideration of these
dynamics is crucial. But, again, the terms of the ‘workerist’/‘lifestylist’ schism are
evident in the identiication of strategies and tactics as ‘more anarchist’ or ‘less
anarchist’ – and, again, that theoretical dichotomy is shown to be false in
practice.
Conclusion
Squats in Poland are predominantly associated with punk and anarchism,
representing a bricks-and-mortar manifestation of that relationship, but as has
been shown here, these overlaps are not straightforward. This examination of
squatting in Poland has helped identify some key tensions in the relationship
between anarchism and punk, relecting many of the terms and frames of the
supposed ‘lifestylist’ versus ‘workerist’ dichotomy in anarchism more widely. But,
crucially, these tensions play-out in more complex forms, and on closer inspection
the dichotomy is revealed to be anyway false. Rather, a spectrum of anarchist
perspectives is evident in the experience of squatting in Poland.
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References
Ron Bailey, The Squatters, (London: Penguin, 1973)
Murray Bookchin, Social Anarchism or Lifestyle Anarchism. An unbridgeable chasm, (Edinburgh:
AK Press, 1995)
Carissa Honeywell, A British Anarchist Tradition. Herbert Read, Alex Comfort and Colin Ward,
(London: Continuum, 2011)
Pieter Breek and Floris de Graad, Laast duizend vrijplaatsen bloeien. Onderzoek naar vrijplaatsen
in Amsterdam, (Amsterdam: De Vrije Ruimte, 2001)
Laura Portwood-Stacer, Lifestyle Politics and Radical Activism, (New York/London: Bloomsbury,
2013)
Squatting Europe Kollective (eds), Squatting in Europe. Radical Spaces, Urban Struggles,
(Wivenhoe: Minor Compositions, 2013)
Margit Mayer, ‘Preface,’ pp. 1-10
Miguel Martínez, Gianni Piazza, Hans Pruijt, ‘Introduction,’ pp. 11-16
Hans Pruijt, ‘Squatting in Europe,’ pp. 17-60
E.T.C. Dee, ‘Moving Towards Criminalisation and Then What? Examining dominant
discourses on squatting in England,’ pp. 247-268
Bart van der Steen, Ask Katzef, and Leendert van Hoogenhuijze (eds), The City Is Ours.
Squatting and autonomous movements in Europe from the 1970s to the present, (Oakland: PM
Press, 2014)
Geronimo, ‘Foreword,’ pp. xiii-xix
Bart van der Steen, Ask Katzef, Leendert van Hoogenhuijze, ‘Introduction: Squatting and
Autonomous Action in Europe, 1980-2012,’ pp. 1-20
Nazima Kadir, ‘Myth and Reality in the Amsterdam Squatters’ Movement,’ pp. 21-62
Claudio Cattaneo and Enrique Tudela, ‘¡El Carrer Es Nostre! The Autonomous Movement
in Barcelona, 1980-2012,’ pp. 95-130
Needle Collective and Bash Street Kids, ‘Ebb and Flow: Autonomy and squatting in
Brighton, 1973-2012,’ pp. 153-178
Lucy Finchett-Maddock, ‘Squatting in London: Squatters’ Rights and Legal Movement(s),’
pp. 207-232
Grzegorz Piotrowski, ‘Squatting in the East: The Rozbrat Squat in Poland, 1994-2012,’ pp.
233-254
Colin Ward, Anarchy in Action, (London: Freedom Press 1996 [1973])
Colin Ward, Housing: an anarchist approach, (London: Freedom Press, 1976)
Colin Ward, Cotters and Squatters. Housing’s Hidden History, (Nottingham: Five Leaves, 2009
[2002])
Colin Ward and David Goodway, Talking Anarchy, (Oakland: PM Press, 2014 [2003])
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Volume 1 2017
Articles/zines
Jim Donaghey, ‘Researching “Punk Indonesia”: notes towards a non-exploitative insider
methodology,’ Punk & Post-Punk, vol. 6, no. 1, (forthcoming, Spring 2016)
Marco, ‘Radicaal Links in Nederland Sluit Zich Op in de Marge,’ in Ravage vol. 5 no. 1 (2000)
Grzegorz Piotrowski and Magnus Wennerhag , ‘Always against the state? An analysis of Polish and
Swedish radical left-libertarian activists’ interactions with institutionalized politics,’
PArtecipazione e COnlitto, vol. 8, no. 3, (2015), pp. 845-875
Dominika V. Polanska and Grzegorz Piotrowski, ‘The development of squatting in Poland: local
diferences and the importance of cohesion and durability,’ Baltic Worlds, vols 1-2, (2016), pp. 4656
Matthew Wilson, Biting the Hand that Feeds Us. In Defence of Lifestyle Politics, Dysophia Open
Letter #2, (Leeds: Dysophia, 2012)
Websites
SHA Collective communiqué, Against Apolitical Squatting,
https://www.facebook.com/squatterhomelessautonomy/ [accessed 11 th November 2015]
http://propertyrestitution.pl/ [accessed 31st March 2015]
https://en.squat.net/ [accessed 31st March 2015]
Interviewees cited
Respondent A (w) – 15/05/2013 – Poznań – Member of Rozbrat squat
Respondent B (m) – 16/05/2013 – Poznań – Member of Rozbrat squat – Member of hardcore/metal
band
Respondent C (w) – 17/05/2013 – Poznań – Member of Rozbrat squat – Member of Ogólnopolski
Związek Zawodowy Inicjatywa Pracownicza
Respondent D (m) – 18/05/2013 – Poznań – Member of Od:zysk squat
Respondent E (m) – 21/05/2013 – Warsaw – Member of Związek Syndykalistów Polski
Respondent F (m) – 24/05/2013 – Warsaw
Respondent G (m) – 25/05/2013 – Warsaw – Member of Przychodnia squat
Respondent H (m) – 27/05/2013 – Warsaw – Member of Przychodnia squat (former member of
Elba squat)
Respondent I (m) – 27/05/2013 – Warsaw – Member of Przychodnia squat – Member of post-punk
band
Respondent J (m) – 31/05/2013 – Wrocław – Operates DIY label
Respondent K (m) – 02/06/2013 – Wrocław – Member of Wagenburg squat
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Author details
Jim Donaghey is a member of the collective that runs Belfast Solidarity Centre
and Just Books radical bookshop (www.belfastsolidarity.org), as well as working
as a Research Fellow at Queen’s University Belfast. Jim’s PhD, titled Punk and
anarchism: UK, Poland, Indonesia, was completed at Loughborough University in
2016 (available here: https://dspace.lboro.ac.uk/dspace-jspui/handle/2134/22100).
Jim plays with the anarcho-punk-ska-riot-folk-grrrl band Gulder and likes cycling
and vegan food. He is aware that this makes him horribly clichéd.
Contact j DOT donaghey AT qub DOT ac DOT uk
Link
This article can be found online at the open access Trespass website at
https://www.trespass.network/?p=722&lang=en
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