Published on 15th March 2012 | Part of SchNEWS Issue 809


NOTTS IN OUR NAME

Occupy Nottingham were due to have their day in court this week, after their eviction papers had been served courtesy of Nottingham Council. Nottingham's Occupiers have made it through the winter and out the other side, camped up at Market Square. The judge has put back their case to April 5th, as the protesters asked, as the council, in a bid to fast track the eviction, did not follow proper court procedures. The letter their solicitors sent to the courts prior to the hearing had not been given to the Judge by the court clerks, and the council's solicitor did not ensure the Judge had copies of all the relevant paperwork for the case.

The Occupiers have tried to be nice about their stay, and have done their best to avoid confrontation with the council, who claim that the Occupiers create a mess in their otherwise pristine central square. Occupy Nottingham have already moved once (within the Square) as per the council's request. Compared with the bands of fighting, drunken littering idiots that pass through the town centre, the Occupiers have been as courteous as anyone could expect. They do have an annoying tendency to go on about how bad capitalism is, and how the present system ought to be changed for a better one. Even though its unlikely that many who work at Notts council are members of the 1%, it's clear where their loyalties lie.

Alongside their legal battle, Occupy Nottingham are circulating this petition:

“The decision of Nottingham City Council to evict the Occupy Camp when the camp had already agreed to relocate appears to be an unnecessary, over the top, exercise of power that is a breach of trust.
It appears to be an attempt to humiliate a group who have shown dedication and endurance over the winter by surviving on the market square. We call on the council to restore their credentials as respectors of democratic dissent.”




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