Lentil Stew at the White House

Much to tell, maybe, now I am in Madrid. I've been holed up writing, but made a few forays – to Tabacalera CSA on a busy night, buzzing with many immigrants there for a music night and African crafts show in the bar. It's a huge, busy social center with the disconcerting presence of uniformed security officers paid by the state. This is counter-culture and this is official. Wild. I was there to meet videotistas from Tabacanal, the on-site internet video project. They were to videotape some visiting South American cultural officials – I never got the details. But they were hidden in one of the many rooms, and no one seemed to know where. (The administration of this big CSA is straining the resources of the assembly, I am told.) This weekend AK KRaak video collective from Berlin is presenting there. I'll be in the mountains, sigh.
But I also escaped the writing cabin for a drink at the bar of Casa Blanca, a newer CSOA not far from the Reina Sofia museum. It's smaller than Tabacalera, of course – but no guards! I bought a t-shirt. The shirt lists the successive occupations that have culminated in this one: “06 La Escoba, 07 La Alarma, 08 Malaya” and “10 Casa Blanca.” Last night I returned, as the Madrid Critical Mass bicycle ride wound up there. (A related poster features a drooling wolf riding along above a prowling cat.) The post-ride party started with a giant bowl of lentils, rice and veggies. I didn't stay for the basement dance party...
Meanwhile, Back in School –
I'm getting promo from Edu-Factory for their February European Meeting of University Movements in Paris. Buckets of folks are going to discuss their struggles against austerity. (Their 2009 book, “Towards a Global Autonomous University,” is available as a PDF download in English, Spanish and Italian on their site.) Resisting austerity seems like small change compared to overthrowing the government – northern Africa is going wild... But folks all over now have to fight for their future.
A lot of ground-level action is also covered at Occupy Everything. They've got the scoop on the recent Paris occupation across the street from the president's house! They're crusty, too -- i love the "DIY Book Bloc" videotape, showing how to make a street shield from Italian UniRiot TV. (Maybe a little too crusty; I don't like gun show propaganda any more than the thought of professors packing turns me on...)
Even the E-flux crew has put out an interesting journal on the topic – with contributions from some of the newly emergent usual suspects: Paul Chan, Claire Bishop, Brian Holmes among the U.S. names. It's not exactly on the topic. In the best tradition of philosophical-critical perspective mongering, most essays circle around it – except for Gavin Butt's on “being boiled,” penned by the London cops during the recent demonstrations. That's low level brutality compared to Mubarak's police, but cut from the same bolt of repressive cloth. Still, I am glad that our egghead powers-that-be are coming around – you can follow the turnaround on E-flux news reports of demonstrations – from the anxious report of Prince Charles being jostled in his car in early December, to a major union leader's remarks on 12/30 that “workers should be inspired by student protests against higher tuition fees.'The magnificent students’ movement urgently needs to find a wider echo if the government is to be stopped,' McCluskey [of the Unite union] wrote in the Guardian newspaper today[12/30]. 'We have to be preparing for battle.'” Workers and students united – De Gaulle's nightmare...

Links:

Tabacanal TV project – in Spanish
http://blogs.latabacalera.net/tabacanal/

AK KRaak video collective – in German & English
http://akkraak.squat.net/
and Youtube user/akkraakantiquariat

Casa Blanca CSO, Madrid
http://www.csocasablanca.org/

Madrid Critical Mass – in Spanish
http://bicicritica.ourproject.org/web/

European Meeting of University Movements: Paris, 11-13 February 2011
http://www.edu-factory.org/wp/european-meeting-of-university-movements-in-paris-list-
of-participants/

Occupy Everything
http://incorporealcommittee.wordpress.com/

“DIY Book Bloc” video posted at:
http://occupyca.wordpress.com/

E-flux journal
http://www.e-flux.com/journal

E-flux art & education updates
http://www.artandeducation.net/updates/2011