exarcheia

From Freedom News UK

For quite some time now, in the historic Exarcheia neighbourhood of Athens, home to countless anti-authoritarian and anarchist collectives, squats, and social centres, there has been a struggle directed against the construction of a metro station on the district’s central square. How does an area with such a libertarian history oppose the expansion of public transport, one might ask; but the truth is that the problem is not the subway as such, but the way the decision to build was made and what will came after it.

From Athens Indymedia

At the same time that poverty, fascism, patriarchy and gentrification are being imposed as a natural State, we choose to disrupt them at every opportunity and send back part of the violence we experience. For this reason, on Sunday 23/11, we attacked the Attiko Metro station Ag. Ioannis, destroying entrance barriers, ticket machines and ATMs, participating our way against the increasing proliferation of the metro station in Exarcheia Square and in the struggle to defend the neighbourhood.

From Athens Indymedia via Dark Nights

On 07/10 at noon we returned a small share of the state violence that we receive daily by attacking with Molotov cocktails the riot squad that guards the Steki of Biologica at the University of Thessaloniki. We have taken all necessary measures to avoid endangering passers-by. First we targeted the cops who were standing guard while sleeping and after they made sure to disappear we hit the bus itself.

From Enough14

...following the State’s decision to destroy its historic square [Athens]

Video from the protest and the riot that followed on Saturday 24 September 2022 in Exarcheia, (Athens, Greece) against the State’s decision to destroy the historic Exarcheia Square under the excuse of constructing a metro station on top of it. This was the 3d big protest against the metso on Exarcheia Square since August 2022. In the first one approximately 1.000 people took part, in the 2nd more than 2.000 and in this 3d one approximately 4.500 protesters. Following this big protest in the streets of Exarcheia in downtown Athens, riots broke out.

This week, we spoke with Alex, an anarchist squatter in the Athenian neighborhood of Exarchia. They talk about repression by the New Democracy party, struggles against green washing wind turbines around rural Greece, the fires raging through the country, resistance to rape culture, fighting against the building of a metro station in Exarchia and the privatization of public spaces like Strefi Hill, police presence at Universities, anarcho-tourism and the hunger strike of anarchist prisoner Giannis Michialidas.

...in solidarity with anarchist comrade Giannis Michailidis

On Friday night, July 8th, we carried out a raid with hammers on the policed, touristic and “gentrified” centre of Thessaloniki on Tsimiski Street. We chose to attack a central store of the AB Vassilopoulos chain, which, apart from its constant stance on the implementation of the most neoliberal dictates in the labour regime of the chain’s branches, has taken the current intensity of the capitalist crisis as an opportunity to make a fortune at the expense of society by blowing up the prices of basic goods. We also attacked a branch of elpedison, which, respectively, is ensuring a rapid increase in its profits in the context of the current crisis, bringing poor households to their knees. Finally, we hit a Eurobank branch by breaking its ATMs.

...in solidarity with hunger striker Giannis Michailidis

We take responsibility for the arson of a Cosmote vehicle at Tositsa Street, in Exarcheia, on Wednesday night 29/06 as a sign of solidarity with the hunger striker Giannis Michailidis, who has been on hunger strike since 23/05.

On Tuesday 5 July a rally was called against the release of Korkoneas. The meeting was called at 20.00 at the intersection of Messolongiou and Tzavella. The response of the people was quite large, and it was decided to hold a march through the streets of Exarchia. The pulse was strong from start to finish, and slogans were constantly shouted, with the aim of demonstrating that “justice” is clearly class-based: On the one hand, it releases the cop-killer of Alexandros, by decision of the Lamia Court of Appeal, the same court of appeal that on the other hand deprives the anarchist hunger striker from 23/5, Giannis Michailidis, of his freedom.

Why speak when you can be silent? and yet, since the sexy videos of the riots that took place in Exarcheia on Saturday, June 25 have gained a lot of views, the English-speaking audience might benefit from some context. What follows is my account of that night, from the perspective of a neighborhood resident, anarchist, etc.

The target of our attack was the much-publicised DRASI Group. One of the two main pillars of repression of society along with the riot police. Our attack caught them completely off guard, not having the practical ability to approach us they were limited to picking up their fallen colleagues and throwing flash bangs. At our tactical retreat the DRASI felt they had the ability to fight back. Then something happened that made us even happier. Along with us, a large crowd of people got up from the shops and benches, left for a while the classic hanging out in Messolonghio and joined us in the conflict. The aftermath was beautiful, the garbage of the DRASI Team running chased through the alleys of the Exarcheia.