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| Squatters' Network | |
|---|---|
| Name | Squatters' Network |
| Type | Informal transnational movement |
| Founded | Diverse origins; 19th–21st centuries |
| Location | Global (notable presences in Europe, Americas, Oceania) |
| Focus | Housing, land occupation, community spaces |
| Methods | Direct action, occupation, legal defense, mutual aid |
Squatters' Network Squatters' Network denotes informal, often decentralized coalitions and movements that coordinate occupation of unused or derelict property to secure housing and communal spaces. These coalitions intersect with advocacy groups and political actors across urban contexts, involving activists, legal clinics, cooperatives, and community organizations that engage in direct action, mutual aid, and policy campaigns.
The term encompasses networks of activists linked to historical episodes such as Paris Commune-era occupations, and modern movements connected to Occupy Wall Street, Ateneo de Manila University occupations, and street-level struggles involving groups like People's Justice Party (Malaysia), Syndicalist Confederation of Intercultural Communities, and local chapters of Anarchist Federation (Britain and Ireland). Definitions vary among scholars from institutions like London School of Economics, University of California, Berkeley, Universidade de São Paulo, and University of Amsterdam, with legal analysts citing cases from courts such as the European Court of Human Rights, Supreme Court of Canada, and High Court of Australia. Comparative studies reference events including the Spanish Civil War, May 1968 events in France, and contemporary episodes in cities like Amsterdam, Barcelona, Berlin, Buenos Aires, Detroit, Naples, Sydney, Tokyo, and Vancouver.
Origins trace to 19th-century urban movements documented by historians at University of Oxford and Columbia University, with notable phases in the early 20th century tied to Great Depression relief occupations, postwar squatting in Amsterdam and Berlin, and late-20th-century waves linked to neoliberal restructuring assessed by researchers from Johns Hopkins University and The London School of Economics and Political Science. The 1970s and 1980s saw institutionalized networks such as those connected to Federation of Anarchist Groups and community organizers affiliated with United Nations Centre for Human Settlements (UNCHS), while the 2000s featured transnational exchanges facilitated by events like World Social Forum and digital platforms developed at Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Stanford University.
Legal status varies across jurisdictions governed by statutes like the Housing Act 1988 (United Kingdom), constitutional provisions in the Constitution of South Africa, and municipal ordinances in cities including New York City, Paris, and São Paulo. Case law from tribunals such as the European Court of Justice and judicial bodies like the Supreme Court of the United States informs doctrines on property rights, adverse possession, and human rights claims invoked under instruments like the European Convention on Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights. Legal aid organizations such as Legal Aid Society (New York) and clinics at Yale Law School and University of Toronto Faculty of Law often represent occupants in disputes involving police forces like Metropolitan Police Service, New South Wales Police Force, and Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
Networks combine grassroots collectives, tenants' unions, and cultural cooperatives with ties to groups like Food Not Bombs, La Via Campesina, Housing Works, and mutual aid projects connected to Médecins Sans Frontières in crisis contexts. Activities include squat renovations with volunteers from organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, community events akin to those organized by International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, political education referencing texts published by Verso Books and Pluto Press, and alliances with unions like Service Employees International Union and Industrial Workers of the World. Communication strategies draw on channels used by Creative Commons, digital tools from projects at Electronic Frontier Foundation, and coordination seen in networks like Global Justice Movement.
Scholars at Princeton University, University of Cambridge, and University of Chicago have studied impacts on urban regeneration, gentrification patterns noted in research on Berlin, London, Barcelona, and New York City, and effects on housing precarity analyzed alongside reports by United Nations Human Settlements Programme (UN-Habitat), World Bank, and International Monetary Fund. Economic analyses reference displacement trends tracked by Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and social outcomes linked to public health findings from World Health Organization. Community initiatives often intersect with cultural production from institutions such as Tate Modern, Museum of Modern Art, and Biennale di Venezia-related projects.
Prominent networks and movements include historical and contemporary examples associated with Koepi Squat (Amsterdam), Christiania (Freetown Christiania), Squatters Movement (Barcelona), Metelkova (Ljubljana), Künstlerhaus Bethanien (Berlin), Casa Pueblo (Puerto Rico), Ateneo Occupations (Philippines), Autonomist movement (Italy), and episodes linked to The Landless Workers' Movement (MST) in Brazil and Shack dwellers (Abahlali baseMjondolo) in South Africa. Activists and public intellectuals connected to these currents include associations with figures and institutions like Noam Chomsky, David Harvey, Henri Lefebvre, Manuel Castells, Mike Davis, Saskia Sassen, and research centers at Centre for Contemporary Culture Barcelona.
Responses involve policing strategies by forces such as the French National Police, Guardia Civil (Spain), Gendarmerie nationale, New York Police Department, and legal crackdowns informed by legislation from parliaments like the UK Parliament and assemblies in Spain and Italy. Controversies encompass clashes with developers represented by entities such as Blackstone Group, disputes adjudicated in forums like the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, and debates involving public policy actors at European Commission and municipal governments in Amsterdam, Athens, and Rome. Human rights organizations like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have documented enforcement incidents, while scholars and NGOs including International Centre for Human Rights Policy critique securitization trends.
Category:Housing movements