Whitechapel High Street

Aldgate to Tower Bridge

On Thursday 19th February 2015 after a ‘poor doors’ protest at One Commercial Street against the separate entrances for rich and poor residents lit up by flaming torches, Class War marched with these across Tower Bridge to protest at new luxury flats at One Tower Bridge in Southwark on the south bank of the River Thames where social housing residents are to be denied access to the private garden.

It was raining slightly and the ‘poor doors’ protest had started with only the core protesters outside the entrance to the private flats next to Aldgate East Station on Whitechapel High Street (residents to the social housing enter by a side alley.)

A van of police had driven up as Ian Bone was speaking and came to guard the door, though the protesters were not on this occasion attempting to enter the building. An officer tried to talk to Bone but he wasn’t interested. The police had asked Class War to pay for their march to be policed, but had been very firmly told that the fewer police there were the better.

After around half an hour Class War decided it was time to light up ready for the march and torches were handed out and were soon flaming. They cheered up the rather damp night and provided a little more light for photography, but did make things look rather warm coloured.

There was a little light relief for the protesters when a woman who I think worked for an estate agents came to complain about the protest to the police telling them they should stop it. She got a little shouty when police told her that people had a right to protest, but police soon persuaded her to move away.

There had been some discussion about whether the march should take place, but numbers had grown and people were keen to march despite the weather and the march set off down Leman St led by the Class War banners and flaming torches.

There were some disputes about the best route to take, and some small diversions down seriously dark side streets where it was hard to photograph without the help of the torches. On the busy roads the march spread out across the whole carriageway to stop traffic behind it – with much hooting from frustrated drivers, though the delay was only short.

On Tower Bridge the marchers took over both carriageways bringing both the ‘Lucy Parsons’ and ‘Party Leaders’ banners beside each other.

Orange flares were set off and there was a short pause as the flaming torches were refilled with paraffin before the marchers moved onto the pavement and set off again, crossing the road and down an alley into the new luxury flat development where police were waiting for them.

The development here consisted of eight blocks of luxury apartments and one of affordable homes and includes a private garden area. In the original planning application this was to have been used by all tenants, but a few days before this protest Southwark Council had agreed to the developers changing this to deny access to the social housing residents, which led to this march by Class War against another aspect of social apartheid.

More pictures on My London Dairy at Poor Doors to Rich Gardens.

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Dolce & Gabbana, Sanctions & Poor Doors Thursday 19th March 2015 -protests at a Mayfair fashion store, the Department of Work and Pensions and another of Class War’s long series of protests at One Commercial St, Aldgate.

Dolce & Gabbana Boycott – Old Bond St

Domenico Dolce and his business partner Stefano Gabbana are apparently well known fashion designers and have a range of over 200 shops in plush areas of cities in 41 countries dedicated exclusively to selling their overpriced clothing. In London I think they have one in Sloane Square as well as the Mayfair store this protest took place outside.

For some reason our media treats anything to do with fashion as important news, and there were more photographers and TV crews packing the narrow pavement than protesters when I arrived making covering the protest difficult, particularly for those of us who prefer to work at close range.

The Peter Tatchell Foundation and the Out and Proud Diamond Group had called the protest in support of the international boycott over homophobic statements by the two designers. Almost certainly a much higher proportion of the shop’s customers are gay than in the general population and Dolce & Gabbana have profited massively from sales to the gay community over the years.

More about the protest at Dolce & Gabbana Boycott.

Unite protest against Benefit Sanctions – Caxton House, Westminster

Unite here and at Job Centres around the country were having a day of action against punitive benefit sanctions on over 2m people which had led to increased poverty, misery and even death. They say the are a ‘grotesque cruelty’ and are often imposed for trivial reasons.

People have been sanctioned because postal delays meant they never got notification of an appointment they missed, or because they were 5 minutes late as a bus was cancelled. Often job centre staff are under pressure to issue sanctions and may be penalised if they do not sanction enough of their clients.

At the protest was Gill Thompson, whose brother, David Clapson, a diabetic ex-soldier, died after being sanctioned. She had brought her 211,822 signature petition calling for an inquiry into benefit sanctions to the protest to present to the DWP.

Among others who spoke was Rev Paul Nicholson of Taxpayers Against Poverty.

More pictures Unite protest against Benefit Sanctions.

Poor Doors Protest Blocks Rich Door – One Commercial St, Aldgate

When Class War read a newspaper article about the separate entrances for rich residents and those in social housing in a new block at One Commercial Street in July 2014 they were disgusted and decided to launch a series of weekly protests outside the block every Thursday evening.

I missed the first of these but you can find reports of almost all of the rest of them, at least 29 in all, on My London Diary. For an overview you can read John Bigger’s article on Freedom in which he gives an insider’s view and assesses the impact of these protests, and the ‘zine’ I published Class War: Rich Door, Poor Door with over 200 photographs from 29 protests is still available. But though this is reasonably priced, postage costs roughly double this – so you really need to buy half a dozen copies or more and give or sell some to your friends. Be warned the print quality in what Blurb calls a MAGAZINE is pretty low.

The protest on 19th March was a lively one and the management at One Commercial Street had locked the rich door and were I think telling the rich residents of that section to enter and leave instead through the hotel at the Commercial Street side of the building. Class War held up banners and posters and some stuck stickers onto the glass of door and large windows. Someone lit a red smoke flare and threw it onto the pavement. There was a lot of loud chanting and some short speeches.

Some younger anarchists present took plastic barriers from the works taking place on the pavement and piled them in front of the locked door. Others took them onto the busy Whitechapel High Street and blocked the traffic.

A man and a woman who had been watching suddenly grabbed one of those present, threw him to the floor and handcuffed him, holding up their warrant cards to show they were plain clothes police. I didn’t recognise the man they arrested who was not one of the regular Class War protesters, and as usual they refused to answer questions about why he was being arrested. But their arrest effectively blocked the only lane of the road which the protesters had not already blocked.

More uniformed police arrived and dragged the arrested man away to a police van, removed the barriers and protesters from the road and the protest continued with Class War holding up flaming torches in front of the rich door.

There were a few more short speeches and then the protesters left as usual after about an hour, leaving their posters attached to the glass on the front of the building by Class War stickers.

More at Poor Doors blocks Rich Door.

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Tag: Whitechapel High Street

Dolce & Gabbana, Sanctions & Poor Doors 2015

Dolce & Gabbana Boycott – Old Bond St

Unite protest against Benefit Sanctions – Caxton House, Westminster

Poor Doors Protest Blocks Rich Door – One Commercial St, Aldgate