Skip to content or view mobile version

Home | Mobile | Editorial Guidelines | Mission Statement | About | Contact | Help | Security | Support Us

A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.

Video of July ride of London Critical Mass.

Doug | 03.08.2007 08:09 | SOCPA | Repression | Social Struggles | London

As usual at the start of the ride the police were threatening riders with sound systems with arrest if they dare to play them within the SOCPA zone around Parliament. Something they do not do to motorists with sound systems. The photos show police hassling a rider with a sound system.

Video Video Part 1 - video/mp4 18M

Video Video part 2 - video/mp4 22M

Police videoing sound system rider
Police videoing sound system rider

Police threatening sound system rider
Police threatening sound system rider

Police taking details of sound system rider
Police taking details of sound system rider


The ride was fast with an interesting route and no stops at junctions for a change. Everything went well until the police decided to pull over a sound system in Park Lane towards the end of the ride, well outside of the SOCPA zone. It later emerged that they did this because 'offensive music' was being played. This is not the first time these self-appointed arbiters of public morality have tried to censor music during a CM ride.

The raw video is over two hours long and was made with a helmet cam. It has been edited down into two parts totaling 11 minutes.

 http://criticalmasslondon.org.uk

Doug

Additions

Police massers_Met bloc

03.08.2007 14:47

While it is somewhat encouraging that the police seem to want to be included in the monthly coincidental cycle rides,somewhat a new event in it`s 13 year history,I`d like to voice my concerns in thier behaviour. In 13 years there have been very little confrontation on the mass,however since the met bloc has joined it has become more agressive and surely unlawful. On julys mass the met bloc persisted in blockading roads and generally causing mayhem to motorists. In Park Lane they decided to "pull over" the sound system to bully the rider into turning off the sound system,firstly under the guise that it was in the SOPCA zone,when it was pointed out that it wasn`t in the SOPCA zone the rider was told that the music was deemed offensive. Yes facts can offend as all was being played was songs condeming the killing of innocents in Iraq,afganistan. Due to the solidarity of fellow cyclists,who stopped to witness this harassment of a peaceful cyclist,the whole southbound carrageway of Park Lane ground to a halt,culminating in tail backs around Marble arch,Edgware Rd,Bayswater Rd,Oxford St and even the northbound carrageway of Park Lane. A feat that the mass has never done. Are the Met bloc out to subvert. Further on at Trafalgar Sq I witnessed the sound system cyclist being told that he faced arrest for playing music in the SOPCA zone. When it was pointed out to the member of the Met bloc that in fact the rider was outside the zone,the officer disappeared! My I suggest that if the Met insist on "facilitating" the ride,a coincidence my I add,no orginisers no leaders. In fact it`s becoming increasingly obvious to me that the ones leading the ride are the Met Police. Surely this makes them liable to arrest for orginising. Maybe they should gen themselves up on the law before trying to wrongfully arrest people. Sadly,I wonder if these bully boy tactics are scaring cyclists away from what is a peaceable community spirited ride. I noticed the Met Bloc getting close to the sound system talking of snatching it. Well done to the solidarity of other cyclists forming a barrier around the sound system. I`d also like to suggest that some of the Met bloc take a cycling course as rubbing the backs of fellow cyclists wheels can result in very serious injury. Power to the people. See you all on the 14th @ 7.30am for a ride to climate camp.

@NARCHO CYCLIST


Comments

Display the following 5 comments

  1. Good Vid — bikerman
  2. Few people? — Doug
  3. Response to NARCHO CYCLIST — Andy
  4. Andy wants it on a Sunday — Martyn
  5. Sunday bloody sunday. — Andy
Upcoming Coverage
View and post events
UK
11th October, London, meet 1pm, New Scotland Yard: Freedom Not Fear - Anti-surveillance Day
11th October, London, meet 12 noon, Shell House, SE1 7NA: 100 days to stop Bush and Cheney
15th October, Brighton, Meet opposite Falmer Station at 12 noon: Smash EDO, Shut ITT - Mass Demo Against the Arms Trade
18th October, London, Queen Mary College 10am to 7pm: Anarchist Bookfair 2008
Ongoing UK
Parliament Sq Protest: see topic page
Ongoing Global
Rossport, Ireland: see topic page
Iraq Occupation: Electronic Iraq
Israel-Palestine: Israel Indymedia | Palestine Indymedia
Oaxaca: Chiapas Indymedia
Climate Change: Climate Indymedia
United Kollectives
All Regions
Birmingham
Cambridge
Leeds Bradford
Liverpool
London
Manchester
Nottinghamshire
Oxford
Sheffield
South Coast
World
Other Local IMCs
Bristol/South West
Scotland
York
Projects
Indymedia Projects

iMobile Page
Photo Page
Indymedia Cinema
Video Page
Radio Page
Offline Newsheet

Other Media Projects

Schnews
Riseup Radio
Dissident Island Radio
Topics
All Topics
Analysis
Animal Liberation
Anti-militarism
Anti-racism
Bio-technology
Climate Chaos
Culture
Ecology
Education
Free Spaces
Gender
Globalisation
Health
History
Indymedia
Iraq
Migration
Ocean Defence
Other Press
Palestine
Repression
Social Struggles
Technology
Terror War
Workers' Movements
Zapatista
Major Reports
Carmel Agrexco
G8 Japan 2008
SHAC
Stop Sequani
Stop RWB
Climate Camp 2008
Oaxaca Uprising
Smash EDO
SOCPA
Past Major Reports
Unencrypted Page
We suggest you use an encrypted connection for browsing this site.
Please install the CAcert root certificate to verify the authenticity of the site, for more information see the security page.

Global IMC Network


www.indymedia.org

Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video

Africa
ambazonia
canarias
estrecho / madiaq
kenya
nigeria
south africa

Canada
hamilton
london, ontario
maritimes
montreal
ontario
ottawa
quebec
thunder bay
vancouver
victoria
windsor
winnipeg

East Asia
burma
jakarta
japan
manila
qc

Europe
abruzzo
alacant
andorra
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
bristol
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
euskal herria
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
lille
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
nice
norway
oost-vlaanderen
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
saint-petersburg
scotland
sverige
switzerland
thessaloniki
torun
toscana
toulouse
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia

Latin America
argentina
bolivia
brasil
chiapas
chile
chile sur
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela

Oceania
adelaide
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
oceania
perth
qc
sydney

South Asia
india
mumbai

United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
austin
baltimore
big muddy
binghamton
boston
buffalo
charlottesville
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
tennessee
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester

West Asia
armenia
beirut
israel
palestine

Topics
biotech

Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech
volunteer