To mark the fifth anniversary of the 2,000,000-strong anti-war demo in London, members of the Sheffield Activist Network (SAN) blockaded the city's military recruitment centre on Church Street.
Following the recent successful disruption of a lecture given at Sheffield University by Air Marshall Stuart Peach, SAN took the cause of working-class anti-militarism into town and blockaded a military recruitment centre for several hours until the action was broken up by a heavy-handed police intervention.
Around fifteen SAN members took part in the action, which involved locking onto the recruitment centre doors and preventing access. Activists held a banner reading "100% need not apply", and gave out literature exposing the realities of life that working-class kids can expect to face in the military.
We also attempted to make the basic case that working-class people in Britain have more in common with working-class Iraqis, Afghanis and Iranians than we do with the bosses, politicians and officers who would send us to kill them.
Although some passers-by were hostile, several expressed support for the action and a couple of ex-squaddies were particularly enthusiastic in agreeing with the content of our leaflet.
Hundreds of leaflets were distributed and the action caught the attention of the local media.
The police maintained a sustained presence throughout the day - including constant filming of activists - but ramped up their intervention after a few hours by deploying several riot-vans full of coppers to the scene. Eventually, activists were outnumbered two to one and were left powerless as we were dragged off one by one before the activists who had locked-on were eventually removed and arrested.
SAN obviously intends to support them through the court process and will continue to initiate and support class-focused direct action in Sheffield over the coming months. To get in touch, email
sheffieldactivists@gmail.com
Around fifteen SAN members took part in the action, which involved locking onto the recruitment centre doors and preventing access. Activists held a banner reading "100% need not apply", and gave out literature exposing the realities of life that working-class kids can expect to face in the military.
We also attempted to make the basic case that working-class people in Britain have more in common with working-class Iraqis, Afghanis and Iranians than we do with the bosses, politicians and officers who would send us to kill them.
Although some passers-by were hostile, several expressed support for the action and a couple of ex-squaddies were particularly enthusiastic in agreeing with the content of our leaflet.
Hundreds of leaflets were distributed and the action caught the attention of the local media.
The police maintained a sustained presence throughout the day - including constant filming of activists - but ramped up their intervention after a few hours by deploying several riot-vans full of coppers to the scene. Eventually, activists were outnumbered two to one and were left powerless as we were dragged off one by one before the activists who had locked-on were eventually removed and arrested.
SAN obviously intends to support them through the court process and will continue to initiate and support class-focused direct action in Sheffield over the coming months. To get in touch, email
sheffieldactivists@gmail.com
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