Youth centre, focus of Copenhagen protests, had a century of political history
COPENHAGEN -- Hundreds of tearful and angry protesters gathered outside a youth community centre in Copenhagen yesterday to watch as a hydraulic excavator tore into the building, bringing to an end more than 100 years of political history.
The "Ungdomshuset" or Youth House which once hosted Vladimir Lenin, has been the focus of street riots in recent days following the eviction of squatters from the building which has been sold to a rightwing Christian sect...
The four-storey red brick building has been a popular meeting point for leftwing anarchists, punk rockers, and musicians since the local government allowed young people to use it in 1982. It quickly became a focal point for anti-capitalist activism.
But its importance as a place where political history was made goes back further. Built as a community theatre for the labour movement in 1897, it was here that both Denmark's women's liberation and trade union movements were founded. Lenin paid a visit in 1910 during the Socialist International Congress and it has played host to modern musicians such as Bjork and Nick Cave.
But it has been a point of contention between inhabitants and the local government since 1995 when a fire which damaged the building prompted the city to decide to sell it. A squat was formed whose occupants hung a banner from the windows which read: "For sale, including 500 violent-loving psychos."
Read entire article at Guardian
The "Ungdomshuset" or Youth House which once hosted Vladimir Lenin, has been the focus of street riots in recent days following the eviction of squatters from the building which has been sold to a rightwing Christian sect...
The four-storey red brick building has been a popular meeting point for leftwing anarchists, punk rockers, and musicians since the local government allowed young people to use it in 1982. It quickly became a focal point for anti-capitalist activism.
But its importance as a place where political history was made goes back further. Built as a community theatre for the labour movement in 1897, it was here that both Denmark's women's liberation and trade union movements were founded. Lenin paid a visit in 1910 during the Socialist International Congress and it has played host to modern musicians such as Bjork and Nick Cave.
But it has been a point of contention between inhabitants and the local government since 1995 when a fire which damaged the building prompted the city to decide to sell it. A squat was formed whose occupants hung a banner from the windows which read: "For sale, including 500 violent-loving psychos."