On the night of February 7th a group of activists from the Green Anti-Capitalist Front (GAF), alongside squatters and other activists, occupied the abandoned high security police station at Paddington Green in London. If all goes well, the activists plan to spend the third night in the building today.

The police station was best known as a high security detention place where people suspected of terrorism were held and questioned. It was closed and decommissioned in 2018.

According to GAF’s press release, “the intention is to hold the space and turn it into a community centre, the activities of which will culminate in a week of action against capitalism. This is motivated by the belief that capitalism by its very nature will continue to destroy our planet and ultimately our civilisation. Only by ending capitalism and finding a new system, immediately, can we hope to survive in any meaningful way to the end of this century. During the week of action the space will host workshops, skill shares, socials, planning sessions and a wide variety of other informative and entertaining events while also acting as a base from which to launch actions to reclaim our public space from corporations and government, and strike at the very heart of capital. We will show the mega rich and powerful that we will not stand for their greed and corruption.”

Yesterday, the police attempted to illegaly evict the space, claiming that it is a residential building (and therefore illegal to squat) and, reportedly,  that not allowing the cops to come in and use the toilet is a breach of human rights. This eviction attempt was succesfuly stopped by the activists.

Currently, the police station is being turned into a community space: Green Radical anti-capitalist Social Squat aka GRASS: a move GAF London described as “the first time since it’s construction that this police station has been put to good use!”

Paddington Green Police Station occupation happened at the same day when the group of activists known as BP or not BP took over the British Museum to protest BP’s sponsorship of a Troy exhibition. The British Museum occupation ended after more than 50 hours.

GAF’s statement on the occupation is available here.

>>> more info to follow as it comes.