Punk and Anarchist Squats in Poland<\/p>\n
A peer-reviewed article by Jim Donaghey<\/p>\n
Abstract
\nSquats are of notable importance in the punk scene in Poland, and these spaces are a key aspect of the relationship between anarchism and punk. However, the overlap of squatting, punk, and anarchism is not without its tensions. This article, drawn from ethnographic research carried out between 2013 and 2014, explores the issues around punk and anarchist squats in Poland, looking at: criticisms levelled at punk squats by \u2018non-punk\u2019 squatting activists (e.g. Przychodnia in Warsaw); instances of squats as a hub for a wide spectrum of anarchist activity (e.g. the \u2018anarchist Mecca\u2019 of Rozbrat in Pozna\u0144); and the repression of squatting in Poland through eviction and legalisation (affecting all squats in some form). (Other squats and social centres mentioned here include Elba and ADA Pu\u0142awska in Warsaw, Wagenburg and CRK in Wroc\u0142aw, and Od:zysk in Pozna\u0144.) Among the various squats, there were tensions around approaches and tactics identified as \u2018more anarchist\u2019 or \u2018less anarchist\u2019 \u2013 this speaks to the supposed \u2018workerist\u2019\/\u2018lifestylist\u2019 dichotomy within anarchism more widely, but the lived experience of the squatters is shown here to be far too complex to be encompassed in any false binary.<\/em><\/p>\n