(en) Britain, Bristol Anarchist Federation - From a knife attack to free donuts, a range of reactions to the workfare demonstration

Last Saturday over 50 people gatherd in Broadmead for an anti-Workfare demonstration 
called by ourselves and Bristol Solidarity Federation. Aswell as friends from Bath 
Anarchists (BARF), the IWW and the Socalist Party there were plenty of new faces we hadn?t 
seen on previous demos. ---- First stop, Cabot Cirucs! ---- Before we had even set off our 
spirits were lifted by the news that Superdrug had already pulled out of workfare just 
before the demonstrations set to take place across the country, Result! The first stop on 
our tour of companies using forced labor under the workfare scheme was Dorothy Perkins in 
Cabot Circus. Its always good to reclaim spaces like Cabot that are technically no longer 
public but in the hands of private owners. The security were powerless to stop us due to 
our weight of numbers, and ability to resist their clever mind tricks such as saying 
?don?t you want to go that way instead??.

Slash visible in the centre of the banner, next to the angry manager (click for bigger 
picture)

We continued our rolling picket stopping outside of poundland. As the manager rushed out 
to confront the demonstration and attempt to move us on, three demonstrators already 
waiting inside unfurled a banner behind him and began leafleting poundland staff and 
customers. At this point a poundland employee slashed the banner with a knife, as a 
demonstrator attempted to film the incident the employee stole his camera and ran away 
with it.

The police arrived shortly after (summoned by Poundland management) and returned the 
camera, before advising the demonstrators to leave Poundland before they had to use 
?reasonable force? to get them to do so.

After checking everyone was ok, we moved onwards to Debenhams, and then gathered quite a 
large group of onlookers in the pedestrianised area outside of McDonalds. We then marched 
into the Galleries, mostly because it was bloody freezing and we wanted to protest indoors 
for a bit! Again security ineffectually attempted to block our entrance into this 
privately owned space. We hit several more targets, including a branch of Greggs, a 
situation that a competitor of Greggs found so amusing that they decided to bestow a free 
pack of donuts upon us! Does this count as corporate sponsorship? answers on a post card.

Anarchists and assorted wrong uns attempting to look appropriately classy inside the Marriot

The demonstration stopped outside the post office in solidarity with those the royal mail 
has on its workfare schemes, and the workers at the few remaining royal mail owned post 
offices who will soon be on strike. The final stop was a ?grand finale? occupying the main 
reception area of the Marriot hotel. Chants were shouted from the megaphone as we 
questioned a manager who apparently ?didnt know? if his branch of Marriot had any unpaid 
staff on the workfare scheme. People decided to end the occupation as there was a wedding 
reception taking place upstairs, but if Marriot continue with their use of workfare we may 
not be so gracious next time!

As for people we spoke to on the day, free donuts and knife attacks sums up the range of 
views that were thrown at us. Most of the 600 people we handed out leaflets too were 
already onside or appalled when they learnt the details of the workfare scheme, however a 
significant minority parroted the phrases of the right wing press. ?People should be made 
to work for their benefits?, ?I have to work why shouldn?t they??.

The most important message to get across with these demonstrations is this isn?t about a 
division between the employed and the unemployed, its about solidarity between everyone in 
the working class. This is an attack on all of us; those with jobs, those without, and all 
of us who are seeing billions of pounds of public money used to increase the profits of 
rich bosses while our essential public services are cut.


We?re looking to have more fun days out like this in the near future? Thanks to everyone 
who turned out for this one!

Links at 
http://bristolaf.wordpress.com/2013/03/25/from-a-knife-attack-to-free-donuts-a-range-of-reactions-to-the-workfare-demo/