A report on police
raids on two free parties in Hackney in 1996:
'Hackney Police Risk Riot to Kill Joy
Hackney police have twice risked a riot to merely stop
people from dancing. In January a Vox Pop party was first busted in south
London. As the rig packed up, people loudly arranged to meet at the snooker hall
in Hackney, which had just hosted a successful succession of totally havin it!
Xmas parties. Soon after people arrived at the snooker hall, police began to
descend from all four corners. The building hasn't yet been opened, so around
200 odd party people were milling about outside. As it began to become evident
that things were getting seriously on top, people managed to get into the yard,
and Kerr drew shut the huge double doors. The
police were now shut outside. This turned out to be a temporary measure though,
as the police, hyped up and on one battered the way through, and wielding batons
ordered everyone out. More and more police descended, until our bewildered
revellers were outnumbered by 3 to 1.
Truncheon happy and on a seriously aggressive
testosterone tip, the Metropolitan police were out for a fight. As an escaping
Virus rig backed out of the venue, the police all began to move towards the
reversing van. Loyal party goers instantaneously rushed forward to the defence
of their sound system. Violent chaos then blew up, and the Virus rig managed to
slip away unhindered. Police charged and began to batter all and sundry. On
their first charge two thirds of the party people immediately scattered and
left. A hard-core of around 100 remained. Police pushed them round the corner
into Well Street, aiming swipes to the backs of legs to those who didn't move
fast enough. Police control then idiotically herded the remaining crowd into a
nearby housing estate, thereby creating 10 times more disturbance than would
have ever occurred before.
Hackney police again
went in for the overkill on a party put on by Jiba Jake and Virus in an old dole
office on Drysdale Road. The place had been happily partied two weeks previously
by the Tofus, was away from any residential, but an inspector McCauley saw fit
to put an end to the bank holiday merriments. When he arrived on the scene,
Jake's tactic of admitting everything and then hoping that they will all
disappear didn't work this time. McCauley responding to one telephone
complaint, began to moan on about the rigs stealing electricity and demanded
that the fuses be taken out. By this time a number of his PCs were in on the
edge of the dancefloor (one was definitely spotted moving rhythmically to tunes
being dropped by Manic Josh!) along with around 200 party people already inside.
In the end Jake went over to the fuse box and shut off the power to the whole
building. Pandemonium broke out. McCauley went mad because his men were now
trapped inside a dark building with 200 pissed off party people. The leccy was
then turned back on. By now the hard moody bastards in flack jackets had turned
up and one of the McCauley's right-hand men was heard to say "right, it's stick
time lads!" It was decided to tell the people inside (who were still largely
unaware of the situation and were still boogying) that the time had come for
them to wisely go. Eventually the building was cleared and the rigs allowed to
pack up and go.
When asked why he had
decided to stop the party McCauley answered "because I can". When asked
what powers he had just used to clear the building, he mumbled ummed and ermed
but failed to come up with an answer. He was then asked if he used any law at
all in his operations and he answered arrogantly "yes the power of persuasion".
While 30 odd of her majesties finest were tied up in this fiasco, and assault on
two women crackled in over their radios. A distinct look of shame crossed their
faces when they knew we heard'.
Written by 'CRS'.
Report from Frontline magazine, number 3, Summer 1996
(this was a zine
that covered 'travellers, parties, protests')
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