Conversation on housing and community building in the city - Squats, Social Centers and Autonomous Spaces.

 4/9/11 at Elmer Holmes Bobst Library/ Tamiment Libarry

Squatting is a key activist tactic to address the needs for housing and space for political action. Together with occupation, this kind of organized trespass is becoming increasingly important in our repertoire of direct action tactics today. What is the present-day experience of squatting as a political act? In other countries, occupied social centers organize political activity in the cities. Is U.S. squatting hopelessly disorganized and decentralized? What have been the challenges of opening new spaces? What have been the challenges and rewards of passing on knowledge from one generation to the next?

--Alan Moore: Co-founder of both ABC NoRio and Colab. *Live from Paris @ La Generale. --Howard Brandstein: Homesteading organizer and Director of Sixth St. Community Center. ---Frank Morales: Episcopal priest, squatter and housing organizer. --Marta Rosario: A long time resident at Umbrella House Squat artist, and child advocate. --Ryan Acuff: Housing organizer and member of Take Back the Land. Moderators: --Amy Starecheski: Oral historian, doctoral student in Anthropology at the CUNY Graduate Center, she is doing a dissertation research with former squatters in New York City. and former squatter. --Sebastian Gutierrez: Teacher in the CUNY's Hunter College Film & Media program and documents testimonial video events in NYC squats with Spanish-speaking squatters.