This is a quick and sloppy translation of a call made here by the Open Assembly for the Defense of Strefi Hill, per a request on Twitter.
For context on the current & former occupation of the Polytechnic and the significance of the days around November 17, I recommend this quick thread.
The graffito in the image reads "STREFI HILL WILL REMAIN FREE"
Call for defense of the Polytechnic in view of the three days of November 17
The Polytechnic is an integral part of the neighborhood of Exarcheia with a decisive role in the region's heavy political history. Starting with the uprising of '73, it was for almost 50 years a point of daily meetings, political ferment, assemblies, squatting and clashes with the police, as well as a timeless thorn in the sides of rulers and the government.
The Covid-19 era provided an opportunity. Since distance learning began for students, the Polytechnic has been locked and dead for three semesters. Today, although its functions have been partially restored, it remains locked in the afternoon and the gates are suffocatingly guarded. The ultimate goal of the Dean, P. Tournikiotis, is to transfer its academic functions outside the center of Athens and then to transform it into a museum.
The attack on the public spaces of Exarcheia comes on all fronts:
The Polytechnic – Exarcheia Square – Strefi Hill.
As an Open Assembly for the Defense of Strefi hill, we call for a mass presence at the Polytechnic during the three days of events, and later for the defense of the public and free character of the space.
- to block the plans for the complete sterilization of Exarcheia Square via the construction of a site for the metro and the plans for the destruction and "regeneration" of Strefi hill.
- to fight militantly to defend our neighborhood, by preventing state plans for its gentrification and political demise.
Square – Strefi – Polytechnic
Exarcheia is not a museum
– Open Assembly for the Defense of Strefi hill
Nov 13, 2021