March 26th Londinium
April 2nd, 2011 by Capten Cybolimornhttp://london.indymedia.org/articles/8458
…CLOWN COMMUNIQUE…
Arg. Early morning start (definately not a sensible time to be putting on requisite floppy shoes), hurrying through dark streets hyped on too much coffee… The things we clowns do
March the 26th was a good day – despite the media reports of ‘violence on the streets of London’ there was also a whole lot of beauty on the streets that day. We skipped around a river of people on the Embankment while young policemen desperately tried to cajole us all back onto the pavement, receiving waves and smiles from passing buses.
A deafening roar of whistles and horns and (…vuvuzelas!?!) drums accompanying as we set about making sure everything obeyed correct Clown Operating Procedure (er… C.O.P.. *honk*). There were a lot of strange figures in yellow and black standing in lines along the edges of the march, seeing as they seemed to be having so much fun we joined them. They weren’t quite sure about that because they kept on looking around at each other – of course we had to see what was so interesting but couldn’t see anything but other Clowns! Strange.
One of them even told us that he didn’t know what Kettles and kettling was, so we had to explain it to them (something you do to tea apparently..) and offered to help out but he didn’t think that was a good idea. Not put out, we decided to investigate this kettling thing later.
Pheww.. A lot of marching… We kept an eye on proceedings, realising that the Unions had brought giant floating volleyballs tried to organise a quick tournament, and that the little helicopters everywhere didn’t respond to Clown Remote. Drat. Also a lot of photy opportunities going on – someone even tried to interview us Clowns! We thought that the British public had probably heard enough clownish views from the people in the Big Westminster HQ. This was getting hard work, so a welcome sit down from a friendly Convergence free-space specially set up just for the purpose of recharging tired demonstrators afforded a quick breather (there were so many moments like this, of lovely people offering encouragement to each other).
And then onto Oxford Street, and the street was…. littered.
Littered with police guarding private businesses; Topman, Topshop, McDonalds (*hiss*), Gap, Natwest, HSBC, Aquascutum (watery something- err), Santander and many more. Littered with smashed windows and drying paint, and absolutely covered with funny, witty street theatre. A troupe of Robin Hood’s in tights following the police vans (“…is that the Sheriff of Nottingham?…”). The Love Police getting disgracefully flowery over everyone. Sit-downs outside of shops with beat poets deserving a loud clown clap, and the dancers!
Forming a hasty clown-line to order this rabble up and these people suddenly started performing in the space cleared around us! Very naughty indeed and attracted quite a crowd of other naughty people in the middle of the street. They seemed to think that they were allowed to have fun!
We managed to get ourselves accidentally Kettled quite a few times, but then forgot who was kettling whom and had to let ourselves go. The police on the other hand were easy to Kettle, because they all stood together in big groups. Suspicious congregating of people indeed!
Pooped by now the clown forces started to retire, happy with our contribution. On For one afternoon the centre of the capital was filled with voices of outrage and of laughter. Businesses were closed, profits diminished in all of our acts of Reclamation. These things surely remind us all that We Are The Alternative.
Petty Officer Odd (P.O.O) & General Disgust (At The State Of The World Today) (Special Clown Farces)…