I always use to write in Swedish on my photoblog, but since some people that are involved in the Occupy movement here in Gothenburg doesn’t speak Swedish and it is a global movement I will make a try to write in English. The occupy movement have had a winter-brake here in Sweden but now it is blossoming again. I have met and got to know some of the people involved in the occupy movement in other projects about the social movement following an uprising of the people against injustice and problems in the world. Since Occupy Gothenburg started to occupy a park in central Gothenburg i have been there whit my camera and met a lot of new people. When I haven’t been at work or whit my family I tried to be as much as possible at the park, some time I even brought my daughter that enjoyed the hospitality and the open minded people there. Since I haven´t been able to be there all the time I of course have missed a lot of the things that happend and people being there, this is my experience and interpretation captured by the camera.
This first part of the occupation of Vasaparken will show you the first days and some pictures of the daily routines. The second part will focus on the people there and the third part on the environment, a place that people started to call a home.
”Welcome to The Peoples Park – Free Fika -” Fika is an difficult word to translate becouse it’s a cultural thing, but means coffe or tea, usually whit a bun or biscuit. This was the first sign of something happening in the park.
Then I saw this agenda for the day.
After a short walk, There they were in a central park behind the University close to the most expensive blocks in the city, people have gathered here to protest together against injustice in the world.
Food are free.
Most of the food is from dumpster diving. It is scary how much good food that is just thrown away.
There is an documentary being recorded about the occupy movement in Gothenburg, of course they where there 
Democracy and Love is two common messages on the signs that is all over the park.
A lot of words of wisdom too.
A man wroting it down, he actually kindly asked if he could do it. No one said no 
Only when the last tree has been cut down; Only when the last river has been poisoned; Only when the last fish has been caught; Only then will you find that money cannot be eaten.
Jam together it said
And jam together they did
The asphalt is like a big whiteboard, room for many messages and words of wisdom
”Morningfika in the sun, welcome” (Some things are hard to translate but you get the point.)
It is always some activity going on
Cooking food
Building stuff and preparing wood for the fire
Decorating the park
Partying
Performance art
A lot of hugs
And of course the meetings. There is no leader and the agenda is dynamic, so the meetings are important where everybody are equal and can speak. This is a picture from the first General Assembly. (And the documentary filmcrew are of course in place for this:))
The police stopped by few times and the police helicopter hoovered over the camp, but they have been nice and just checked on them. It was first on Friday, day 6, as the police told them to leave and threatened to fine everybody still there for littering. Which is kinda ironic since the occupants have been cleaning up the park and had the environment in mind all the time.
They gathered a meeting to discuss what to do after the news from the cops. They decided that they should stay until the cops came again, and until today (monday) the cops only been driven by.
Also see part two and three, the photos are divided thematic and not chronological so next part will be about the people there, the third part will be about the place that some of the occupants already started to call home.
/Johan…
Coolt
)<3