Evicted on the morning of 19th May, Embros free self-managed theatre was re-squatted four days later by the means of a very large crowd and cheerful direct action featuring dancing, music and sledgehammers.

Embros was squatted in November 2011 after having been left empty for a few years. Since then, the venue hosted thousands of events of both political and artistic nature. Located in the Athens central neighbourhood of Psiri, it provided a breath of fresh air and free space in the otherwise severely gentrified area. The statement published on Squat.Net website reads:

“If you are silent for a moment outside of Embros and listen, you will hear the commercialization rolling rushing down the adjacent alleys. In this country where economic and political power turns everything into a commodity to be sold and bought, Embros offers without a fee, without a price, art, and culture, creation and solidarity, offers the public, the free, the common, what belongs to all of us and what we all want to share freely. This is what annoyed the rulers and big business, this is what they wanted to brick up. They wanted Embros to be silenced because it impedes the free movement of money, of the market, because it proves that we can live, think and feel free.”

From Monday 24th May, the newly reclaimed space is hosting a week-long festival of Art and Freedom and collective works to repair the damage caused by its eviction. Tomorrow, a nationwide day of action was called to defend the theatre and other liberated spaces.

Image via Embros website.