A few words about communicating with the forest occupation

Communication with the Hambach Forest Occupation can sometimes be difficult. Especially if you have never been here and don’t know what the structures are like, it can be frustrating. So here are some communication tips, and to make things a bit more transparent.

The Hambi email address (hambacherforst(a)riseup.net) is managed by multiple people who try to read and answer emails as regularly as possible. Please don’t be surprised if it takes a few days until you hear back. It’s also possible that you might never receive an answer, if, for example, the person you are writing to doesn’t have the capacity to answer, or if the person reading your email doesn’t know the answer to your question.

From the Internet to the Meadow

The internet on the meadow is very slow, and sometimes there can be a few days where we have no internet at all. This is why people who aren’t in the tree occupations take care of answering emails and updating the blog, when they have better internet access. If you want to get in touch quickly with the meadow- and forest-occupations, it’s better to call. Don’t be surprised though if the person who you’re talking to on the meadow has no idea that you’ve recently wrote an email.

So what to do if you need a quick answer, or if it’s been more than two weeks that you haven’t heard back? It’s best to just call the meadow occupation (0157 81008614) or the forest occupation (0178 163 7325) directly. Sometimes you have to be a bit persistent 🙂 Because cell service on the meadow is often bad, and sometimes no one even has the phone on them. Just think of it like calling the landline of friendly apartment — you never know who’s going to pick up, and sometimes no one’s home! Different people have the phone at different times, and there are many people here, and we’re not always discussing who called and what they said. So please don’t be worried if the person you’re talking to doesn’t know that you called half an hour ago and what you discussed with someone else.

Arrangements often work better if you look for a fixed contact person for your requests, especially if you want to come and do journalist interviews here.

Security on the Phone

Don’t be surprised when people answer the phone without using names. This serves the same purpose as using nicknames/chosen names: protection from surveillance and repression. In this same vein, please only use ONE of a person’s names during a given phone call, and especially don’t use a person’s nickname/chosen name and their legal name in the same sentence. You can be sure that at least the metadata from the phone call (which number is calling and how long the call lasted) is being monitored. Also be extra careful what you discuss via the meadow phone.

To Visit

You are always welcome to come visit us! Spontaneously or by giving us a heads-up, either way. You don’t have to bring anything with you. You can usually find a caravan with a place to sleep and a sleeping bag. But if you would like your privacy or have certain hygienic standards then it’s best to bring your own tent and sleeping bag.

But please remember this: for some people, Hambi is their home. And you know just as well that sometimes all you want at home is to rest. So please don’t take it personally if some people aren’t so friendly at first.

For email encryption

It’s great when people want to use encrypted mail. But since you can only really safely hand over your key in person via USB, not everyone who is answering emails can read the encrypted ones. Therefore, it’s possible that you’ll get responses to encrypted emails late, or in the worst case scenario, not even at all. Especially if your email is for a specific person.

“Why are you not better organized?”

Occupying forests is really a full-time, exhausting job. Daily tasks need to be done: picking up drinking water, cooking, going dumpster diving, doing various building projects, etc. In addition to this, public relations work needs to be done, like info presentations, and anti-repression work, including preparing for court cases and supporting those in jail. In addition, life here can be unpredictable. On the one hand we have the weather (when we build things is directly dependent upon the weather), and on the other hand there’s the police and RWE. It can be quiet for weeks, and then RWE suddenly starts to do forest work or the police suddenly begin one of their operations. In addition, the occupation fluctuates a lot: every week people come and go. Of course, some are here consistently. But it’s not a fixed, tight group. And the people who check the email account or answer the meadow phone do so voluntarily and must of course be mindful of their own personal capacities.

So please don’t take offense if sometimes it’s hard to reach us. Because despite everything, it’s really worthwhile to look past all this and stay in touch. 😉

Continue ReadingA few words about communicating with the forest occupation

Skillshare Timetable April ’17

Every day:

8-10h Yoga. Meet at the gnarled Beach tree, forest entrance.
8:30-9:30h Oaktown.
10h Breakfast
10-16h Climbing workshops: Knots, Basic techniques, Material, Estimating and understanding dangers, Rescuing, Traverses. Every day from Tuesday.
13-14h Lunch
16:30h Krav Maga. Self defence. Meet at forest entrance.
19h Dinner
20h To-Do-Plenary

If you need tranlation for any workshop and would like to use a microphone and headphones (spiders) you can collect a spider from Tuesday midday onwards from Flax or the treehouse Chillum.

Monday 10.4.

10-18h Painting with oil paints and developing creatively. Meet at the meadow.
11-12h Vitamin B12. In Gallien
12-14h Concepts contrary to authoritarian schooling.
15-17h Exchange on children in the context of left projects.
16-18h Legal questions answer round. Meet in the Roundhouse.
18-20h Presentation: Power destroys the environment. Meet in the Roundhouse
20:30h Sneaking in the dark. Meet at Jesus Point

Tuesday 11.4.

10-12h Critisism of Criticism of Consumption. Meet in the Roundhouse.
13-15h “Freeing your head”.Criticism of simplified explanations of the World. Treffpunkt Rundhaus.
14-18h Circus for beginners. Meet in Gallien.
14-16h Disguise & Camouflage. Meet at Jesus Point.
16-20h First Aid Workshop. Meet at Action Caravan.

Wednesday 12.4.

11-13h LGBTQI+/FLTI+ Building workshop: Introduction to material and tools [Screw driver, saws, wood, measuring, etc and building rat-proof boxes for kitchen] Meet in Gallien
13-15h Bondage for everyone who wants to give it a try. Meet at forest entrance.
16-19h Sexual consens – an introduction. Meet at Roundhouse.
18-21h Who persecuted the witch-midwifes and why? Meet at Roundhouse.
18-22h Discussion round on climbing culture and passing on skills in the occupation. Training Trees
21h Massage(-round?). Gallien.

Thursday 13.4.

11-14h LGBTQI+/FLTI+ Building workshop: Possibilities and Impossibilities – Knots and Platform building Meet in Gallien
12-14h Herbs against stress. Meet at forest entrance.
15h Lock-ons. Meet at practicing trees (forest entrance).
16h Discussion round on the theory and reality of spaces identifying / identified as queerfeminist Meet at Tümpel (behind Oaktown)
14-18h Group pressure in the left scene. Meet at Roundhouse.
20h Encryption: Why? What? How? For people with and without prior knowledge. Meet in Gallien or Roundhouse (if rainy)

Friday 14.4.

11-13h LGBTQI+/FLTI+ Building workshop: continued from 13.4.
12-14h Supporting physical health with herbs and diet. Meet at Roundhouse.
14-16h Introdution to Suger in tanks campaign: Autonomous groups during the Summer action days August 24th-29th
16-18h Mobilisation for G20 Info event
18-21h What are primordial matriachial societies? What lead to the spread of patriarchy with war and violence? Meet at Roundhouse.

Saturday 15.4.

12-14h Secure Messenger services. Introductory workshop. Meet at Tech caravan.
16-18h Planting young trees. Forest entrance

Sunday 16.4.

10-11h Mobilising Infoevent AFD party conference
11-14h Demonstration and blockade workshop
16-18h Info event to resistance in Bure (France) against the planned terminal storage for nuclear waste. Meet at Roundhouse.

Monday 17.4.

Continue ReadingSkillshare Timetable April ’17

Skillshare is about to begin

The Skillsharing Camps kicks off this Monday, 10th of April>
You can find a preliminary line-up of workshops here.

We’re still looking for the following items for the kitchen – if you are able to organise and bring any or some of it, please get in touch via e-mail (hambacherforst[at]riseup.net) or bring it along:

* (Red) lentils (ca. 50kg)
* Cooking oil (ca. 30l)
* Gluten-free flour (e.g. chickpea, earth almond, buchwheat, etc ca. 15kg)
* Vegetables
* Jam/vegan spreads

other than that,

Welcome to the Occupation!
In order for everyone to be at ease we try to interact by helping and respecting each other. Behaviour that is discriminating will not be tolerated in any sort of way. For announcements and to share and distribute necessary tasks there’s a short ToDo meeting every evening.

Food and Drinks
There will be a vegan people’s kitchen several times a day. Please donate if you can. There is drinking water in the kitchen.
If you have any questions regarding schedules speak to people. You are also very welcome to ask for a tour of the meadow.

When you meet others, ask what they would like to be called, which pronoun they’d like to be used and what their preferred language is.
Please take care to translate conversations or speak in a language that everyone who’s present understands, so that everyone present can contribute. There are three ‘spiders’ – interpreting equipment, that can be collected from Flax or the tree house ‘chillum’ for workshops.

When you are looking for support, want to talk about problems or feel that your borders have not been respected you can contact the awareness team. You can reach them by either calling +49(0)17654798967, using the phone in the Safer Space or via the box below the Safer Space. All of this is anonymous. You can recognise the awareness team by their black and red badges. You can use the Safer Space when you need a refuge.

All huts and caravans on the meadow are non-smoking. Please respect others and do not consume drugs in common spaces. You’re welcome to use the drug space at the forest entrance though. If you want to consume alcohol in private spaces please make sure to ask all present whether they mind. The same applies to when you’re smoking outside.

Please keep in mind that this occupation aims to live and communicate emancipatory principles. The occupation is in continuous confrontation with RW€ and the state, and there is always the risk of danger from these institutions. Please be aware of the need of others for drug free spaces. In addition to all workshops this includes the fire in the vegan kitchen. You are welcome to consume alcohol and cook freegan food in the guerilla kitchen.

Accomodation
You can put up your tent in the forest or on the meadow. Spaces in huts or caravans are foremost for people who do not have a tent of their own or who cannot sleep in tents. Please use the spaces-board to mark the space you’re staying in on the meadow and leave it in a clean state before leaving. Keep any food and electronics in rat safe boxes.

Freeshop
Please only take clean clothes to the freeshop. Unfortunately this is currently not done by everyone, so make sure you wash any clothes you pick up from there at a minimum of 60C before wearing (scabies). With a pot, rainwater and a fire you can do this without a washing machine.

Electricity
You can charge electronic devices in the tech caravan. Please keep in mind that we’ve only got a limited amount of electricity and that it’s dependent on sunny wheather.

We’re looking forward to an enjoyable time 🙂

Continue ReadingSkillshare is about to begin

BREAD AND ROSES

<img src="http://hambachforest.blogsport.de/images/breadandrosesbarricade.JPG" alt=""

As soon as barricades are destroyed in the Hambacher Forest they have been rebuild often even right behind bulldozers and before cops left the forest. This friday was no exeption but for the fact that this time also bread and roses have been put up in the place of destroyed barricades protecting the forest. This is connected not just with not continuing the resistance on an empty stomach but also with "Stones Are Our Breads and Barricades Our Dinner Tables." action that happened during this cutting season. It was also inspired by 1912 Breads and Roses Textile Strike and Riots in Lawrence Massachusetts which were organized by women and united over 30 different ethnic groups and also used workplace sabotage. The striking mothers with their children were brutally attacked by police at a train station as the kids were being sent to live with supporters when due to the prolonged strike the families could no longer feed them themselves. This resulted in international solidarity and finally with congressional hearings, positive workplace pay increase settlements, changing of work conditions and eventual shortening of the work week itself.

100 years later is it possible for RWE's irreversible destabilization of the Planet's climate and pumping its atmosphere full of toxins responsible for killing over 7 million people a year, as conservative estimates by World Health Organization indicate, result in equally positive response on the part of today's politicians?

The latest police action of clearing the barricades opens up the Millenarian Hambacher Forest to destruction by RWE and its release of megatons of carbon and a long list of toxins that lay below its floor and its roots. To be pumped into the atmosphere in the name of profit and greed regardless of the consequences showing that this time as well there will be no response that has anything to do with social and ecological justice on the part of legistlators, politicians and cops all deeply co-opted by the special interests of the coal industry without more radical actions such as those at the Hambacher Forest.
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Bread and Roses was a title of a poem by James Oppenheim published in 1911 that a year later became a anthem of the strike to be performed through out the decades by numerous artists including a version with historical background by Utah Phillips.

Continue ReadingBREAD AND ROSES