Freedom Camp
Zine, print , donation (10$ reccomendation)
Freedom camp zine is a ten page collaborative zine that was compiled during a zine workshop at Freedom Camp on Dec 5th, 2020 in Hamilton, Ontario. On November 23, 2020, Defund Hamilton Police Services (HPS) Coaliton held a socially distanced rally which became a two week sleep/sit-in in front of Hamilton City Hall demanding the city divest from HPS and reinvest in housing. For anyone who has visited the post-industrial steel town, vacant buildings and industry, subdivisions that have been set aside but have no development, empty lots, and infill spaces are a significant part of the city’s landscape – yet Hamilton still has a housing crisis. Defund HPS and supporters understand that less policing and more housing is a very reasonable solution.
Making the one-year anniversary, the zine has been printed to raise funds for young Black and Brown organizers in Hamilton, who have been spareheading defund work and housing advocacy. The front cover of the zine is black, white and yellow, and has hand drawn butterflies, with each wing lettered with a word from common abolition phrases such as ”Care not Cops”, ”We Keep Us Safe”, and ” Defund, Disarm, Dismantle, Abolish.” The zine is a mix of collage, drawings, hand written and typed poems, speeches and creative writings. Noteworthy contributions include a collective poem written as Freedom Camp titled, ” A World Without Cops…”; a colourful collage of strange fruit-like fungi; a transcript of Skyler Williams’s (1492 Land Back Lane spokesperson) message for Freedom Camp; and a writing that imagines police cars replaced by garden beds, police stations with homes, and ”horses free from state violence and policing… just like us” This zine is available for pick up at the Workers Art and Heritage Centre located at 51 Stuart Street in Hamilton. Please donate to the Care Fund before picking up the zine. Visit @defundhps Instagram and Twitter (same handle) to find the donation link. Donations can also be e-transfered via [email protected]. Deep solidarity and thanks to folks doing this work in Hamilton. Housing not cops, always!