“NO PHOTOGRAPHERS”

BLOODY HECK.!!

Am I journalist or an activist? I don’t know now. I thought I was being active on an issue. Silly me! I’m just trying to do my very moral best.

My photography grew from my concern and activism, trying to be more effective in furthering our case. The first twenty years was with free festivals and travellers. And so rearly did I have a problem in my own tribe. They , all of them, recognised that we were trying to help. Good god, that’s is why we won the beanfield trials and onwards. And managed to get some! public symaphy for OUR case. You see, I’m one of us. 🙂

You know from the content of these pages, that I know all about the issues involved, but e-mail cirulation with this content, is beginning to poison the atmosphere. I and those like me, don’t deserve it.

Nothing any of you can do about it of course, just wanted folks to know that there is an issue here! Heck, why is this starting to be an increased problem now? Even after the judge threw out the police application from j18, because the police had not made adequate photographic efforts themselves!!

That ruling should have made all photo-journalists, on this side of the fence, safer.

What I’m really about here, is a plea.

I come from a hippy/ traveller/ free festival background. Because I cared greatly about my community, with others, helped to form outfits that provided welfare, help and advice to those who weren’t getting any! This is the founding of the Festival Welfare Services and the festivals branch of ‘Release’. We felt real progress for some years before the forces of darkness started to gather. Public Order Act etc….. It started splitting families, harassment and hitting us with sticks.

Release, FWS and Festival Aid soon found the balance of the work we did, shifted by the distress caused by the police and the rather partial application of the law. Next to my work with the charities, I have been taking photographs since the late 1970’s. I felt I could be of use, in trying to gather evidence of the abuses that we said were occurring, but at that time, were unable to demonstrate and were not believed.

I say, that by making the police aware there were other eyes about, other than their own, then it frequently moderated their actions. Police and state treated us as if we were just a bunch of crusties! and could therefore behave to us as they pleased. However, many of us stared to bring civil action in the court, and with evidence, won many cases. Police operations against us were much moderated by this deterrent. They became more careful in their dealings. Perhaps saved a few broken heads.

I see many aspects of entertainment and protest today, with rootes in the time I have just mentioned. To me, as a geezer in his late-forties, it all goes round again. For photography though, it has been different.

My community encouraged me in what I was doing then. There are a few who clearly do not now. Use of pictures in the poll-tax riot were perhaps the turning point. I acknowledge the risks and am up to pace with the issues.

But if, in future, guy’s like me are prevented by activists, (I’m used to police objection), then, with the advent of miniature ‘undercover’ cameras.

The only cameras present at a scene will be the oppositions!

Surely we can’t mean that?

I was first hit with a stick by a policeman in Windsor Great Park, 1974, when they broke up our festival. Ten years latter, another policeman hit me with his stick in the Beanfield near Stonehenge. With the occasions in between, this is what I’m use to, and expect.

HOWEVER. In recent times, while trying to photograph people getting trampled by a police charge in Trafalgar Sq ‘Reclaim the Future’, I ended up with a broken ankle resulting from a lump of concrete , thrown be a drunken protester next to me. To be fair, he was aiming at the police.

Drink has played a part in two other aggravations towards me. I lost several teeth at the N30 bash, Nov ’99 outside Euston. People falling on top of each other (and me) during one of the charges. A couple of very young “warrior” types, found my distress highly amusing. Community, I thought, bleeding and lying there on the pavement!

With such dangers, why do I/we bother.

I am concerned for community and issues. I learnt my art / craft to help more fully to express OUR case. From this side of the fence.

It is why I am particularly cross with some of the content of e-mail circulating earlier in the year saying

CAMERAS AND PRESS: This is an activist gathering not a press event, so if you are coming as a journalist then you are not welcome. Also please respect the wishes of some people not to be photographed by leaving your camera at home.

+ + + + +

30 years photographing at festivals and look were its got to ……

Well, I’m all confused now.

Was it all a waste of time?

Am I journalist or an activist?

I don’t know now.

I thought I was being active on an issue.

Silly me!