Keep Your Piece of Cake, We’ll Squat the Bakery! Autonomy Meets Repression and Institutionalisation

Abstract

Squatting is usually subject to institutionalisation, co-optation and repression. Legalisation of the squats is also a controversial issue among activists. This chapter provides an overview of these topics in Central-Northern European cities (Berlin, Copenhagen and Paris) and Southern European cities (Madrid, Barcelona and Rome). The authors explore how local authorities respond to squatting in different protest cycles and the consequences of those responses. Resistance to negotiations and legalisation are eventually considered within the framework of the anti-capitalist orientation of most squatters’ movements. Furthermore, the authors’ comparison across cities takes into account local conditions in terms of social diversity, squatters’ needs and urban policies.