The Squatting Movement in Amsterdam

From Amsterdam Wiki

Contents 1 Abstract 2 Background 2.1 Literature Review 2.2 Relevance 2.3 Online and offline manifestations 3 Research Methods 3.1 Methods strategy employed 3.2 Affordances and limitations 3.3 Reflexivity 4 Human Subjects 4.1 Methods for recruiting 4.2 Confidentiality 5 Analysis 6 Discussion 7 Appendix 7.1 Websites 7.2 Videos 7.3 Preparation for the Conference 7.4 Final Online Presentation 7.5 Research in Progress 7.6 Old Material 8 Reference List

Abstract

Many factors in Amsterdam's history have contributed to the development of the Squatters' Movement, including the establishment of social housing and housing corporations, and the persistent housing shortage. The Squatters' Movement of Amsterdam has progressed from the middle of the 1960s as a practical approach to solving housing problems by the individuals choosing of an alternative lifestyle. The problem of the housing shortage is still evident in the present time even though there have been many actions for improvement. The act of squatting has helped promote social change in urban planning with an effective network of communication. In response to the squatting action, housing corporations have developed antisquatting measures to discourage squatters. Because the squatting scene is very diverse, his project will focus on three examples of squats in Amsterdam.

In Amsterdam, how do people use a do-it-yourself approach to solving housing issues? This research project focuses three squats in order to visualize what it is like: Overtoom 301, Joe’s Garage, and ‘t Blijvertje. One is primarily a cultural center, one building consists of squatters, and the former includes tenants, squatters, and antisquatters.

Background

Literature Review

This project is exploratory. I came up with the topic of the squatters’ movement in Amsterdam rather late in spring. It was difficult to find relevant articles about the movement in English. The core issues in the reading are about the housing policy and a person’s housing rights. I was surprised to find that nearly all the articles and books that I read were written without sufficiently addressing the issue of invasion of private space. Many readings focused on the riots of the 1980s because they were the most visible events of the squatters’ movement. All the readings talked about the importance of maintaining affordable housing and the state of Amsterdam. I was not able to find any literature against the act of squatting in Amsterdam. The anti squat website didn’t even make an argument against squatters (at least in English).

Here is an example of all the issues that I found during my readings. According to Squatting: the real story, the population of Amsterdam was 700,000 residents in 1980. Of that number there was an estimated 5,000 people on the waiting list for apartments. It took up to four years to get to the top of the list. The squatting movement started in the mid-1960s in Amsterdam, and there were between 6,000 and 7,000 squatted houses in Amsterdam in the spring of 1980. Squatters have had strong influences on the policy making of changes in Amsterdam. They were involved in issues such as prevention of road building, hotel and office plans, and to maintain low-income housing in the city center. By 1980, there were fifteen information centers around Amsterdam with consulting meetings for people inquiring about starting squats. Squats have been used for many purposes: printshop, restaurants, bars, radio stations, etc.

Relevance

Squatting in Amsterdam is a phenomenon that the average American is probably not accustomed to. As I searched for information about my original topic of dumpster diving in Amsterdam online, I stumbled across the word, "squat". For me, squatting was where people would occupy a home that did not belong to them; they would proceed to live there for free of charge until being evicted. I had learned a little about squatting in US history, but I was not familiar with the idea beyond maybe a paragraph in a high school textbook. In Seattle, I have not experienced squatting through daily life or the media. There have been homeless people sleeping on the streets or in shelters, but there’s not much that is comparable to the squats in Amsterdam. The closest subject that I would compare Amsterdam squats to is the student cooperative. In the University District in Seattle, I know of a co-op where a group of people communally lives. They are able to occupy the space with minimal expenses, and they are generally politically active. The co-op is stable, while squats are not. However, through negotiations, squats may become legalized. In order to make sense of this phenomenon, I must think Dutch. The relevance of the actions taken by squatters in Amsterdam is huge because it’s very inspiring for social change. Being able to actively pursue social change in an environment is very basic yet not practiced often in the US. I find that problems with policy or governmental issues usually are approached by writing letters or calling senators and congressmen. Squatting is an activity that seemly anyone can get involved with. It’s a grassroots approach to change for the individual instead of urging a representative to do something for the individual.

Online and offline manifestations

Online manifestations of this research subject have been mostly all on squat.net. This network includes articles, web pages of squats, and a database of events hosted by squats. There was a profile on myspace for the Vrankrijk and some other squats, but the most useful sites were on squat.net and the websites of squats.

Offline manifestations mostly occur in the form of flyers and posters posted in squats and sometimes other places unexpected. Colleen gave me a flyer for the documentary about squatting, “Table, Bed, Chair”, that she found during a visit to the Virtual Knowledge Studio.

Research Methods

Methods strategy employed

In this research project, I conducted two methods of research: interviews and observations. I used the general format of conducting an interview as displayed in the handout by Dr. Philip Howard called “Organizing an In-depth Interview”. The interview portion is very important because it is one of the best ways to actually learn about Amsterdam squats from a conversation. Here are some preliminary interview questions, which I started out with. They have changed according to the interviewee and my knowledge of the squatters’ movement: How did you get started with squatting? How do you squat? Why do you do it? Describe encounters with law enforcement. What do you typically look for? What do you find? Is it a group activity for you, or more individual? Have you ever gotten sick from being in a squat? Do you practice other tasks to be more sustainable? Please explain. How often? Is squatting dangerous? What do you need to know? Are there any organizations that encourage and aid squatting? Do you think your efforts impact the environment and society?

Observation is also a very important component of my research because I have been able to actively see what squatting is like. I approached this component by the example of the article, “A Walk Around the Block,” by Lynch. With the mindset of being very open and observant, I spent a lot of time in squats during people’s kitchens, give away shop hours, meetings and movie nights. My objective in stepping into this space was to really understand what was going on around me, meet new people, and learn about squatting as much as possible. I had some unique opportunities to engage some of my fellow classmates in the people’s kitchen experience, bring some Masters students to an antisquatter barbecue, volunteer at a give away shop, and participate in a brainstorming meeting. If I had more time I would have definitely squatted a place to stay.

Affordances and limitations

Interviewing has been a great way to obtain information because I was fortunate to talk with people who are very knowledgeable in the subject. There are many limitations in regard to the interviewing process. I needed to conduct several interviews because each informant comes to the interview with their own bias, which includes background, political preferences, etc. My interview questions were not as focused as I would have wanted them to be because I was unfamiliar with the system, politics, and how squatting worked. My first interview mainly consisted of clearing up misconceptions I had about squatting, finding out what systems I need to understand in order to put squatting into context, and simply becoming more comfortable with my surroundings. By my final interview, I was able to really ask questions that would lead to something more in-depth because I had enough basic knowledge of the subject. In terms of data collected through interviews, I was very limited in time. My time here has been short with less than three weeks to interview. The time of my interviewees and others that I’ve met has been valuable because the many people have full schedules.

Regarding observation, there are a lot of affordances in searching for answers, but the main problem was accessing the valuable information. Online was enabling and limiting. The networks like squat.net and other various websites had good information about squatting. If I was lucky, the information was presented in English. It was hard to simply translate using Alta Vista Babelfish because the phrases come out jumbled up. There is a lot of information online, but finding it was tricky for the most part. On squat.net, it was easiest to search for something via google.com for squat.net instead of navigating through the network alone. It’s very disorganized and many things are written in Dutch only when looking at squatting in Amsterdam. The sites that were in English were great for finding out when events at certain squats were taking place.

With on-the-ground observation, I found that simply experiencing furthered my knowledge of what’s happening as well as making me more comfortable with the research. A limitation was that I am a foreigner, so I had a hard time understanding the culture. Another limitation was that I do not speak Dutch. Some meetings and people’s conversations were mainly in Dutch. It’s very important to learn the Dutch language because there is a lot of information about this subject not translated.

Reflexivity

I brought certain biases and assumptions to this research project. Some biases include that I am from the United States, I haven’t traveled outside of the US extensively, I don’t know much about European current issues, I grew up in the suburbs, I come from a separated middle class family, and I haven’t had to deal with much housing business for myself. However, I am not very familiar with the subject so I feel that the biases and assumptions I may possess are very small. Because I’m an American, I perceive things differently because of our different worldview. I may act differently as well. I didn’t assume much about the people I met because the concept of squatting is rather unfamiliar. I had many misconceptions from reading material online, but they were not assumptions. The assumptions that I may have stem from Youtube videos of squats in Amsterdam or how the squatters’ movement is portrayed in the Amsterdam Historical Museum. Making sure that I keep and open mind and think about how this system is different than what I’m used helped with the biases and any assumptions I may have possessed. By collecting all this data through interviews and observation, I looked at trends and determine the behavior of the activity of squatting. I reflected on what I’ve found in terms of the culture and community aspect as well as whether it is an effective activity.

Human Subjects

Methods for recruiting

Since this research project has an exploratory nature, I have not applied for the Human Subjects process. My methods for recruiting have consisted on preparation work as well as on-the-spot research. I looked at blogs and websites that relate to squatting and alternative lifestyles in Amsterdam online to find contact information of potential interviewees as well as information about events. In Amsterdam, I went to the squatting community hubs such as bars and restaurants, and I talked to people as well as looked for interviewees. It was very interesting how often I was able to get a hold of certain contacts through a roundabout process including online and offline steps. I found sources offline that I wanted to learn more about; then I looked up more information online and found specific individuals who ended up being very helpful.

Confidentiality

I did a couple things to insure confidentiality and anonymity. Before starting to collect data, I decided to keep names confidential and names of places open. The reason behind this logic is that I didn't feel the need for specific names of people in the process. I was really interested in what they said, but I didn't need to attach a name to it. I felt that the mention of names of places is acceptable because the names of places already appear in the public eye in front windows. I will keep the identities of informants in my record, but I will not publish them. I will only publish information of the informants by identifying them by number. Since the locations of places are already publicized, I do not need to worry about sensitivity. The location of images taken at these places can also be geotagged.

Analysis

When asked to analyze my data, it’s really hard to determine what I want to focus on to present at the conference. I would really like my presentation at the conference to reflect what is said in this analysis. I chose to take a little more broad approach than I would like to because the majority of the audience is foreign to the concept of the squatters’ movement of Amsterdam. This wiki allows for more explanation beyond the presentation because of the time constraint of the conference.

In order to answer my research question, I’ve organized this presentation in a way that will hopefully be very logical. First, I need to revisit my research question. In the Squatters’ Movement of Amsterdam, how do people take a do-it-yourself approach to solving housing issues? In pursue of answers I dove into the squatting movement by interviewing and observations. When I came to Amsterdam, I hadn’t found much information of the movement; my interview questions were vague and introductory to the phenomenon of the movement. By my fourth interview, my questions were more focused to investigating the housing policy and movement happenings of the present. The most valuable method has been active observation. I tried to become as acquainted with the movement as possible by going to events. Through these activities, I met interesting people and found out about more resources and happenings. Participant observation was the most valuable component of my research because of the people and the creative spaces I stepped into. The definition of a squat is fundamentally a place where people occupy the space without the permission of the owner. Even though they may not have the permission of the owner, sometimes Dutch law allows these individuals to inhabit the space legally; I will explain more about legal matters. There is a wide range of what a squat may look like. A squat may be an apartment with only a couple people living there. A squat may be a whole building with living space on all floors; there may be a community center on the ground floor for activities. A squat may be a large building with a variety of spaces such as a cinema, concert hall, print shop, art studios, and a radio station. What a squat is depends on the situation of the building, the owner, and the individuals who occupy the space. The squatters’ movement in Amsterdam has been occurring since the middle of the 1960s. The height of the movement was in the 1980s when there were many squatters and riots. There still is a definitive presence of the squatters’ movement today; however, it is not nearly as large or effective as during the 1980s because of new pressures from policy makers.

There are three main and basic reasons why most squatters of Amsterdam squat. First is survival. Everyone needs a place to live. Squatting is a good alternative to paying high rents or being homeless. The second reason is very fundamental. A person can justify squatting politically. Property is a claim of land. If the land remains unused, the owner is wasting the space. We can maximize the use of resources. In order to use space that has been left unused, people squat even if it is only for a temporary time. The third idea is to protect what is physically there. Many buildings from the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries are disappearing. There has been an increase of gentrification in the recent ten to fifteen years. A group of people can attempt to save historical buildings and slow down development by occupying the buildings in jeopardy.

I’ve only started to uncover the legal background behind the tolerance of the act of squatting in Amsterdam. When dealing with squatting, a person needs to investigate the criminal and civil law. With criminal law, it is legal to occupy a space if it is vacant for more than a year according to Artikel 429. Artikel 429 is written in Dutch and can be interpreted in various ways according to conversations I’ve had. It’s hard to try to understand the history and context it plays in English let alone Dutch. In the civil law, squatters need to deal with legal matters with the owner whether it is an individual or a corporation. If the owner is able to prove that there is an immediate plan for the building that has been squatted, it’s more likely that the squatters will be evicted. However, the squatters have a chance if they can prove their case against the owner.

Throughout time there has been a housing shortage. It’s very evident that the housing shortage has persisted throughout the twentieth century and onto the new millennium. The Housing Act of 1901 gave rise to the social housing policy of the Netherlands. Housing Corporations were given assistance by the government. Even before the squatting movement starting in the mid- 1960s, there were rent riots addressing the issue of the housing shortage in the 1930s. The present housing shortage issue occurs because of the limited social housing and the real estate boom. The social housing system is set up in order to provide affordable housing, which is necessary because market prices are very high. If a person meets the requirements for social housing, they can register to be in the system online. There are three statuses within the system that determine how long it will take to find a house to live in. A starter is someone who has not rented in the Amsterdam region previously. The priority of a starter accumulates with the amount of time in the system. According to the Housing Department, it will take eight or nine years to get a place at the current time. It will only take three or four years to find an apartment in Southeast Amsterdam. A transfer is a person who has previously rented in Amsterdam region. The duration of the previous residency counts toward the priority. An urgent status is granted to a person if they have been renting from an owner who wants to demolish and renovate the building. With many plans for demolition, the amount of people granted urgent status is high. Everyone in the system is able to bid on a particular apartment. However, the higher the demand a neighborhood is like the city center, the longer it will take to obtain a place to live. Another factor in the housing shortage is the real estate boom. It started in the mid 1990s, and didn’t become visible until 2000. There has been more investment in real estate by building owners recently. This change means that there is more development to change old buildings into luxury apartments.

In order to really conceptualize what it’s like to squat. I’ll review what the basic steps to establishing a place to live by squatting. The first step would definitely be to scope out neighborhoods that a person is interested in to see if there are apartments that look vacant. Then, one of the most important steps is to obtain enough research about the status of the building and who the owner is through governmental departments and the neighbors. The next step is to seek the advice and support from experienced squatters. Going to a squat hour is the best place to find willing individuals to help interested squatters. When it comes to the actual squat, the potential squatters need to make sure that they have all the logistics worked out including an alternative plan in case something wrong happens. People will congregate at a meeting place before heading over to the squat site as a group. Individuals who know how to handle opening doors, “breakers”, will work quickly to open the door. It’s important then to carry the squat set up, barricade the door, and then call the police so they can inspect the space. A squat set consists of a table, bed, and chair. It’s the minimal requirements by Dutch law to deem the place inhabited. It’s also very important to talk to neighbors about what is going on.

Currently, there are many challenges in the squatting movement. Language is an important challenge to overcome for people who don’t speak Dutch fluently. It makes it difficult to become involved and conduct much research on squatting and the housing policy if most the information is in Dutch. It limits the access to information. The diversity of the squatters’ movement is widespread. There are many different attitudes towards certain topics. These factors make it difficult to generalize aspects of the squatters’ movement in Amsterdam. Antisquatters are a huge challenge to the squatting movement because the individuals involved with occupying spaces as antisquatters come from the same population as squatters. Antisquatting is a recent response to the squatters’ actions. Housing corporations offer low rent temporary housing to people who agree to a number of regulations. For example, antisquatters must move out within a two-week notice. They cannot have children or pets.

A brief overview of some squats will be a good tool in conceptualizing what the word “squat” means. These three places are very different to each other, but I would consider all of them important in the movement. I will use Overtoom 301, Joe’s Garage, and ‘t Blijvertje as examples. I will not go into much detail of each; however, a person may go to the “research in progress” section of this wiki to read about each squat if interested. Overtoom 301 used to be a Film Academy. It was squatted in 1999, and the squatters actually have ownership of the building today after many negotiations. It offers many functions such as a concert venue, cinema, art space, print shop, music practice space, radio station, etc. People have been able to adapt the space for what they want to do with it. I was amazed by the functionality of the building and the variety of art everywhere. It’s a very freethinking space. Joe’s Garage was developed in a different way than Overtoom 301. The building was taken over in different stages. The apartments of the buildings were occupied at different times. It still is a squat. The inhabitants have a good defense against the owner because the owner is believed to be a criminal. In the Netherlands, the government looks at how people make their money. If it is illegally earned, they will try to take away property. It has many functions such as a people’s kitchen, a give away shop, squat hour, movie nights, and a squatters’ breakfast. I’ve met many politically excited people who like to stimulate debate. In general, I’ve met people from around the world in this ground floor space. They try to make their space more welcoming with white walls, many events with open invitations, and little sheep in the windows. ‘t Blijvertje is a bit different. Members of Joe’s Garage have helped it. It’s more of a neighborhood protest with 92 apartments affected in a plan by the owner, Ymere, to demolish the building and build luxury apartments. There’s a variety of occupants including squatters, antisquatters, and tenants. In 't Blijvertje, I sat in a coupe of meetings. I was amazed at the open and efficient manner of business. This space used to be closed because of poor conditions. Squatters have really fixed it up and turned it into a community space.

The squatters’ movement is very active against the increase of real estate and development in the city of Amsterdam. To some squatters, it’s simply a matter of housing need for themselves. Personally, this research has been an inspiration to become more active because of all the engaging interactions I had with individuals.

Discussion

Because of the physical, social, and political situations mentioned in the analysis section, people have been able to squat and take a do-it-yourself approach to housing change. The findings show that there is a lot of diversity of situation, and creativity is necessary to figure out how to handle the issue. It is up to the individuals to initiate the attempt to squat and to spread the knowledge. It’s a grassroots effort to protest against market prices and development.

There are many directions to take this research in the future. Even now with the material I have, there are several angles that you can approach the topic of the squatters’ movement in Amsterdam. Many ideas include investigating how squatters creatively decide to use the space and time they have in a building, the diversity of the squatters’ movement throughout the city, a comparison between the movement in Amsterdam with a city close by like Rotterdam, how squats are encouraging or discouraging the involvement of the neighborhood and other outsiders, the functionality of the squat community centers, more about the defense against antisquatters, the future of squatting, how the housing shortage still exists, the efforts to overcome roadblocks and limitations of non-Dutch speaking housing activists, the role of squat hours in supporting new comers, a comparison of lifestyles between squatters and renters, the people who come internationally to the squatting scene, if people ever start squatting without knowing anyone, the role of activism in squatting and how it is perceived by squatters as a requirement, the neighborhood protests against gentrification, etc. I would love to come back and conduct more research. However, one goal is to start learning Dutch before returning because it will help a lot. I still want to be connected with the community of people I have met during my time here. I hope to be able to help in any way possible with housing activism. A definite plan is to look up how the system works at home and compare what I’ve learned here.

Appendix

Websites

Squat.net ([1])

Vrankrijk ([2])

OT301 ([3])

ADM ([4])

Videos

Amsterdam squat 30 april 1980 ([5])

How to squat in Amsterdam ([6])

Evictionwave 2007 Amsterdam, The Netherlands ([7])

Planet Hollywood Amsterdam Violent Re-squat ([8])

Squatting in Amsterdam ([9])

The Battle of the kalenderpanden - Amsterdam 2000 ([10])

During squatting ([11])

Squatting Cruquiuskade ([12])

1992: ADM, Amsterdam ([13])

Gedeelde Grond (Common Ground) ([14])

leidsebezet eviction ([15])

Anti-squat video in Dutch. Notice the presence of police and squats after being evicted. Press play to watch from this link ([16])

Preparation for the Conference

• International Student Research Conference

• Project & presentation guidelines

Final Online Presentation

• Text

Final Research Write-up

• Data

See "Research in Progress"

• Images

Flickr account

• Presentation

August 23, 2007 at University of Amsterdam Prins Hendrikkade 189 b

Outline of Powerpoint

• Blog

([17])

Research in Progress

• Field Notes

• Interviews

• Research Proposal

Old Material

• Previous Research Proposal

• Misc

Reference List

1, Personal interview. 04 Aug 2007.

2, Personal interview. 07 Aug 2007.

3, Personal interview. 08 Aug 2007.

4, Personal interview. 16 Aug 2007.

ADILKNO, Cracking the Movement: Squatting Beyond the Media. Autonomedia, 1994.

Anning, Nick. Squatting: the real story. London: Bay Leaf Books, 1980.

"Artikel 429sexies." Sr, Boek 3, Titel 2<http://www.wetboek-online.nl/wet/Sr/429sexies.html>.

Durham, Nancy. "Amsterdam's new squatters." CBC News 27 Feb 2007 <http://www.cbc.ca/news/reportsfromabroad/durham/20070224-interview.html>.

"Housing in Amsterdam." Amsterdam City Housing Department (2007):

Howard, Philip. "Organizing an In-depth Interview." University of Washington. Seattle.

Indymedia NL. 20 Aug 2007. Indymedia. 20 Aug 2007 <http://indymedia.nl/en/>.

Lawson, Julie. Critical Realism & Housing Studies: an explanation of diverging housing solutions. Amsterdam: University of Amsterdam, 2003.

Lynch, Kevin, and Malcolm Rivkin. "A Walk Around the Block." Landscape Spr. 1959: 24-33.

"Over Ymere." Welcome to Ymere. 15 Aug 2007. Ymere. 20 Aug 2007 <www.ymere.nl>.

Pretoriusstraat 28, English Pages. 28 Feb 2007. PS28. 20 Aug 2007 <https://squat.net/ps28/english/>.

"Projects." OT301. 23 July 2007. OT301. 20 Aug 2007 <http://squat.net/ot301/pages/projects.html>.

Pruijt, Hans. "Squatters in the Creative City: Rejoinder to Justus Uitermark." International Journal of Urban and Regional Research (2004).

"Short Squat Guide." squat.net. Joint Squat Assistance Groups, Amsterdam. 20 Aug 2007 <http://squat.net/kraakhandleiding/>.

Uitermark, Justus (2004). "The co-optation of squatters in Amsterdam and the emergence of a movement meritocracy: a critical reply to Pruijt." International Journal of Urban and Regional Research 28(3): 687-698.

Uitermark, Justus (2004). "Framing urban injustices. The case of the Amsterdam squatter movement." Space & Polity 8(2): 227-244.

van Veen, Alex. "Ymere pushes demolition plans through." News from Amsterdam 03 Aug 2007 <http://www.nieuwsuitamsterdam.nl/English/2007/08/ymere.htm>.

YouTube. 20 Aug 2007. YouTube. 20 Aug 2007 <http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=squat+amsterdam>.