Vienna, Austria

Today I woke up to a great commotion outside my window. I leaned out to take a peek and my eyes widened and my brow furrowed to see paddy wagons lined up down the block. Hundreds of cops were walking around or standing post at the entrance to several streets. What was happening?

(photo via Revolution-News.com)

I went down to learn more and walking past the double-wide row of police vehicles, entered a mob of people who were barricaded out by two rows of the hugest riot cops I have ever seen. The cops were all men appearing to stand between six ft and six ft five. They were padded to the nines with riot armor. 

We spotted Rolland, the owner of the restaurant across the street and asked him what was up. “They are evicting the anarchist pizza squat.” He said.

The hand painted Pizza Anarchia sign

Pizza Anarchia has existed in the second district of Vienna for the last two years. It is the last squat in Vienna and has been run by a group of anarchists. The building operated mainly as a residence, but every Sunday, they hosted the “People’s Kitchen,” giving out food and drinks for a free donation. Every Tuesday they had “Filme under der Hand” (Underhand Movies) and showed political films, documentaries and rare movies. They had a free shop with clothes and other useful things and they also organized a street party called “What you want” as well as monthly demonstrations against prison society, racism, and rent hikes with the slogan, “The damn rent is too high.”

(photos via derstandard.at)

They were invited in by the landlord, who thought he would use them to scare away his existing tenants so that he could renovate and increase the rents. Little did he know, the punks would stay long after time he gave them. They took over the place and refused to budge.

“They offered us to move into the house for six months in November 2011 with the hidden agenda that we will kick out the old tenants. The bottom line is, that we stayed, and are now fighting together with the old tenants (which are now in fact comrades of us) against the landlords.”      – Pizza Anarchia

So the city responded and evicted the last squat in Vienna with a vulgar display of power that included 1,700 cops, a helicopter, tank and water cannon. The whole operation cost 500,000 Euro.

(photos via derstandard.at)

I am sad to see this place go and disappointed that I didn’t make a visit there before they were evicted. They may have been there unfairly, but the landlords shady motives for inviting them in doesn’t give me much pity for him.

And rents are too damn high… in Vienna…in NY and pretty much everywhere.

As my boyfriend Orien says, “Thanks, now things are just slightly more boring.”