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Contact was last modified: April 3rd, 2021 by Madrid No Frills

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The paradox of street art: a tool for protesters and a weapon for colonisers
16 June 2021
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The increasing rare huevería 🥚

The increasing rare huevería 🥚

The centre of Madrid came to a standstill this mor

The centre of Madrid came to a standstill this morning with protestors fighting for the preservation of our public healthcare system.

Madrid's current right-wing PP government led by Ayuso is trying to save money by closing neighbourhood health centers, reducing the hours of others, and slowly trying to privatise the whole system.

Privatising hospitals and surgeries means fewer intensive care beds.

How?

Private health centres and hospitals give priority to the most profitable patients (the wealthy and healthy) and de-prioritise emergency care and intensive care units, which is devastating in a pandemic. Preparing for a pandemic involves spending money in the hope that it’s not necessary – something only the public sector can achieve because it does not prioritise profit.

✊🏾 No closures!
✊🏾 No more cuts!
✊🏾 No more privatisation!
✊🏾 Increase salaries!
✊🏾 Increase spending!

#SanidadPública #mareablanca

Happy World Tapas Day!! May free little bowls of o

Happy World Tapas Day!! May free little bowls of olives feature in every occasion for many years to come! 🫒🍻

#diamundialdelatapa

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘅 𝗼𝗳

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗱𝗼𝘅 𝗼𝗳 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗲𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝘁: 𝗮 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮 𝘄𝗲𝗮𝗽𝗼𝗻 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘀.

Street art and graffiti have long been forms of protest. When the streets speak, the voices we hear are of the struggles we bear and the memories we hold. But in Madrid, street art is increasingly being hijacked and weaponised and used as a form of colonisation by those who are more powerful.

Exactly because street art is typically an act of rebellion, its presence feels edgy and cool. But look a bit closer and you’ll find that an increasing number of works don’t challenge the status quo at all. Worse still, these works are oblivious to the social realities of their settings, treating public spaces like blank canvases rather than places already packed with countercultures, diversity, old and recent history, and their own social issues.

These artworks can even deceive you by appearing political, imitating an uprising, but they’re in fact intentionally inoffensive and were even commissioned by an institution whose values reflect the complete opposite of rebellion: preserving the system and maintaining the city’s deepest inequalities.

Artists ignorant of or apathetic to local issues create vibrant façades that undermine the identity of existing communities. These artists are appropriating a place for their own (or their client’s) use, which encourages outsiders to visit based on the artists’ imposed identity of the neighbourhood.

When the artist’s work has such a profound effect on so many people’s lives, they must be challenged on the idea that being paid or gaining status is their greatest priority. In Madrid, we want the murals on our streets to represent us, to call attention to the truths and struggles of our neighbourhoods. We want them to challenge both residents and visitors to think critically about what should change and what should be left untouched. When the streets speak, it should be the voice of the neighbours that are heard – not of the colonisers.

Read the full article linked in linktree in bio @madridnofrills.

Yesterday, in comments, I was asked why, when this

Yesterday, in comments, I was asked why, when this blog is about Madrid, is it in English, not in Spanish?

Although I do sometimes post in Spanish and have over 100 articles in 13 different languages...

First of all, English is my native language and the one in which I express myself best. It's also a widely spoken language within the foreign community, which brings me to my second point:

MNF helps connect foreigners living here (there are hundreds of thousands) with local issues happening in Madrid right now.

Madrid, like any other capital city, is transient. People move here for work, for career opportunities and for new adventures. While here, you can see this beautiful city, form life-long friendships and possibly even make an everlasting impact. But what is much harder to do if you haven’t been here a while is understand the local issues going on in the city:

Why are there 20 police on my street? What are the protestors chanting about? Why has my local bar closed without warning? Who, if I could, would I vote for?

I can answer these questions for you, and I can take you a step further:

What can I do to stop my neighbour being evicted? How can I join the protestors? What can I do to help my local bar? How can I get involved in Madrid’s election campaign?

I’ve spent eight years getting to know Madrid– there's not a single street in Centro that I haven’t walked down (I reached that unintentional goal many years ago). I have explored so much of this city by foot and had my eyes, ears and mind open the whole time. And, with a growing audience, I’m in a great position to share all my knowledge with you and help you help Madrid move ever closer towards being a fairer and more equal city.

Now I know there’s some really interesting stuff on here in English that isn’t featured anywhere in the Spanish media because I’ve written about something they haven't (that happens a lot). But, more and more, you are coming to me and offering to translate my articles into Spanish so that it can reach an even wider audience! ❤️ Thank you for this!

Thirdly, this is my blog and I’ll do what I want 😉

Update: the protest worked and the PSOE have agree

Update: the protest worked and the PSOE have agreed to keep their promise!

The PSOE made a pact with Podemos that they would regulate rents. But, today, the PSOE have backtracked and said they no longer want to protect tenants from unreasonable rent increases and therefore allow evictions (and therefore squatting) to continue – nobody wants this.

And so @inquilinatomadrid organised a cacerolada (pot-banging) outside their HQ.

I captured it on video and then swapped my camera for my pot and spoon. See if you spot me in the news 😉

#stopevictions
#stopdesahucios

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