Benefit Voku in solidarity with the squatted neighbourhood of Prosfygika

Monday 17 July 2023, Benefit Voku in solidarity with the squatted neighbourhood of Prosfygika. Food served from 7pm, no reservation.

“Prosfygika”, or otherwise refugee homes, is a complex of residential flats built in 1930’s to house refugees resulting from the Asia Minor conflict between Greece and Turkey. The buildings are situated on a central avenue of Athens, surrounded on either side by the police HQ and the supreme court, in a heavily gentrified area . After years of abandonment, Prosfygika has been increasingly reclaiming its original purpose as many refugees, migrants, poor, greek and foreigner working class people have sought to resolve their need for housing by squatting the empty flats.

Communıty of Squatted Prosfygıka https://sykaprosquat.noblogs.org/
Info-night and benefit for Prosfygika in 2014 at Joe’s Garage https://joesgarage.nl/archives/9989
– Statement from Community of Squatted Prosfygika in November 2022: https://joesgarage.nl/archives/16341

Volkseten Vegazulu is a people’s kitchens existing since the very beginning of Joe’s Garage, June 2005. Your donations are welcome. Food is vegan, no reservation. All benefits go to social & political struggles. Joe’s Garage is a space run by volunteers. Without a collective effort, without your active participation, we’re remaining closed. Get in touch in you feel like giving a hand. We’re always looking for cooks. Any help is welcome in the kitchen. Experience not required. If you want to know which days are still available, mail us.

Benefit Voku to support Phoenix Amsterdam

Thursday 29 june 2023, Benefit Voku to support Phoenix Amsterdam. Food served from 7pm, no reservation.

This Voku Benefit goes to support Phoenix Amsterdam, a safe space and peer support community under het Wereldhuis for LGBTQ!+ people in forced displacement. Phoenix is self-organized, meeting several times a month to cook, share information and build community after what is often a very difficult journey to the Netherlands. Right now, they are working towards their independence, because they currently receive a small stipend from the Diaconie van de Protestantse Gemeente te Amsterdam, which isn’t nearly enough to support their work in the community (e.g. paying for legal aid). They are also on the lookout for an office space, so information as well as donations is much appreciated!

Volkseten Vegazulu is a people’s kitchens existing since the very beginning of Joe’s Garage, June 2005. Your donations are welcome. Food is vegan, no reservation. All benefits go to social & political struggles. Joe’s Garage is a space run by volunteers. Without a collective effort, without your active participation, we’re remaining closed. Get in touch in you feel like giving a hand. We’re always looking for cooks. Any help is welcome in the kitchen. Experience not required. If you want to know which days are still available, mail us.

Film screening and discussion on Criminalization and Migration. “Tell me, Europa” (Merel Groels)

Sunday 25 june 2023, Unbubble Academia: The criminalization of solidarity in migration. Discussion and film screening: Tell me, Europa (Merel Groels). From 2pm till 4pm, free event, open for all!

Unbubble Academia will organise an event about topics of migration and criminalization. The visual ethnographist Merel Groels will share her film called “Tell me, Europa”, in which she explores the criminalization of people who help refugees on the island of Lesbos, Greece. After the film screening, there shall be an open dialogue between Merel, other academics working on Migration, and everyone else who would like to join.

“Unbubble Academia” strives to bring information and knowledge from the academic bubble, to a broader public, and to make knowledge co-production accessible to everyone.

Lesvos Mutual Aid & Solidarity Network Soli Brunch on the Steve Bikoplein

Sunday 7 May 2023, Lesvos Mutual Aid & Solidarity Network Soli Brunch. Event will take place on the Steve Bikoplein, from 14:00 to 17:00. Come along to eat something, support people in Lesvos, meet us and play ping-pong, basket ball, play chess… In case of bad weather, event will move inside Joe’s Garage.

Lesvos Mutual Aid & Solidarity Network, “a network of comrades and friends active on the Greek island of Lesvos, with ties to collectives and movements that span the globe. We work to build relationships with people on the island, abolishing dominant norms/hierarchies and the socially constructed boundaries between our communities.
As a part of the broader anti-authoritarian movement, we condemn any and all fascist, sexist and racist behavior. We function through our assemblies, where we discuss topics, collectively take decisions and plan actions. We created an environment based on mutual respect where everyone can take part in equal terms, each according to their ability, each according to their needs. Our actions can vary depending on the needs we encounter and the dynamics of the group. We cooperate only with other self-organized structures, like “Women in Solidarity House”, “No Border Kitchen”, “Binio Squat” and other individuals that are active on the ground.
We as anarchists believe in solidarity that comes from the base and stand side by side with people in need, regardless of whether they come from another country, their age, class, ability, gender, the color of their skin or their sexuality. Here on Lesvos, we participate in multiple initiatives on the ground, all grounded in principles of antiracism, anti-authoritarianism, self-organization and mutual aid, each tackling different aspects of this common struggle.”

Volkseten Vegazulu is a people’s kitchens existing since the very beginning of Joe’s Garage, June 2005. Your donations are welcome. Food is vegan, no reservation. All benefits go to social & political struggles. Joe’s Garage is a space run by volunteers. Without a collective effort, without your active participation, we’re remaining closed. Get in touch in you feel like giving a hand. We’re always looking for cooks. Any help is welcome in the kitchen. Experience not required. If you want to know which days are still available, mail us.

No Borders No CPR!

Thursday 4 May 2023, Benefit voku – No Borders No CPR! Support activists fighting CPRs and supporting refugees in southern Italy. They are facing charges and being criminalized for showing solidarity, and benefits will help support their legal costs. We will have a video call with the activists. Food served from 7pm, no reservation.


THE CPR
CPR, TEMPORARY RECEPTION CENTRE
They were born with the aim of locking up non-EU people waiting to be deported from Italian territory because of the expulsion act ordered by authorities or also because they haven’t a valid residence permit (for example even if they’ve never had it, if they haven’t renovated in time etc….).

THE CPRS ARE AT THE TOP OF THE BLACKMAIL AND REPRESSIVE SYSTEM AGAINST WHO IS JURIDICALLY A NON-EU CITIZEN, AND ARE DESIGNED TO SCARE, THREATEN, IMPRISON AND EXPEL.
The conditions of reclusion are terrible, the buildings are often in decay; it’s hot in the summer, it’s very cold in the winter. The sections are made up of shacks separated by containment fences and inadequate sanitary facilities. Furthermore, “prisoners” complain about expired or badly preserved food and that it is served by external food services.

THE ABUSES AND VIOLENCE PERPETRATED BY “JAILORS” ARE CONSTANT AND THEY GO AS FAR AS FORCING LARGE DOSES OF SEDATIVES TO ANNIHILATE THE PRISONERS.
During the years, there were a lot of episodes of rebellion, of evasions/breakouts and riots carried out by the men themselves inside (most of these ‘centers’ host only men), no longer willing to tolerate these awful life conditions. In some cases, the revolts have brought the shutting down of several of these lager.

IN BASILICATA THERE IS A CPR IN PALAZZO SAN GERVASIO (PZ). IT’S A NON-PLACE FAR FROM INDISCREET EYES, WHERE VIOLENCE AND ABUSES TAKE PLACE CONTINUOUSLY; A DETENTION FACILITY THAT WAS CLOSED MANY TIMES, BUT IT’S NOW OPEN, AND THAT WAS CALLED THE “ITALIAN GUANTANAMO”.
After some demonstrations that took place out of those oppressive walls, in solidarity with the guys inside, today some people are facing criminal charges with the accusation of “incitement”. It’s a false and prosecutorial charge, racist and shameful. This is a narration that tend to criminalize the people who show solidarity with the “detainees”, who try to break the wall of silence and want to tell about these conditions.
This narration infantilize the people inside and it doesn’t even consider them able to understand the shit that is coming their way. It also wants to say that the push to rebel is not born from their daily life conditions, from the violence, abuses of power and abuses in general; nor from the knowledge that it happens also in other centers everywhere, but because someone from the outside explain them “how life works”.

THE CPRS MUST NOT EXIST AND THEY ALL MUST BE CLOSED RIGHT NOW!

Volkseten Vegazulu is a people’s kitchens existing since the very beginning of Joe’s Garage, June 2005. Your donations are welcome. Food is vegan, no reservation. All benefits go to social & political struggles. Joe’s Garage is a space run by volunteers. Without a collective effort, without your active participation, we’re remaining closed. Get in touch in you feel like giving a hand. We’re always looking for cooks. Any help is welcome in the kitchen. Experience not required. If you want to know which days are still available, mail us.

Benefit VoKu for Phoenix

Thursday 30 march 2023, Benefit VoKu for Phoenix. Food served from 7pm, no reservation.

Phoenix is a safe space and peer support community under het Wereldhuis run by and for LGBTQI+ people in forced displacement. Benefits will be used to support the members for travel costs. Also there will be a short talk on Phoenix and how you can support.

Volkseten Vegazulu is a people’s kitchens existing since the very beginning of Joe’s Garage, June 2005. Your donations are welcome. Food is vegan, no reservation. All benefits go to social & political struggles. Joe’s Garage is a space run by volunteers. Without a collective effort, without your active participation, we’re remaining closed. Get in touch in you feel like giving a hand. We’re always looking for cooks. Any help is welcome in the kitchen. Experience not required. If you want to know which days are still available, mail us.

Voku benefit, child reunification costs for a lesbian refugee

Thursday 16 March 2023, Voku benefit, child reunification costs for a lesbian refugee. Food served from 7pm, no reservation.

The benefit dinner is for Harriet, a lesbian refugee, who came to the Netherlands in 2016. She was initially rejected out of asylum because they did not believe her sexuality, and was made irregularised. During her time without legal residency, in 2020 Harriet co-founded a self-led community for/by LGBTQ+ people in forced displacement based in Amsterdam, and grew it to over 130+ members from scratch. Harriet was finally recognised as a refugee a year ago.

Currently, Harriet is balancing between supporting her children living situation back in her country-of-origin, raising the necessary funds to ensure their reunion, and is also working on starting a self-led non-profit foundation to promote recognition of LGBTQ+ people in forced displacement.

As a result of Dutch Immigration officials (IND) attempts at restricting refugees’ right to family reunification, the procedure is taking longer. Harriet has been separated from her kids for almost seven years now, while at the same time supporting them from across the world the entire time.

With previous efforts from Harriet and previous communal fundraising, we have managed to raise enough to ensure their travel costs. However, the IND is now demanding a court document from her country to prove her guardianship with her foster children. We are raising funds with this dinner to cover the legal fees to prove her guardianship, and to make sure all of Harriet’s children don’t need to be separated from Harriet nor each other any longer.

We believe the right to family life and reunification belongs to everyone and should not be made conditional to the financial situation someone has. Feel welcome to join our efforts.

Volkseten Vegazulu is a people’s kitchens existing since the very beginning of Joe’s Garage, June 2005. Your donations are welcome. Food is vegan, no reservation. All benefits go to social & political struggles. Joe’s Garage is a space run by volunteers. Without a collective effort, without your active participation, we’re remaining closed. Get in touch in you feel like giving a hand. We’re always looking for cooks. Any help is welcome in the kitchen. Experience not required. If you want to know which days are still available, mail us.

ROSA benefit voku, music with Lasha, the lonely horseboy

Monday 6 March 2023 , ROSA benefit voku, Volkseten Vegazulu. Food served from 7pm, no reservation. Music from 9pm.

We are part of ROSA (Radical Organisation of Students in Amsterdam), a radical leftist student organization at UvA, and we are launching a week of action for international women’s day. We are setting up a donation drive for menstrual products and funds, with all proceeds going to ASKV. ASKV is an organization that provides legal assistance and social support to rejected refugees in the Netherlands. Undocumented refugees are often caught in an impossible position: being unable to return to their country of origin while lacking access to social security, education, and employment in the Netherlands. Undocumented refugees often end up on the margins of society, vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. The funds we collect with our benefit dinner will go directly to menstrual products.

After the food, around 9pm, music on the stage with Lasha Rukhadze, the lonely horseboy. Another visit of Lasha at Joe’s Garage, with his guitar, before heading back to Greece and Georgia.

Volkseten Vegazulu is a people’s kitchens existing since the very beginning of Joe’s Garage, June 2005. Your donations are welcome. Food is vegan, no reservation. All benefits go to social & political struggles. Joe’s Garage is a space run by volunteers. Without a collective effort, without your active participation, we’re remaining closed. Get in touch in you feel like giving a hand. We’re always looking for cooks. Any help is welcome in the kitchen. Experience not required. If you want to know which days are still available, mail us.