Protest Camp Research Book

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:PROTEST

PROTEST KUNGANG DING, IAN JONES, YITAO LI, ABBY NELSON

Protest Camps Protests occur at various times in history, last different durations and occupy different locations. They do have one thing in common, though: a cause.

The camps themselves embody a temporary, although for some, a permanent form of housing and shelter in the contemporary world. Contrasting the planned gridded nature of cities, the spatial arrangement of camps is informed by word of mouth. This yields a more organic typology. Protest camps represent autonomous expressions of political or environmental questionings and illustrate the values of their

inhabitants. The proximity between tents within camps blurs the line between public and private space. This presents us with a study of the unfamiliar—our subsequent attempt at finding order amongst the random.

By using overlap and simplifying complex arrangements into simple graphics, we were more able to visualize the data we gathered. We found in the research and diagramming process the most conclusive discoveries were made when overlapping camp typologies. Though each protest camp differs greatly, unforeseen similarities when compared to one another.

occupy protests

other protests

Arab Spring

Dakota Access Pipeline

Grow Heathrow

A world map depicting the location of support for the Arab Spring, Dakota Access Pipeline, and Grow Heathrow protests.

This, in conjunction with camp specific research and representation, helped us synthesize our research.

The protest camp typology at first seemed to have sporadic, temporary, and dissimilar arrangements. Further research proved that overlaps between the researched precedents do exist. We observed the general time trends of protest camps have similar fluctuation, although enduring different lengths of time. Looking into the types of living spaces camp protesters occupied showed that the typical protester dwells in volumetrically similar and symmetric spaces.

One thing the camps also proved to have in common was their changeability. Spaces evolved as protests progressed, subconsiously responding to the activities and agression of the protesters. Though the precedents researched have varying scopes, motives, and results, a larger message about protest camps transcends.

A location map depicting where the Arab Spring took place: Cairo, Egypt’s Tahrir Square from January 25 to February 11, 2011.

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A map showing one of the protest camps for the Dakota Access Pipeline: Oceti Sakowin, August 2016 to February 2017. This camp amongst others align along the pipeline shown in pink.

Grow Heathrow

Scotland

Republic of Ireland

Wales

England

The location of Grow Heathrow in Sipson, United Kingdom. This protest began in 2010 and continues today.

Arab Spring Tahrir Square is the location of one the main events that happened during the Arab spring. It was an uprising that supported the democracy of Egypt against the regime of President Hosni Mubarak. The demonstrations around Tahrir Square happened from January 25 to February 11, 2011. The protest attracted global attention and resulted in Mubarak stepping down.

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Egyptian antigovernment protesters and supporters of President Hosni Mubarak fought ongoing battles in and around Tahrir Square on February 2nd and 3rd, the ninth and tenth day of unrest. The army had been trying to keep the opposing factions apart, while anti-Mubarak demonstrators erected makeshift barricades close to the Egyptian Museum.

Tahrir or Liberation Square had been the symbolic focus of antigovernment demonstrations for more than a week. It was at the center of this square where memory walls documented those who sacrificed their lives for the protest. Some protesters went to extremes to fight for their cause—sleeping between the wheels of army tanks to try to prevent the army from using them against protestors. Bloggers sent global updates at the center of the Square as well, spreading support and news of the protest.

The protests at Tahrir Square were organized, selfless, and passionate. Like the other protests, everyone involved in the Arab Spring had similar motives and degrees of patriotism and support of their democracy. Everyone was trying to make their own contribution toward a shared goal. The protests were both emotional and spontaneous, as well as rational and ordered.

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Dakota Access Pipeline The Dakota Access Pipeline protest was a seven-month protest recently halted in February 2017. The protest began due to the decision to construct an oil pipeline spanning from North Dakota to Illinois. The pipeline ran across Standing Rock Reservation and below the Missouri River. This would, in turn, disrupt sacred lands of the Dakota Native Americans and potentially contaminate the river, Standing Rock’s main water source. Thus, thousands of protestors stood up agains the oil company and defended their land.

The specific camp we researched resided in Cannon Ball, ND, just north of Standing Rock: Oceti Sakowin. The camp had a highly organized system connecting meeting tents, sacred fires, medics, and food areas. If one were to visit the area now, though, the land would be vacant. This is the case due to Trump’s decision to continue the pipeline’s construction in February.

What once was defended by Obama now was in jeopardy for the Oceti Sakowin people. Police used harsh measures to evacuate the protesters, but the natives’ passion never subsided. To prevent the police from recognizing protest supporters, Facebook and Twitter users made #NoDAPL go viral. Support grew from local to global in a matter of days.

Despite the widespread support, the pipeline protest ended unsuccessfully. Protesters burned their camps in distaste for federal support of the pipeline, Though spring floods would soon take over the area, the Oceti Sakowin people would have stayed if given the chance.

By researching this protest, we learned although protesters may be fervent, emotional, and attached to the territory argued upon, motives don’t always have positive endings.

Protestors for this camp gathered support from across the world by utilizing social media. This camp starts to project how future camps might function and how a location specific camp may have a global presence.

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Grow Heathrow Since 2010, Grow Heathrow has been a four-acre protest camp established by locals and green activists, near Sipson, London, in response to Heathrow Airport’s proposed expansion to include a third runway. After being welcomed into the community, protestors were invited to squat on the unused land adjacent to the airport. Immediately, protestors began removing 120 tons of industrial waste and scrap. Once the camp was clear of waste, the protestors began setting up infrastructure, included greenhouses, meeting rooms, and sleeping/living areas. Using their collective skills, the protestors became self-reliant and extremely efficient in sustainable practices. For over seven years the camp has remained a constant voice for the people in the fight against the airport expansion. The proposal for the new runway will remove thousands of housing units and significantly increase noise and air pollution. Seven hundred additional daily flights scare the members of Grow Heathrow, and leave them wondering if this fight will ever come to an end.

Although angry and upset with the airport and the government for supporting Heathrow Airport, the protestors of Grow Heathrow have shifted their focus to creating an eco-friendly community, with space to be creative, and even learn about gardening. The camp is tattered and makeshift, made up of surplus materials and constructed mostly by non-professionals. These modern-day hippies embrace the challenges of maintaining a small community at Grow Heathrow, while still continuing to protest the airport from infringing on the rights of the locals. Aspects of the camp begin to transcend the protest, and show how a group of people with limited resources can create a self-sustaining community for such an extensive amount of time. Unlike most protest camps, Grow Heathrow is unique in its ability to be self-maintained, permanent, and actually give back to the local area.

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Arab Spring JAN. 25, 2011

Inspired in part by the events in Tunisia, tens of thousands of people take part in antigovernment protests.

JAN. 26

JAN. 28

President Mubarak deploys the military and imposes a near total communications blackout.

Despite a ban on demonstrations, protesters stay in the square and clash with the police.

JAN. 29

JAN. 31

The Egyptian Army declares it will not use force against the protesters.

The police withdraw from the biggest cities.

Looters smash store windows. Buildings and vehicles are burned.

FEB. 1

FEB. 2

Pro- and antigovernment demonstrators throw rocks and firebombs at each other.

Hundreds of thousands of people protest in Tahrir Square. Mr. Mubarak says he will leave office in September.

FEB. 3

Antigove protester barricade Mubarak out.

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FEB. 11 FEB. 4

More than 100,000 protesters pack into the square.

ernment rs build es to keep k supporters

FEB. 5

FEB. 6

FEB. 8

More than 100,000 protesters fill the square again.

The army reinforces security around the square, which helps to keep the pro- and antigovernment sides separate.

The largest crowd yet pours into Tahrir Square.

FEB. 7

After his release from prison, Wael Ghonim, one of the movement’s organizers, gives a television interview.

A timeline of the events that took place during the Arab Spring protest.

FEB. 10

The protesters continue. Omar Suleiman, the vice president, announces at twilight that Mr. Mubarak has stepped down.

The crowd in the square grows as anticipation builds that Mr. Mubarak will step down. But in a late-night address, he refuses, enraging the protesters.

Dakota Access Pipeline

JUL. 27

APR. 1

DEC. 2014

Energy Transfers Partners LP applies to build the 1,172 mi pipeline from ND to IA

MAR. 11, 2016

200 Native Americans ride on horseback to protest the pipeline’s location on Standing Rock Sioux’s sacred land.

The last state to decide, Iowa, approves of the pipeline. The EPA notifies the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to assess the project.

JUL. 26

Standing Rock Sioux Tribe sues the U.S. Army Corps and seeks to halt construction, even though prep work had begun.

U.S. Army Corps approves easements and water crossing for the pipeline to continue.

AUG. 1

SEP. 9

Construction halted for further environmental assessment to occur.

Construction equipment set on fire at a protest site in Iowa.

SEP. 13

Energy Transfer Partners assures employees that t company will com the pipeline beca they spent $1 bill equipment.

NOV. 14 OCT. 9

Court denies the tribe’s appeal, saying Dakota Access can continue construction on private land.

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OCT. 31

The Department of the Interior and the U.S. Army Corps say they will delay a final decision until consulting with the tribes.

Facebook users check into the reservaton to confuse law officials after a post circulated claiming police were using FB to target protestors.

FEB. 22

DEC. 4

Celebration takes place at the Oceti Sakowin Camp because the U.S. Army Corps halted work on the pipeline.

NOV. 25

U.S. Army Corps orders protesters to vacate by Dec. 5. The protesters intend to stay.

A timeline outlining events during the Dakota Access Pipeline protests.

JAN. 24, 2017

Authorities clear out the last remaining holdouts in the main protest camps in southern ND in advance of spring flooding season.

President Donald Trump signs actions to advance the construction of the pipeline.

MAR. 10

Pipeline opponents rally in D.C. outside the White House and Trump’s Washington hotel.

Grow Heathrow SEP. 14, 2009

Heathrow airport proposes construction of 3rd runway, which would effectively rip out local housing.

JAN. 3, 2010

FEB. 11, 2010

Heathrow constructs greenhouses to start growing food for the community.

Grow Heathrow protestors haul out 3 tons of industrial waste.

MAY 8, 2011

MAR. 23, 2015

JUN. 7, 2012

Heathrow reaches 22 full-time residents.

The Sipson area begins to show strong support for the protestors.

FEB. 8, 2013

Heathrow takes legal action against the protest group.

Grow Heathrow hosts activist groups, Radical Housing Network, Camden Homeless Solidarity Squat, and others.

APR.

A judge up a leg determi Heathro rights.

JUL. 10, 2017

OCT. 10, 2015

John Stewart organizes a protest rally, using the hashtag, #no3rdrunway.

8, 2015

e begins to open gal investigation ining Grow ow’s property

Although the status of their camp is in question, the crime rate around the area of the camp has decreased by 25%.

FEB. 11, 2017

Grow Heathrow protestors continue fighting and working towards shutting down airport construction.

A timeline illustrating the events during Grow Heathrow.

Do the time periods protests endure have successes and failures that fluctuate in similar patterns?

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Tens of thousands of people take part in antigovernment protests

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Omar Suleiman, the vice president, announces at twilight that Mr. Mubarak has stepped down

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The largest crowd yet pours into Tahrir Square

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President Mubarak deploys the military

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Wael Ghonim, one of the movement’s organizers, gives a television interview

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The Egyptian Army declares it will not use force against the protesters

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Pro- and antigovernment demonstrators throw rocks and firebombs at each other

Diagramming to Discover How does one measure the degree of success and failure of a protest camp? We pondered this question throughout our research diagramming phase. Though diagrams typically relay quantitatively accurate results, we used diagrams to test a question: Do the time periods protests endure have successes and failures that fluctuate in similar patterns? By generating these fluctuations together as a group, a similar judgement was explored in the drawings. Though our drawings negate our hypothesis of potential overlap, we learned that diagramming can be used as a tool, not solely a representation of information.

Above left: An experimental overlap of the three fluctuation diagrams used to observe potential similarities. Our results show no correlation.

Above right: A graphic representation of the successes and failures experienced during Arab Spring.

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U.S. Army wants to continue the pipeline

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Camps forced to evacuate because of incoming floods

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Standing Rock sues the U.S. Army

Trump signs off to continue the protest Oceti Sakowin halts the protest

2016

july 2016 Pipeline construction equipment set on fire

Standing Rock appeals at court and is denied

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U.S. Army says the project must continue

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Heathrow activists are invited to squat by the locals Heathrow proposes third runway feb

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While camp status is unknown, crime rate has dropped by 25%

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Protestors haul out 120 tons of industrial waste

Judge gives 14 days for Heathrow to leave

may 2011

15

october 20

Local area near Sipson shows strong support for protestors John Stewart organizes protest rally #no3rdrunway

Land owner takes legal action against protestors

Heathrow reaches 22 full time residents

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Camp hosts activist groups

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A judge opens legal investigation into the camp

Above left: Circular mapping of the successes and failures seen while researching the Dakota Access Pipeline.

Above right: Representation of the fluctuations of success taking place during Grow Heathrow.

Spatial Overlap After looking into the spatial changes the camps experienced, we realized protest camps form in a variety of arrangements.

To represent these formations uniformly, we simplified the camp type to a triangle. Though the triangle has no numerical quantity or spatial exactness attached to it, representing it this way allowed for easy comparison. This type of diagramming also tested a question as opposed to functioning representatively. Using diagramming as a means of finding overlaps helps relay a larger message about the protest camp typology.

Using diagramming as a means of finding overlap helps relay a larger message about the protest camp typology.

Above left: A compilitation of the three camp types overlapped to see spatial arrangement similarities.

Above right: A graphic representation of the camp arrangement of Arab Spring.

Above left: The Dakota Access Pipeline camp arrangement on a grid of triangles.

Above right: The spatial makeup of Grow Heathrow represented diagrammatically.

A section cut showing the density and tent types appearing at Arab Spring.

A section cut depicting a scene from the Dakota Access Pipeline protests.

A section showing a scene from Grow Heathrow and the recycling methods used at the camp.

What defines the spatial parameters for human inhabitation?

Structure Overlay Though the camps had similar motives; fighting for their territory, freedom, or beliefs, the spaces they resided within varied greatly from camp to camp. From teepees to geodesic domes, tents of all shapes appeared in the camps.

This diagram explores these shapes and questions their proportions. What defines the spatial parameters for human inhabitation? Researching the proximity of makeshift walls or specific tent heights might get us closer to an answer. By again implementing the process of overlapping, observations were made that might not have been noticed before.

Above left: A categorization of tent types categorized by camp.

Above right: Overlapping transparencies of the tent types observed.

36” Sitting Height

24” Shoulder Height

12” Sleeping Height 0” Floor Height

How a tent proportionally responds to the human body inhabiting it.

A collage curating the experiences amidst Arab Spring.

A collage designed to show the motives, rebuttal, and hardship faced by Dakota Pipeline protesters.

A collage capturing the lifestyle of Grow Heathrow protest participants.

January 25, 2011 January 25, 2011 Around 50,000Around protestors began to gather around 50,000 protestors began to gather around Tahrir Square. Tahrir Square.

January 30, 2011 January 30,

At least 100,000 protestors flooded Ta At Egyptian least 100,000 Egyptian protes to participate intoFriday prayer. participate in Fr

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stors flooded Tahrir Square 0 Egyptian protestors flooded Tahrir Square riday prayer. in Friday prayer. o participate

February 11, 2011 February 11, 2011 Protest numbers Protest reach 300,000 start300,000 marching numbersand reach andtostart marching to the Presidential Palace. the Presidential Palace.

A population diagram of Arab Spring.

August 2016

August 2016

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ce. in 300 takes cities worldwide 25-50 people remain after Trump to continue construction APLActivists Day of Action place. Activists in 300 cities worldwide 25-50aggreed people remain after pipeline Trump aggreed to continue pipeline construction cipate. and forced evacuation due toand incoming flooding. participate. forced spring evacuation due to incoming spring flooding.

Population change taking place during the Dakota Access Pipeline protest.

June 21,June 201121, 2011 Only a few years into the protest, around 150 people Only a few years into the protest, around 150gather people gather around the camp and airport protest around the camp andtoairport toHeathrow. protest Heathrow.

November 16, 201316 November

Around 400-500 local protestors gather ing Around 400-500 local protestors governement’s recent response to the ex governement’s recent response

6,mber 201316, 2013

otestors in response gather ingather response to the to the esponse to the expansion to the expansion plan. plan.

OctoberOctober 10, 201510, 2015 Thousands to the protest thereleased newly released airport proposal.

Thousands gather togather protest newly airport proposal. was organized using #no3rdrunway social media.

The rallyThe wasrally organized by usingby #no3rdrunway on socialonmedia.

Grow Heathrow’s change in population throughout the protest.

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Clashes with police

Tahrir Square

Egyptian Museum

N.D.P. Headquarters: The ruling party’s offices are set on fire on Jan. 28.

KASR AL-NIL Bridge violent clashes on Jan. 28.

Nile JAN. 25-28

Protesters and Police Clash Security forces respond to protesters by firing rubber bullets, tear gas, concussion grenades and water cannons.

N

Main area of antigovernment protests Heavily secured by the army

Tahrir Square

Egyptian Museum

State Television Headquarters

Nile JAN. 29-FEB. 1

Army Steps In, Police Withdraw The military allows the protesters to continue, and in some cases, displays support for the demonstrators.

Above left: The Arab Spring protesters encounter police rebuttal.

Above right: The antigovernment side of the protest grows while the Army sets up to fight back.

N

Clashes with Mubarak supporters Main area of antigovernment protests Security forces

Tahrir Square

Mubarak supporters, some on camels, push toward the square on Feb.2.

Egyptian Museum

Nile FEB. 2-3

Clashes with Supporters Violence erupts as armed Mubarak supporters try to force their way into square. The army does not intervene.

N

Main area of antigovernment protests Security forces Tent areas Barricades

Health Clinics Tahrir Square

Egyptian Museum

These areas are heavily secured on Feb. 4 and 5.

Mugamma(government building): On Feb. 7, protesters form a human chain around this building, an icon of government bureaucracy Protesters erect barricades around the square

Nile FEB. 4-7

The Protesters Settle in The protesters secure the square as it takes on an air of semipermanency with tents, food stalls and health clinics.

Above left: Army security forces fall short to Mubarak supporters and the antigovernment protest.

Above right: Tents and barricates take form around the anti-government protest.

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Main area of antigovernment protests Security forces

Tahrir Square

Parliament: Protesters expand to Parliament on Feb. 8. camp-

Egyptian Museum

State Television Headquarters: Thousands of protesters gather here after Mr. Mubarak refuses to step down on Feb. 10.

Nile FEB. 8-11

Momentum Builds for an Exit Wael Ghonim’s riveting television interview inspires a new wave of protesters to fill the square.

Above left: Security forces invade the protest but Mr. Mubarak refuses to step down.

Above right: A photographical depiction of the spatial arrangement of Arab Spring.

The ariport expansion will bring 700 more flights per day

Home-owners will be forced to sell their property significantly under value

Noise pollution will stretch even further into the nearby neighborhoods

The increase of flights will cause environmental pollution

Grow Heathrow Camp Proposed 3rd runway Residential

Future (2022) Further expansion of path, begins to merge the outside world with the camp

Further development of infrastructure through more advanced facilities

Begin new community involvement, selling produce to locals

Present (2017) Development of the central path and layout of the camp

Construction of buildings and infrastructure (greenhouses, living, kitchen, meeting, etc.)

Past (2009) Removal of 120 tons of industrial scrap and waste

Invitation from locals to begin squatting

Above left: Drawdel of Arab Spring Above right: Drawdel of Dakota Access Pipeline

Above left: Drawdel of Grow Heathrow