Battleangel

Every tale must have an ending and this seems to be it for Copenhagen’s famed “hippy enclave” Christiania.

As mulled over earlier by The Observer …

And now it seems that they are at the end of the road. I can’t help to think it’s a little sad. Even though I have never been there and probably would think twice before moving in to such a community. Instead it’s about dreams and hopes. And freedom.

And even though I probably agree with the closure, I feel it is for the wrong reasons. It strikes me as a sign of our age. To smooth the rough edges and stuff people in the same suit-and-tie mold.
Even the hint that the city of Copenhagen wants to polish its facade at the expense of others disgusts me. I always believed people define themselves and show their character - not by who they are, but by what they do.

So, if everything goes according to plans, the citizens will be relocated, their houses razed and the region turned into a spotless and luxurious residential neighborhood. For those who can afford it of course. The ironic thing is that people have been able to live in Christiania virtually for free and for the most part built their own homes there. They will now, as a final act of humiliation, be offered residency in the “new clean Christiania”, something that most of them of course cannot afford.
And herein lies by complaint also. Had this been a simple clean sweep operation, I could have gone along with it. But the purpose of this “culturecide” is far more perverted. Comments from local officials have clearly detailed what kind of attitudes we are dealing with here. Denmark has certainly disappointed me in that they appear to have the same obsolete agenda on dealing with substance abusers. And taking away people’s homes and turning their land into lucrative estates is a crime in my book at least. We’ve seen it so many times throughout history. Many of the world’s indigenous ethnic groups have been routed to be replaced by “progress”. We’ve seen it in South and North America, in Australia and even Sweden. It doesn’t matter if you believe in a spirited nature and carry a tomahawk — or if you just think you can create a free society. You are still a latent threat to the current hegemony. Maybe they should consider themselves “lucky” to still be alive. A hundred years ago they would all been slain and no one would have been the wiser.

I guess we, as a species, never learn. Christiania might not be the end of the world, nor a big deal. But it is a sign of .. well .. recession. And it brings great disappointment.