Bath needs a Social Centre! Campaign launch

For nearly 6 months, and in many different buildings, the Black Cat Centre has been providing the people of Bath with a free community centre space. In that time, the centre has been used by hundreds of members of the community, and runs dozens of workshops, meetings, cafes, gigs, skillshares and other activities each week as well as being a permenant home to Bath Freeshop and a library. The massive support and use the centre has recieved from the community is a sign that we are filling a gap in Bath communities. We provide what the council doesn't - a space for the community both providing valuable resources and activities and more importantly throwing a building open for the community to use in whatever way it sees fit. In this way, the Black Cat answers the specific needs of the community it finds itself in. If the community is lacking a low cost cafe, someone sets one up in the Black Cat, in communities racked by money worries, the Black cat has been used to host debt advice workshops etc. We do not want the council to provide us with activities (which is lucky, coz they do a crap job of it!), we want a space that the community can use for whatever it wants, to answer it's own specific needs and desires.
For this reason, we have launched a campaign to pressure the council to give the Black Cat Centre a permenant home in one of the hundreds of disused commercial properties around Bath. If you think that the Black Cat is an important part of Bath culture, and a useful community resource, pop on down to the centre to sign the petition, and keep your ear to the ground for upcoming protests and events.

What is the Black Cat Centre about?

Black Cat’s is an occupied community co-operative social centre that attempts to foster the ideas of solidarity, mutual aid, freedom from oppression, and anti-capitalism.

This space has no leaders, nor do we want any. As we all learn from an early age, it is down to every individual to moderate their behaviour so as not to harm others. All decisions in the centre are made collectively, using consensus, to help everyone be included equally in any decision-making process.

Black Cat’s is a volunteer-run, not-for-profit, child-friendly space where people can be free of the yoke of economic and social oppression that they face on a daily basis, be it because of their gender, class, ability, beliefs, race or sexuality.
Indeed, we believe that authority, in the form of bosses, politicians and police, serves only to restrict our freedom and reinforce the interests of a system which keeps most of us poor in the interests of a powerful minority. As such, we are determined to use this space to prove that we are perfectly capable of staying safe, organising ourselves and taking care of our needs and our communities without the ‘help’ of our self-appointed leaders.

Black Cat’s stands as one of many among a growing network of radical social centres across the world, and we welcome involvement from anyone with ideas and energy who is willing to help make this a safe and empowering space for all.

Black Cat Centre has a new home!

After a productive month at the Methodist vicarage, the Black cat has moved on to pastures new. We are at the top of West Avenue (just around the corner from the old building) and our address is

63 West Avenue
Oldfield Park
Bath

We will only be in this building for a very short time (probably a week) and obviously have a bigger better place lined up for then, but for now, all Black Cat Calendar events are running as usual at the above address.

We have a massive list of activities every day, and are being used more and more by the local community, so come on down, or drop us an email if you want to start your own group or workshop.

For a full list of Black Cat calendar events, check out www.bathactivistnetwork.blogspot.com.