Council owned building occupied in Barcelona for Kids Learning Space
The occupation is of the former HQ of the Botanical Institute and the action is the starting point of a conference on alternative pedagogies and self-management organized by Co-maternity and shared parenting Collective Babàlia and the Ateneo Cooperative Base. (‘comaternitat i criança compartida Babàlia i l’Ateneu Cooperatiu La Base’) by David Bou
The building is located on Paseo de Jean Forestier at the foot of Montjuïc, it was mass occupied around 2 pm, after a magician and a graffiti tried unsuccessfully to open the wall doing various street theatre tricks .
An action was announced days had been via the Conference for Live Learning in Poble Sec barrio, promoted by the ‘La Base’ and their educational revolution section form Babàlia.
The ‘Fountain Square’ was the venue chosen to give the starting signal for a weekend full of activities such as lectures, concerts, workshops and a space for small children. According to the organizers, the aim of the conference is “to boost community building in the neighborhood, both among people and between generations for projects and spaces.”
Batucada Drum Band encouraged squatting before the parade, which was followed by sixty people, including many children / David Bou
Around 12 am, sixty people held a party parade through the streets of Poble Sec to “reclaim lives and learning spaces for children.” The delegation, a majority parents with very young children, with many prams-, was led by two heads depicting a boy and a girl, followed by the Street Drum band Batucada Batel. On the steps of the MNAC there was recorded a scene that will be part of a video broadcast of the project.
How it Works
Todas las familias tienen un rol participativo. Divididos en comisiones de trabajo, cada miembro del colectivo elige qué función desempeñar para el proyecto, así hay quienes lavan los objetos, quienes llevan la tesorería, quienes hacen de auxiliar de Martina cada mañana rotativamente con los pequeños, quienes cocinan (comida biológica), quienes hacen funciones de gestoría, quienes proponen contenidos para talleres, quienes llevan las redes sociales, y un largo etcétera de todo lo necesario para poner un proyecto de estas características en funcionamiento.
Finally, around 2 pm, the march arrived at a building owned by the Council (at the foot of the mountain of Montjuic) -after which a person dressed as a magician attempted magic tricks to open the door, and a few graffiti painters- a group of participants opened the wall…. The building was occupied and the parenting Community began a mass cooking of noodles.
Babàlia is a partnership formed in Poble Sec among families with children born from April 2011. It was started the following year by those “wanting to be involved in raising community, creating support networks among families and joining us cooperatively and independently, “according to their own words. They denounced “the lack of institutional preschool supply” and indicated “an increasingly high demand “;
They want to respond to the different needs of families living in the neighborhood “by creating new learning spaces that are more inclusive and supportive.”
During these four years the project has evolved and found new needs. In this period have entered new families and people who have been able to reconcile their private and professional lives, accompanying the children during working hours with the help of educators who prepare activities with some parents and they turns in helping out.
La Base… Microcosm of a New World.. click here.. La Base is a growing net of coop -organized spaces opened by people of the working class Poble Sec neighborhood of Barcelona .
Currently,they explaining “the characteristics of our old premises do not allow us to ” to carry out all activities that wamt. Among their demands is the creation of a community garden for neighborhood use and “where possible a more integrated contact with nature within an urban space”.
They also need meeting places for young and multipurpose spaces where different educational activities can be carried out simultaneously and without limitations. Therefore they call for “popular support to access a space to develop our educational project entirely in sync and respect with the neighborhood and our environment.”
The conference will continue in the new squatted space, morning, afternoon and evening during the weekend. They call on us to attend, support and contribute to the “creation of autonomous spaces and pratices from which do not relate to profit, dogma or state control.”
original en Catalan
S’okupa un edifici municipal al Poble-sec de Barcelona per transformar-lo en un espai educatiu per a infants
per donar al tret de sortida a un cap de setmana ple d’activitats com ara xerrades, espectacles, concerts, un espai infantil i tallers per a les criatures. Segons les organitzadores, l’objectiu de les jornades és “donar un impuls a la creació de comunitat al barri, tant entre persones de forma intergeneracional com entre projectes i espais”.
Al voltant de les 12 del matí, una seixantena de persones han partit en cercavila pels carrers del Poble-sec per “reivindicar un aprenentatge viu i espais per a les criatures”. La comitiva, formada de forma molt majoritària per pares i mares amb criatures de poca edat -amb molts cotxets-, estava encapçalada per dos capgrossos que representaven un nen i una nena, seguida de la batucada Batela.
En una de les escales d’accés al MNAC s’ha gravat una escena que ha de formar part d’un vídeo de difusió del projecte. Finalment, pels volts de les 2 del migdia, la marxa s’ha plantat en un immoble de titularitat municipal siutat al passeig de Jean C. N. Forestier (al peu de la muntanya de Montjuic) on -després que una persona vestida de mag hagi intentat fer un truc per obrir la porta, i d’una pintada d’uns grafiters- un grup de participants ha obert la tàpia i l’edifici ha estat okupat i s’hi ha començat a preparar una fideuà popular.
Criança comunitària
Babàlia és una associació formada al Poble-sec per famílies amb criatures nascudes a partir de l’abril de 2011. Va nèixer l’any següent amb “ganes d’implicar-se en la criança de manera comunitària, creant xarxa de suport entre famílies i ajuntant-nos de manera cooperativa i autònoma”, segons les seves pròpies paraules. 
right to get dirty
Denuncien “la mancança d’oferta institucional” i assenyalen “una cada vegada més elevada demanda popular en aquesta línia”; per aquest motiu afirmen voler respondre a les diferents necessitats de les famílies que viuen al barri “creant nous espais d’aprenentatge més integradors i solidaris”.
Durant aquests quatre anys el projecte ha anat evolucionant i s’ha trobat amb noves necessitats. En aquest període han entrat noves famílies i persones, que han pogut conciliar la seva vida personal i laboral, acompanyant els infants durant les hores de feina amb l’ajuda d’educadores –que preparen les activitats– i algunes mares i pares que fan d’auxiliars per torns.
Actualment, expliquen que “les característiques del nostre local no ens permet cobrir les mancances”, per tal desenvolupar totes les activitats que impulsen. Entre les seves reivindicacions hi ha la creació d’un hort comunitari d’ús veïnal “on sigui possible un contacte més integrat a la natura dins d’un espai urbà”, espais de trobada per a joves i espais polivalents on les diferents activitats pedagògiques es puguin dur a terme de forma simultània i sense limitacions.
Per tot això demanen “recolzament popular per accedir a un espai on poder desenvolupar integrament el nostre projecte pedagògic en sincronia i respecte cap al barri i el nostre entorn”.
Les jornades continuaran al nou espai okupat, matí, tarda i vespre durant tot el cap de setmana. És per això que fan una crida a assistir-hi per donar suport i contribuir a la “creació d’espais i pràtiques autònomes des d’on relacionar-nos fora del dogma del benefici econòmic o el control estatal”.
The Free 