In the context of the Rheinmetall Entwaffnen (RME) antimilitarist action camp in Cologne 2025, an open assembly came together in Berlin to organise an Anarchist Barrio in the camp. After the camp, people from the Berlin assembly who participated in the A-Barrio discussed their perspectives and experiences of the camp at evaluation meetings. This following text aims to summarize those discussions but as well support them to go deeper.
Internal Dynamics: Strengths and Weaknesses in the A-Barrio during the camp
The general experience of participants in our Berlin assembly was positive, the A-Barrio was initiated with the goal to add an anarchist and autonomous presence in a camp more generally composed of traditional leftist groups and hierarchical communist organisations. The aim was both to demonstrate the possibility of anarchist self-organization and networking. Both as a principle and a way to remedy to the lack of coordination with groups from other cities, the A-A-Barrio was conceived as an open frame for participants to take initiative and propose activities, actions and take part autonomously in the life of the A-Barrio.
This open frame of self-organization was the strength of the proposal that represented the A-Barrio at the camp as it stood in comparison to the often hierarchical and rigidly structured organising of other groups. The A-Barrio showed that self-organisation is possible in an open frame, among people who were meeting each other for the first time.