How a story that hasn't ended began for us (RIP Naomi)

Wednesday morning, 23 April. We heard that a woman was run over by aprison van taking prisoners back from court to Brixton jail yesterdayaround 5.30pm. Rushed up to the area and got a newspaper.

'30 years old, she was drunk', 'she was always dancing', the paper read.Immediately I knew it - it was her, the girl who'd beckoned me to danceat 'food not bombs' in front of the Ritzy cinema a few weeks back, theday that K and L were arrested for giving away free food. The beautifulcrazy black girl with the wide open smile! Some people enter your heartlike a streak of lightening. Naomi was one of them.

Choking with pain and rage we reached the 'Brixton Oval' to find ashrine rigged up by her friends: the red Marlboro jacket she alwayswore, her beloved skates, a few furry toys, photographs, flowers,candle, joss sticks. Everyone was crying, men and women, young and old,black and white, tears of anger and despair pouring down theirdevastated faces. They are the people who hang out there like Naomi did,in that grassy area in the centre outside the Ritzy cinema. We huggedand cried together and all agreed ? we were not going to sit still in aritual RIP in front of candles. WE MUST ACT!!! NAOMI WAS MURDERED BY THESTATE!!! PORCO DIO!!!

The private cop driving a SERCO prison van had seen her dancing in theroad and beating her fists on the van with its human cargo of elevenprisoners that he was in a hurry to unload. Don't take them to theprison!!! She had screamed.

He had seen her, yet, when the lights changed, he accelerated andknocked her down, drove over her and dragged her along the road. Shedied under the van, close to a friend who had crawled down to reach her.A crowd of about a hundred people gathered, stunned, screamingMURDERER!!! The windscreen of the van was smashed. Riot police werecalled to protect the killer, who is of course free on bail.

What is the life of a drunken black girl who always dances, to a brutein the service of State repression? As much as that of a comrade leavinga rock concert once was to a bus driver.

We need to scream our anger!! All of us!! Together!!

A quick dash to the local print shop and copies of the newspaper articleare enlarged and laminated. They see the story and do more free.Passersby stop. People begin to arrive as the word goes round. A dive toBrixton market to get some cloth for a banner. The road is blocked.Okay! 3 metres of black cloth. More people turn up. Quick! Some paint,brushes, sponges. Cloth is spread on pavement, a few steady-handedpeople set to it. The words, decided by Naomi's mates and agreed by all:AVENGE NAOMI, KILLED BY THE SYSTEM begin to emerge. 2 long sticks appearand the banner is rigged up. It's decided: up Brixton Road to the jail,block any prison vans along the way.

Tall black guys take the banner. They are in a hurry. Let's go! Themarch assembles hastily. Barely formed, it takes over the main road,some are straggling, others follow on the pavement. The heavy traffic ofBrixton Road is forced to slow down to snail's place behind this motleycrew of Naomi's friends, some clutching cans of beer, and a fewanarchists, squatters, Rastafarians and punks: the 'scum' of Brixton outto denounce the KILLER of the System. For some people, this is theirfirst ever demo. Cop cars arrive at the scene and follow the march.Shouts begin, tentatively at first: No justice! No peace! Then the wholemarch breaks out NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE, FUCK THE POLICE!!! The shoutinggets louder and louder. Everybody in unison at the top of their voices.NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE, FUCK THE POLICE!!!! NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE, FUCK THEPOLICE!!!! THE PASSION FOR FREEDOM IS STRONGER THAN THE PRISON!!!Hundreds of cars and buses pursue their slow journey up and down theroad, traffic is nearly at a standstill, it is almost the rush hour. Copvans are stationed discreetly in side streets, but the whole policeoperation keeps a low profile. Brixton is Brixton. People stare. Bemusedblack schoolchildren turn their heads. Fuck the police? Wow!

The march reaches the prison. It doesn't stop on the pavement but stormsup the drive. Cop cars all around. Cops and screws form a line. Avanload of female ones arrives at the scene. Two emaciated women arestaggering, almost falling to the ground. They throw out their anger andpain, screaming at the cops, who remain impassive. (All the Brixton copsknew Naomi. They know the score and clearly have been given strictorders.) Tears drench faces contorted by pain and alcohol. Naomi didn'tneed to die! It wasn't an accident! He could have stopped. She wasmurdered and the murderer is walking free! NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE, FUCKTHE POLICE!!! NO JUSTICE, NO PEACE, FUCK THE POLLLICE!!! THE PASSION FORFREEDOM IS STRONGER THAN THE PRISON!!!

All sorts of flora and fauna emerge from within the prison area. Copsstart to put on mild pressure, the march concedes, returns to theentrance on Brixton Road and stays there for ten minutes before takingover the main road again, walking slowly back down to the town centre,passing again over the spot where Naomi was callously crushed to death.The shouting continues all the way down to the centre.

The working day has ended and new people are gathering around themonument to Naomi, which is in evolution (there are more flowers and aRastafarian flag has taken the place of the news article). Rows of copstry to clear the pavement without success and end up blocking itthemselves. The inevitable local reporter has arrived, complete withcameraman. A group of authoritative people are lining up on the grass tobe photographed and interviewed and Naomi's friends seem to be fadinginto the background. The atmosphere is changing and we're off, for now.Hugs to our comrades of the day. See you later.

(written by) J. and B. , proud to be 'scum'."

Note: The evening before this murder happened (22nd April 2008), thenight saw a crowd of people block another Serco van transferingprisoners through Brixton and police had to be called to disperse thesituation. It is not being reported to the public via the mainstreammedia that this blatant murder of a young woman in broad daylight in thecentre of town happened in the context of resistance to the system, -the prison system -, and we can only wish for and carry out anappropriate answer to power, instead of more hand-wringing and'community mediation'. Fire to the Prisons.