Over the past five years, high-profile evictions have demonstrated Berlin's new commitment to protecting owners' property rights, while some of the oldest squatter communities have been forced to go legit β and turn capitalist β to survive. In 2010, police faced down hundreds of protesters to evict residents of a five-story central Berlin apartment house that was then called βthe last rent-free squat in Berlin.β Meanwhile, residents of Rauchhaus, a squat first occupied in 1971, now offer classes in yoga, silkscreen painting and welding and operate a proletarian, albeit capitalist, bar to foot the tax bill since having gained legal title to the building. But the battle for the city's soul is hardly over.
Read Full Article »