29 Jul 2012

Protesters hold ‘anti-Games’ near Olympic stadium

While the eyes of the world were on the first full day of competition at the London Olympics, a far smaller group was marking the “anti-Games” near the stadium on Saturday. A few hundred protesters gathered in a party atmosphere to express their opposition to everything from corporate sponsorship of the Olympics to anger about missiles positioned on the roofs of nearby apartment blocks for the Games.

AntiOlympic-protest

At the protest in Mile End, one subway stop from the stadium in east London, many demonstrators looked a little stunned by the sudden media attention after months of being largely ignored. “There seem to be more cameras than protesters!” said Jean Videler, 60, equipped with a rucksack and tennis shoes, her grey hair falling to her shoulders.

The protest brought together around 40 activist groups under the banner of the “CounterOlympics Network” – groups that had hitherto struggled to be heard above the din of the London 2012 media machine. Some protesters were from the “Occupy London” anti-capitalist movement, or from far-left parties, united by their opposition to the multi-million dollar sponsorship of the Games by multinationals like McDonald’s and Dow Chemical.

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