a speakers` corner in every town

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URBAN COMMONS - A SPEAKERS’ CORNER IN EVERY TOWN
Our proposal is based on the
belief that speaking freely is
a fundamental necessity of a
truly public realm. The UK has
a proud history of tolerance
and restraint (not constraint)
on freedom of expression: our
freedom to speak is tempered by
the rights of others to protection
from serious harm. Recently this
has been extended by restrictive
legislation: some kinds of speech
and some public gatherings,
‘anti-social behaviour’, the use
of byelaws prohibiting otherwise
legal activities, Business
Improvement Districts to manage
the public space in the interests
of businesses, rather than the
public. This overall trend is
anti-democratic and needs
rebalancing.
London’s Speakers’ Corner in
Hyde Park was itself born out
the struggle for civil liberties
in Victorian Britain and its
establishment was a significant
milestone in the development of
our democratic institutions. Our
timeline illustrates the chequered
history of this unique space.
With the increasing restrictions
and ‘narrowing’ of functions of
our high streets, the time is right
to establish a speakers’ corner in
every town.
1196 - 1783
1866
1872
1906
1908
Last words
Reform League protests
Parks Regulation Act
Vote for Women Campaign
250,000 Women march
1913
Social and Political Unions banned
from meeting in the park
1930
2003
Present
Future
Over 100 Soap Box narators
weekly
Protest against military
action in Iraq
Only surviving Speakers
Corner
Speakers Corner in each
London Borough
1930
2003
Present
Future
Over 100 Soap Box narators
weekly
Protest against military
action in Iraq
Only
surviving
Speakers
Parks
Regulation
Act
Corner
Speakers Corner in each
London Borough
1930
2003
Present
Future
1. A History of Hyde Park Speakers’ Corner
2. Where should they be?
1196
In every
- 1783 town
1866
3. London?
In1872
every borough
4. What is necessary?
1908
1906
1913
?
Last words
Reform League protests
Parks Regulation Act
Vote for Women Campaign
250,000 Women march
1196 - 1783
1866
1872
1906
1908
Social and Political Unions banned
from meeting in the park
1913
Place to Stand
Last words
Reform League protests
Parks Regulation Act
Vote for Women Campaign
250,000 Women march
1196 - 1783
1866
1872
1906
1908
Last words
Reform League protests
Parks Regulation Act
Vote for Women Campaign
250,000 Women march
Public Ownership
Social and Political Unions banned
from meeting in the park
Not Subject to
Restrictive Byelaw
Public Managment
Active Social Groups
Speakers’ Corner Trust
LOCAL SPEAKERS’
CORNER COMMITTEE
Over 100 Soap Box narators
weekly
Protest against military
action in Iraq
Only surviving Speakers
Corner
Speakers Corner in each
London Borough
1930
2003
Present
Future
Over 100 Soap Box narators
weekly
Protest against military
action in Iraq
Only surviving Speakers
Corner
Speakers Corner in each
London Borough
5. Students from UEL Unit 8 testing
‘soapboxes’ on Speakers’ Corner
6. A new Speakers’ Corner for Croydon
Civic Architecture Office and students at
the University of East London have been
developing a pilot project for London’s
second Speakers’ Corner in Croydon together
with the Speakers’ Corner Trust and the
Croydon Speakers’ Corner Committee. The
context is a major planning application for
a new Westfield shopping centre which will
radically change the centre of gravity of the
North End shopping street. This presents a
unique opportunity for the Local Authority
to re-establish a true public realm as part
of the area’s redevelopment and we are
liaising with Croydon’s placemaking team
to progress this. The requirements for a
Speakers’ Corner are shown on the diagrams
– no further resources are required. The
intended outcome is a healthier and more
democratic public space that allows for
the normal antagonisms, discomforts and
disagreements of a legitimate public realm.
1913
Social and Political Unions banned
from meeting in the park
A new Speakers’ Corner in Croydon Northend
TEAM
1908
CONSULTEES
UEL unit 8
1913
1930
2003
Present
Future
Civic Architecture Office at UEL
Local groups + The public
Speakers’ Corner Trust
250,000 Women march
Social and Political Unions banned
from meeting in the park
Over 100 Soap Box narators
weekly
Croydon Speakers’ Corner Committee
CAO
1908
Civic Architecture Office
1913
1930
Croydon Council (Placemaking Team)
Protest against military
action in Iraq
2003
Only surviving Speakers
Corner
Present
Speakers Corner in each
London Borough
Local businesses
Future
CAO | Knowledge Dock | 4-6 University Way | London E16 2RD | United Kingdom +44 (0) 208 223 7536 | [email protected] | web: civicarchitecture.org
Artwork in the streets can link spaces to represent a continous sense
of public realm
The concept for Croydon Northend is a’thread’ of linked spaces with a Speakers’
Corner as the centerpiece