POLITICS AND CONTROL IN SPACES

An example of political control and power in spaces.

Orgreave is a village in north Yorkshire.
It is usually a quiet picturesque village but in 1984, as a result of striking miners it was violated and taken control of by force. Police invaded the normally peaceful village when they forcefully dispersed the striking miners at the nearby coking plant.

The whole village became a battle ground when brutal riots occurred between police and picketing miners.

The politics of the time threatened the identity of the local enviroment, as well as importance of the place.

The village is now remembered for 'the battle of Orgreave'. The time when political issues controlled and ruled this piece of land.

To Support Theresa's inclusion the following is an excerpt from Jeremy Deller's and Mike Figgis's 'Battle of Orgreave' (2001) which illustrates the point:

In reponse to this highly 'politicised' space, artist Jeremy Deller produced a re-enactment which was directed by Mike Figgis in a film 'The Battle of Orgreave' which [in an ironic take on the staging or re-enactment of battles popular with history enthusiasts] simulates the conditions and events of that time and space, using original members of striking miners and police, many of whom have painful and haunting recollections of those events and still live in the area. A copy of Deller's Orgreave is in the LRC. There's also a Text if you click on the title of this blog entry (Response: Sally Hall)