Solidarida profiles
Indymedia Cambridge
'Don't hate the media - be the media!' So says a headline on the Indymedia Cambridge homepage, and this is indeed the whole purpose of the Indymedia network's existence. Reporting globally on a local scale, activists aim to go behind the newspaper-selling headlines to uncover the important stories which the corporate media so often overlooks. A visit to the website today yielded good news: an attempt by the EU to introduce US style software patents - which would, activists claim, be the kiss of death for innovative small software companies and Open Source/Free Software developers - has been delayed due to concern in and subsequent pressure from the programming community.
Indymedia has also been involved in the campaign to prevent companies placing RFID (Radio Frequency ID) tags in their products; promoted as an anti-shoplifting device, these tags would allow the product to be tracked on leaving the store. However, it would be possible to read the information from the tags long after the product is purchased, raising concerns about the privacy of the consumer. Pressure from activists in Cambridge led Gillette to withdraw a trial in which RFID tags were placed in their products at a Tesco store in the town.
The latest campaign in Cambridge is to mobilise action against the DSEi arms fair in London, known to its friends as 'dicey'. This is ongoing, so keep your eyes peeled!
Indymedia is a global network, with branches in many towns within many countries. A full list is given on the Cambridge hompage. The focus on Cambridge in this profile is entirely due to my having heard about it there first.