City Grows Temporary Fortress

#44. City Grows Temporary Fortress

Camera
High tech gadget

A high security “Red Zone” created with 4-metre-tall barricades in the centre of Genoa to protect the leaders of the Group of Eight during their 2001 summit. The massive security structures were temporary and designed for “flexibility.” Security planning at Genoa zoned political activity into a “Yellow” protest area with walls 4 metres high. Delegates were housed on a cruise ship in Genoa’s harbour and city residents were left with the choice of negotiating a system of fortifications or abandoning the city for the duration of the summit. Armin Linke is a Milan-based filmmaker and photographer whose works deal with globalization and social change.

Actors:

G8 Summit planners; 1,500 delegates; 15,000 police; 200,000 protestors; 5,000 journalists; city residents

Location: Genoa, Italy, 18 – 22 July 2001

Tools: Concrete, steel fencing, barbed wire, security cameras, fortified checkpoints, metal detectors, anti-aircraft missiles.

Walking

Friction