Mark Kennedy: A chronology of his activities

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Date Place event organisation/campaign involved/facilitating mark's role target groups/people he was in communication with potential paper trail additional comments source (inc URL) media source person (incl contact details / or ref if anonymous) photo material yes/no who could tell us more noteworthy oddities
13/08/2003-17/08/2003 Yorkshire Earth First! Gathering Earth First! Turned up as a punter. First time anyone has really met him. He later capitalised on the fact that people assumed he was OK as he had been at EF. MK was generally active with the Nottingham local group first and GM was what was going on at the time. Earth First! Uk / Anti- GM MK turned up at the Sumac centre in Notts before the gathering asking about transport to it. anon no When he was talking to friends in 2005 he cited the EF! Gathering as a transformative experience; being impressed by the people and politics etc.
Autumn (2003) UK Anti-GM action, office occupation Anti-GM Driver Bayer Earth First! Uk / Anti- GM ? unlikely, quite long time ago MK drove a white people carrier on the action. He impressed activists by reporting accurate information about the location of the police in the area. anon no
05/11/2004-06/11/2004 London European Social Forum European Social Forum Main driver; delivering leaflets and food to 3 different occupied buildings during ESF. 1,000-1,200 were housed in these buildings. Wombles unlikely, he used his own vehicle. anon MK mainly used his own vehicle, a white Toyota pick up for missions.
Spring/Summer ( 2004 ) Germany, London, Brighton, Nottingham Picked up Zapatista coffee from Hamburg Germany and transported it to social centre in North London Ex-Grand Banks Social Centre/Wombles Van driver Ex-Grand Banks Social Centre/Wombles/ Cafe Rebelda ( Hamburg ) / Sumac
Spring (2004) Ireland Grassroots Gathering promoting G8 Scotland Dissent! Driver of roadshow, bingo caller G8 Scotland Workers Solidarity Movement, Rossport Solidarity Campaign, Shell to Sea. Travelled extensively with Trapese collective, useful way to gain contacts and trust networking across UK and beyond. http://www.indymedia.ie/article/97967 Was the only person at that time to have high-tech equipment such as a laptop with wi-fi connection, he always allowed people to use to check emails and research stuff.
01/05/04 Ireland, Dublin EU summit Supported a black bloc of over 100 people. Was on the front row of the bloc which pushed through police lines MK part of affinity group who secured a squat to act as housing. The squat was raided. Attacking police. Supplied defensive equipment. 3 people from London, UK were arrested during the raid. Police and government WSM / Wombles People serve prison sentences relating to material delivered by him from UK. Some people were in jail for a week, others were made to stay in Ireland to answer bail for 6 months until their court case. http://www.indymedia.ie/article/97967 anon yes One of those taking part in the protest recalls being astonished by Kennedy's action on the day. "I saw him taking off his balaclava as he was coming out of the crowd. I was amazed that someone would stand close to police lines and take his mask off.” Unconfirmed but suspected that police had intelligence on the activities of some anti-capitalist activists who had travelled across the Irish Sea from Britain. A unit from the garda's Pearse Street station smashed its way into a flat on Leeson Street in Dublin occupied by English anarchists and arrested several people. MK had a newspaper cutting in a frame on his boat which showed line of masked up people at Dublin Mayday 2004 and he was one of them. He also had this up on the wall in his house for many years.
2004 Ireland, Dromoland Castle Anti-George Bush protest Participant WSM http://www.indymedia.ie/article/97967 anon
Ireland 2004-2006 Trainer for anarchist groups MK made at least two other visits to Ireland over the next two years. These included acting as a trainer on a programme for anarchist activists later in 2004 on civil disobedience.


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