The anti-racist collective Brussels Panthers hijacked advertising billboards on Sunday night to protest against police violence.
Brussels Panthers pasted posters over advertising billboards on Sunday night, naming individuals "killed following police intervention" since 1983. They used slogans such as 'La police tue' ('The police kill') and 'Justice pour toustes' ('Justice for all').
Most posters were put up at public transport stops in several different neighbourhoods. Brussels Panthers denounced numerous past incidents where people were "killed by police gunfire" or "died during arrests or interventions."
The collective also reminded newly-elected mayors of "their responsibility towards their police forces and their actions" in a statement.
Fighting Black Friday
The campaign on Sunday was part of a broader mobilisation called 'Anti-Ad Zone Games' which is taking place from 18 to 29 November in several European cities.
"It is completely absurd to see capitalist and consumerist messages being displayed so prominently when everyone knows that we are in the process of exhausting the planet's resources," noted the organising collective Ad-Free Brussels. They say advertising harms the environment through material waste and light pollution and causes health issues such as anxiety and anorexia.
Black Friday – an annual event where there are sales and promotions to encourage consumer spending – falls on 29 November this year. In this context, Brussels Panthers and Ad-Free Brussels oppose mass consumerism and the environmental crisis it provokes.
