Institutional bickering

By John Pegram, case worker, public speaker, founder

When it comes to communities and the police of late, it has most certainly been eventful. We’ve headed from cultures of denial and deflection to clearly bitter acceptance by the police that something is most definitely wrong within their ranks and try as they might there’s no escaping the fact that institutional racism, misogyny, homophobia, and general bigotry are a deeply rooted problem within not just the Met but locally here in Avon and Somerset too.

In fact, we noted much to our surprise that Chief Constable Sarah Crew has seemingly embraced the organisational problem that has blighted the police not just for the past few years but for decade after decade. If you don’t believe me, just check history as well as statistics and facts the chairman of the Police Federation Mark Loker seems reluctant to admit exists.

In fact, Loker claims taking a degree of ownership and accountability of the much loathed term is quite simply “virtue signaling.” despite acknowledgement of major issues in particular with the policing of black communities and rapidly eroding trust Loker seems determined to deflect and deny what so many of us have known exists for years.

“Avon & Somerset Police must have difficult conversations about the issue of racism, but the force is not institutionally racist, and making declarations that it is does nothing to drive change or amend culture.

However when a Chief Constable makes statements like this

“Not being racist is no longer good enough, not for me and not for any of us. It is no longer okay to be a bystander and do nothing, to be part of a system that disadvantages one group of people over another.”

It catches the attention of not just the general public and the communities who have been on the brunt of institutionally racist policing for decades but of course independent police monitoring groups such as ourselves.

It may be a long time coming but for many anti-racist campaigners seeing a Chief Constable show accountability and ownership for such a deeply rooted problem within her police force was almost like a breath of fresh air.

I say almost like a breath of fresh air because right now it’s very difficult to forget that Avon and Somerset Police and Bristol Council were found to be institutionally racist in 2017 following the brutal and racist murder of Iranian refugee Bijan Ebrahimi in 2013 It’s fair to say that since the findings of the IPCC Avon and Somerset Police have learned nothing.

In fact, living on the edge of the community where the murder took place I can say from my own experience and my work as a volunteer caseworker the notoriously racist Broadbury Road police are still the same notoriously racist Broadbury Road police of old. As Desmond Brown has quite rightly pointed out

“Rhetoric isn’t enough until communities can see that their streets are being policed in a fair way, it doesn’t matter what she says.”

it’s very common to hear seemingly benevolent senior police officers make assurances and promises to the general public and in particular to communities that are over-policed and subjected to discriminatory and often corrupt practices that things will change for the better.

If Chief Constable Sarah Crew really wants to demonstrate “common sense” policing she should probably distance herself from far-right tropes such as the fear of “political correctness ” and “wokeism” She should apply common sense and start to deal with the issues of racist policing starting at street level where it impacts us the most, in fact watching what can be best described as institutional bickering between the Police Federation and herself speaks volumes about the police’s complete failure to engage with communities and form those lasting bonds where trust lives.

She should address the mounting issues with stop and search and rethink the police’s current operational strategy of armed police patrols and risk scoring “offender management” apps free of public scrutiny. You see, we are not statistics. We are not numbers you can crunch and debate and assess. We are humans. The second-class citizens. The wretched of the earth. Our trauma is real and how we are policed is so very wrong.

This time around we want to see change, not just acknowledgment, and we want to see positive results that truly honours the memory of Bijan Ebrahimi, of James Herbert, of anyone and everyone who has experienced state racism and discrimination, police violence, and the deeply ingrained institutional racism of Avon and Somerset Police.

It’s good to see the PCC Mark Shelford and Mayor Marvin Rees support the Chief Constable but it would be better to see an open community forum free of police oversight that allows us to voice our concerns and where promises of change are not just made but actioned where it counts the most and in the end “not one rogue cop” isn’t just a hashtag or banner but our truth.

They don’t keep us safe

Bristol Copwatch statement on the armed police and home raid

On the evening of the 2nd of May in St Pauls armed police descended on the home of one of our new core team members following a bogus phone call they received around 8 pm the police told press contacts was from a man in his twenties that a woman fitting her description had been seen on Argyle road hitting a car with a traffic cone and had then threatened to shoot someone.

She apparently had been holding what looked like a gun and had blonde hair, a black beanie hat on, and a black rucksack. The bogus caller claimed the gun was put into the rucksack.

What’s interesting to note at this point is that our team member and friend to all of us is older than the alleged suspect it seems never existed and the only matching description was of blonde hair. She also doesn’t own a beanie hat.

We also note with interest the media silence from Avon and Somerset Police on the raid and can only assume that’s because not only the report they received was bogus and solely malicious but that the firearms team that responded appeared to have been directed around the house and were even given a key to the back gate.

What’s also interesting to note at this point is that none of the residents of Argyle Road or in St Pauls knew of the incident that was reported to the police that triggered the armed response. What we have heard however, is that the community was more than aware of the police converging on an innocent woman’s home, in fact, the car park on her street (Argyle Road is a few roads away from where she lives )was apparently full of their vehicles.

Around thirteen armed police officers raided our team member’s home in a botched response that left her angry and traumatised. “In comparison to previous encounters” we have been told the commander of the so-called police operation was “actually ok”. Bristol Copwatch has also been told that police made assurances of not making an arrest and then did, followed by a subsequent de-arrest when to no surprise to any of us no gun was found.

It’s important at this stage to note that the police took a black hat from the address that in no way at all resembled a beanie and the description that fitted was changed when officers found two dresses that had not been worn for years.

“They took two dresses, a hat, and a sling bag.”

We are interested to understand where exactly the intelligence that prompted the armed response came from. Speaking broadly specialist armed police units are police who have historically gotten away with murder unchallenged. We cannot imagine anything more terrifying than armed police raiding a home acting on false and misleading information.

“They said I mustn’t make sudden movements after they were in the flat. They threatened to take the door off. I don’t know how many there were as some were outside the back door.”

A young and insecure cop succeeded to frighten our friend and team member and we note with concern that the police after no weapon was found and a de-arrest was made refused to give names, ranks, and badge numbers.

We’ve also noted with interest that the reference number provided was only four digits long and that the police have already changed the gender of the imaginary victim in the incident that never happened on Argyle Road on the 2nd of May.

Despite telling the press the victim was a man in his twenties, our friend was told by the police the victim was a woman. It’s not the first time we’ve known the police to change their story.

So you may be wondering what Avon and Somerset Police think they are doing. They have chosen to target and put pressure on a vulnerable woman who came to Bristol fleeing domestic abuse in London and who is now a resident of St Pauls who is friends with many people in the black community and this from our point of view, is what the police’s problem is.

I came to Bristol fleeing domestic abuse in London then being targeted by Avon and Somerset police instead of being treated like the victim I was in reality. I’ve so far been arrested 7 times and taken to the police station without any evidence.

Avon and Somerset Police are well known for their revenge policing and vendettas that can sometimes span months and even years. The police would like you to think they serve, protect and respect the general public when we know they serve, protect and respect themselves alone.

It’s time we started to take a stand as a community against increased levels of police misconduct in Bristol and Avon and Somerset. The armed police seem to be better at getting it wrong then getting it right.

Armed response in St Anne’s in Bristol has been equally problematic with no real explanation for the use of Armed Response Vehicle patrols given. These are cops that kill. Maybe that’s why they wouldn’t give their badge numbers or names.

Thankfully five badge numbers were recorded despite our friend not being allowed to film in her own home. We’re working in our role as caseworkers and advocates to assist in the pursuit of not just justice but the truth.

If Chief Constable Sarah Crew insists on letting an increasingly out-of-control force exercise extra-judicial punishment tactics on vulnerable women then it speaks volumes about the state of policing today.

We would like to reiterate no gun was found and no arrest was made. Our friend and team member was frightened and was thankfully on the phone with a friend she believes if this had not been the case

“They would have taken me away”

She has said thanks to all of us at Bristol Copwatch for the support she has received. We will always fight the corner of anyone who is put through so much because #WeCopWatch.

When it comes to the police, the divide gets wider and the trust erodes. We feel a public apology should be issued by the Chief Constable’s office for what could have been a fatal error of judgment. It’s clearer than ever that in 2023 they don’t protect us. We don’t think they ever will.

Show them what time it is.

by Bristol Copwatch

Hi! it’s good to catch up once again! We’ve been quiet on this blog for a good few months and hope to keep it updated a lot more regularly. It’s fair to say the past 6 months or so has been exceptionally busy for us and as a grassroots police monitoring group it’s really important to manage our capacity and develop what we do.

In the past 3 years of our existence we’ve achieved a lot and helped people in Bristol and across the county get things put right when it comes to issues with the police. A lot of our work in this area is ongoing. We’ve monitored the police ( although a little reactively )on the street and since 2021 have spent time working on developing relationships with other monitoring groups, organisations and of course with communities we support.

If 2022 was anything it was overall a very strong year for us when it came to workshops and events around the UK and of course in Bristol, focusing on stop and search know your rights and bystander intervention We loved paying Oxford a visit twice last year for community and student events and of course Bristol Transformed in the summer allowed us to help build community resilience and share knowledge and educate others on their rights in the face of police contact.

2022 concluded with 2 workshops in Vauxhall for our friends at StopWatch and the awesome RAW Festival on technology and the law and bystander intervention and it was fantastic to make new friends and allies at Black Creatives and speak at the excellent Children of Tomorrow fundraiser for the family of Chris Kaba at Trinity in December last year. As with everything we do it’s all about community DIY. Collectively we have a lot of power.

Art on display at Children of Tomorrow on the 16/12/22. The artist is Oshii. The pieces were auctioned off and profits were donated to the family of Chris Kaba. Always remember that communities fighting back against police brutality and for accountability hit harder than Tyson.

After the sudden and tragic passing of one of our core organising team Ahmed Fofanah last August we fund raised close to 6k for his family and will never be silent about the brutality, racism, harassment and injustice he faced at the hands of Avon and Somerset Police. As Ahmed himself would say we have to fight because if we don’t the police will continue to abuse their power and brutalise our communities.

Ahmed was our representative on the community engagement panel for the Co-POWeR project who we worked with since 2021 as part of work package 1 and a community engagement partner. You can find out more about Co-POWeR vital research here into the impact COVID-19 and emergency powers had on BAMEFC across the UK during the pandemic. Our founding member John Pegram in his own words stepped into shoes he could never fill and attended the Co-POWeR final conference in January 2023 in Leeds.

The findings of the project and in particular recommendations on the role of the police during a public health crisis can be found here. Although the project has since concluded we believe that the findings and research will provide a strong foundation and guidance for community resilience in the event another pandemic occurs. COVID-19 is not over and it is clear that racism was also the virus.

Which brings up to recent issues with the police. There is a distinct lack of ownership and accountability when it comes to institutional racism and other failings that are clearer than ever since the revelations of this month’s Casey report, but let’s be honest here. It’s something we’ve all known is a truth for decades. Chief Constable Sarah Crew in a disturbingly similar vein to Sir Mark Rowley refused to admit Avon and Somerset Police is institutionally racist in 2022 whilst in the same breath “committing” to anti racism work.

We at Bristol Copwatch believe “benevolent” Chief Constables and Commissioners set a dangerous precedent by refusing to take ownership of the harsh truth that is institutional racism and discrimination in the police. Being frank. there should be a thin blue line drawn in the sand when it comes to where exactly protecting an organisation begins and ends.

Locally we see a rapidly developing erosion of trust between the general pubic and the police and we are deeply concerned about the increased militarisation of the police with ARV patrols, increased compensation pay outs for serious misconduct and as always a clear eagerness to retain staff that should have never been placed into a position of power. Yesterday evening we attended the peaceful Kill The Bill 2 demonstration and march in Bristol and as John said in his speech outside Bridewell Police station

“over the past few years of our existence we have seen numerous abuses of power. We have witnessed the machinery of the state in action! We understand the damage the criminal justice system and the police can do to people’s lives.”

Which is why in 2023 we are very keen to develop more of a street presence and routinely monitor the police in our communities where we know stop and search is bad, where police harassment and targeting is commonplace and where some of the most vulnerable in our community can feel alone. We want you to know that you are never alone and that as always we see you because #WeCopWatch.

This Friday we’re discussing predictive policing in Avon and Somerset with the awesome Liberty and other civil society groups and community activists. All we know so far is that the police have risk scored 250,000 of us in this county and the IBM Offender Management predictive policing technology they use has no safe guarding to prevent profiling and discrimination, not only that but officers receive no training. What does police intervention for offenders on their localised gang matrix look like? We don’t know because Avon and Somerset Police won’t say. This is not how you build trust and heal divides.

Art by Ahmet Ogut

But being honest, we expect nothing less from Avon and Somerset Police. Our casework team has developed working relationships with the IOPC and organisations such as SARI to help support our community yet we remain fearless independent of police oversight as we will not erode trust in the communities we have supported since 2020. In 2023 we would like to see the police take ownership and acknowledge the damage and trauma they can create in people’s lives.

We would like policing which is clearly beyond reform to be reimagined for the better the role of the police to be assessed and for communities to work together to solve problems that currently rely on police intervention. These are goals we have that see beyond the current systems and structures but we work in the here and now. This year, let’s not leave anyone behind. Let’s fight for police accountability and for our rights and justice. Let’s show them what time it is.

Still a bloody criminal

By volunteer caseworker and Bristol Copwatch founder John Pegram

Here we are again, the police and me. If you have been following my fight for justice since around February this year you will know I´m on a long road. It´s actually close to 5 years in duration so far and I have a feeling I´m looking at a good year or so of legal battling before I finally hold not 1 but 3 police forces to account.

The missing piece to the data protection breach jig saw if you will currently appears to be West Yorkshire Police who targeted me in a public order operation in November 2019. In fact, they made their interest in me as an anti-racist activist that clear the intelligence team addressed me by my first name as they put me and friends in the bully van for daring to stand on the wrong bit of counter protest pavement.

Of course like before in September of that year with the British Transport Police the case was thrown out of court with no evidence. It was clear then as it is at the time of writing that the police don´t like us mixed black boys getting in the way of their Nazi friends marching.

You see, demonstrations aside the police and me have never got on. I used to have a drug problem. It got me in that much trouble I got sent to prison but even before I went through a cycle I was being racially profiled and stopped and searched by Hampshire Police.

Understanding the damage the criminal justice system does to lives as well as I do, I understand that in the eyes of the police I will always be a bloody criminal. I have seen it in the faces of cops I have helped the community navigate over the past couple of years of volunteering just like I have seen it in the eyes of broadbury road police officers when they threatened to search me for drugs and weapons in 2021 for not giving them my name and address when accused of stealing a motor bike.

Falling off my mountain bike drunk on a quiet road triggered the two ready for it cops (they had no interest in my well being ) but the complaint report read that I “fitted a description” which instigated their coordinated rush. Thankfully, I walked my bike home arrest free. That weekend I suffered a mental health breakdown due to police harassment and surveillance.

By Precious Adesina 31st January 2022

Having spoken to solicitors about the police´s interest in me the unofficial consensus seems to be that despite what I´m told I´m absolutely a person of interest due to previous political activism and my work as a community activist. This was validated recently when I received my SAR (subject access request) from BTP and West Yorkshire Police.

Seeing yourself on an intelligence team spreadsheet is pretty distressing but then again so are race card comments and CSI flags. So are data protection exemptions. At points my younger John has put his hand on my shoulder and we have sat together and talked and cried. They used to stop and search me for riding on the pavement.

These days the area cars don´t turn around flash their lights and stop when they see me. I feel free. Last year I began therapy due to the trauma created from my past and of course from police contact. You see, I spent years navigating a journey I never wanted to make. It´s broken me down and torn me to shreds but as always I get back up and just keep fighting. Resilience is something you learn to build in the face of police contact and harassment especially when you know the cops responsible are racists.

Earlier this month I attended a community meeting on ARV patrols in St Anne´s Bristol with the PCC and neighbourhood police present. The armed police are responding to incidents when there is no need for armed police.

This creates an increased level of mistrust in so called community policing in fact there is a clear failure by the police to bridge an increasingly wide divide between themselves and the community, although on the 18th at the very least they listened to our concerns.

When it comes to my own experiences with the police and my work in the community I do my best to put others before myself. Bristol Copwatch has never been a political stance or statement but rather an organisation that exists to monitor and challenge police misconduct.

Our overarching mission is to think beyond solutions that result in often disproportionate, violent and sometimes fatal police responses but we work in the here and now. We stand for and believe in community safety. We are still building ground up but for me it´s a labour of love. If you win then I do. That´s the triple truth b.

The next few months is a busy one for us event and workshop wise but we´re still keen on building that ground swell to get out there and monitor the cops where they´re hot and where they´re not. If you would like to get involved in that side of our work just email bristolcopwatch@riseup.net.

When it comes to myself and the fight for my rights I have no intention of backing down. You see I never thought that anyone would see me let alone care. But it turns out you did and that angry mixed race black boy sure knows how to fight Here´s to justice whenever it may come. Here we are again you and me. Let´s cop watch.

Support The Fofanah Family

By Bristol Copwatch

We are absolutely stoked to see our fund raiser Support The Fofanah Family for Martina and family has so far raised over £3,000! we’d just like to say thanks to everyone who has donated so far and we have now raised our goal to a stretch target of £7,000 we’re confident with the community behind us as always we can do this!

Ahmed’s contribution to our work and his friendship meant a lot to all of us in the Bristol Copwatch team. His resilience and determination should be an inspiration to anyone who fights for their rights. We see you. #WeCopWatch.

Our aims and objectives 2022 update

Here’s another look at our aims and objectives and most importantly our new posters and fliers designed by the awesome Fan The Flames Marketing and Design! Look out for them round your ends soon! As always #WeCopwatch

Our dear friend Ahmed

By all of us at Bristol Copwatch

On the 4th of August 2022, our dear friend and fellow cop watcher Ahmed Fofanah tragically and suddenly left us. All of us within the Bristol Copwatch core organising team are devastated by his death and will never forget his importance as someone we supported during his fight for justice and as a strong black man and loving father and husband.

We were deeply saddened to learn of his passing as he meant so much to all of us. His resilience and sheer bravery and determination in the face of adversity were truly beautiful things and seeing him rise time and again was an inspiration to us all.

His kindness and depth as a human struck a chord with all of us and his presence and strong voice lit up a room when he told the story of his journey. It was and still is an honour to have supported Ahmed and his family and just like before we are here when they need us the most.

We will never forget the gentle giant that graced us with his presence for over a year of his life and everything we do as a monitoring group will honour his memory. Our thoughts are with the family during this difficult time. Below are some words from Ken Hinds, The Man In Me and Parents Together platforms.

“We at “The Man In Me and Parents Together” platforms are sadden and devastated at the sudden loss of our beloved brother Ahmed.

He has been and continues to be an inspiration to us all. We were privileged to listen to his life’s challenging journey. Which he shared with us openly, with integrity and courage. We shared some highs and lows it was deeply emotional and real.

Our deepest and sincere condolences goes out to his wife Martina, his children, grandchildren family and friends all over the world.

Travel well Afrikan Warrior and Brother King as you transcend to be with the ancestors.
Ase Ase Ase”

To our dear friend Ahmed, rest in power. From all of us.

They don’t protect us

By John Pegram, Bristol Copwatch founder, and caseworker

We’ve been fairly quiet over the past few months with this blog and I think it’s fair to say we’ve been very busy so apologies for the radio silence. If you follow us on Twitter or any of our other social channels you should be able to keep track of what’s grinding our gears when it comes to local and national policing on a daily basis and if you frequent our site I hope you like the new Bristol Copwatch Allies and Community support pages!

Since April we’ve seen a significant surge in the number of people in the community who need our support and at points, it can feel like we’re fire fighting so we’ve begun some internal discussions on how we can tackle the issues we’re seeing on a daily and weekly basis more effectively. We’ve developed our understanding of Avon and Somerset Police and suspect the vindictive nature we’ve encountered on several occasions now is a deeply rooted institutional problem.

It goes way beyond misconduct and falls more in line with historic accounts of policing vendettas that came to light once again in February of this year. Despite the condemnations of the police with the clearly prepared “We’re not like that anymore!” response we know this is a falsehood, but what’s most concerning is, is that such incidents are turned a blind eye to.

The same rule of thumb it seems applies to neighbourhood harassment and victimisation of anyone who is a person of colour or is seen to be “different” from the harassers and therefore a viable target. The police either outright ignore any reports they receive or side with the abusers. Making a complaint about misconduct can result in targeting by the police and very rarely are complaints ever upheld.

In this county and we know from our national monitoring work it’s the same wherever you go if you take action against the police you can risk becoming a target for them, however, it is absolutely essential that we do not let police harassment and intimidation tactics scare us away from our fights for justice.

As the government unleashes yet more draconian and autocratic laws and legislation that provide the police with even less accountability and even more power fighting for your rights should become second nature to all of us. The recent article in the Bristol Cable about an autistic woman who has successfully sued the police caught my attention this week.

It caught my attention because her story is so very similar to my own current fight for justice and it reminded me that what has happened to both of us are not cases that exist in isolation. Avon and Somerset Police’s data protection practices are quite frankly scandalous and the staff that action malicious, inaccurate, unfair, and unlawful entries are behaving quite ironically like criminals.

If Chief Constable Sarah Crew wants to build a new community-focused, anti-racist holistic police force then she must and without delay put her house in order and take a harder stance on police misconduct. Former Chief Constable Andy Marsh claimed that “rogue” police are “hard to force out” I personally think it must be a challenging job when you’re down the pub with them every other week but let’s be honest here, it speaks volumes about the culture of silence and complete lack of accountability that is so prevalent in policing.

So how can we fight for change and is it even worth holding the police to account? you may wonder. As I said earlier it is absolutely essential we fight for our rights at present. The levels of misconduct we have witnessed over the past few months as bystanders on the street and as volunteer caseworkers should never be unchallenged.

It has been particularly hard for me at points due to my own journey through the criminal justice system and stop and search to put my personal views on policing to one side when supporting others but I’m stronger every day I help someone take action. Some would say I’m very much an “us and them” kind of guy, but some would say that there is a lot of good the police do just like some feel stop and search is necessary and vital police power.

I respect those views just as I stand in solidarity with any family who has ever lost a loved one to serious violence. The fundamental issue with policing from my point of view alone is that until strategy changes at the very top as to the way we are policed then nothing will change. Until deeply rooted institutional racism and prejudice change then nothing will change and from where I’m standing right now the future looks depressingly bleak. As sociologist Alex Vitale would say the problem is policing itself.

As a community-focused and fiercely independent police monitoring organisation we make a point of engaging at the street level with local communities to understand the issues they are facing. The media-friendly Avon and Somerset Police are adept at ignoring the issues we try to help fix on a regular basis. Only by ownership and accountability will Chief Constable Sarah Crew and Avon and Somerset Police begin to heal divides that it alone has created. The police have never protected me and in July of 2022, it’s safe to say they don’t protect us.

Oxford Workshop 09/04/22- Stop and search, bystander intervention and how to Copwatch

 
We’ve got a workshop coming up in Oxford on 09/04/22 at Blackbird Leys Community Centre with Oxford Copwatch, other groups, and community members who want to monitor the police in their county. The event will be starting from 2pm and our founding member John and fellow cop watcher Ahmed from our core team are heading to Oxford to deliver a workshop on Stop and Search, subject access requests, bystander intervention and how to Copwatch. 

Both speakers have lived experiences of police harassment and trauma from police contact and stop and search. They will also be discussing the national phenomenon of Copwatch groups emerging across the UK and how we can work together to hold the police to account!

Here is an interview with Ahmed from 2020 with Weston Supermare Black Lives Matter to give you an understanding of his disgusting treatment by Avon and Somerset Police. We’re very pleased to say things have begun to improve for him since then and with a data protection breach claim against Avon and Somerset Police it looks like things are heading the same way for John.

It’s been eye opening and rewarding supporting both of them and we are still actively supporting others in the community who are on the sharp end of police harassment and abuse of power. In the meantime, we’re looking forward to connecting with other cop watchers on the 9th of April! This year let’s show the police what time it is.

23/04/22 Community testimony day -The Impact Of Policing During COVID 19 

On the 23rd of April we’ve got a community testimony day coming up with Co-POWeR at the Malcolm X community centre St Paul’s Bristol from 13.00 to 15.00. We’re also hosting a stop and search workshop with an introduction to Bristol Copwatch and the work we do in the community hosted by our founding member John, who has lived experience of stop and search and police harassment. Most importantly  It’s your chance to share your views on policing during lockdown and to “help create a permanent record for future generations.”

Co-POWeR will present their findings to parliament later this year with a view of making recommendations that instigate change in how black and brown communities are policed and how we can be supported to build resilience following the pandemic.

This Community Testimony Day will be collecting testimonies and views of BAME families and communities on the policing of emergency powers (e.g., mandatory face masks, restrictions for outdoor gatherings, etc) and how it has given rise to the over-policing of racially minoritised groups in the UK.

The event is open to all members of the community and food & drink will be provided. All testimonies will be kept completely anonymous. You can find out more about Co-POWeR in the link here. Tickets are free and available via our events section and can also be ordered directly via Eventbrite. We look forward to seeing you on the 23rd!