Freetown [CHRISTIANIA, COPENHAGEN]

Just a brief history and my interpretations on a small but impacting social anomaly...

Christiania is a small section of Copenhagen, Denmark, once occupied by the Danish military. When the military was relocated in 1967, the area of land was abandoned. Slowly but surely more and more homeless squatters moved into the vacant spaces and gutted buildings. By the year 1971 there were about 800 inhabitants in Christiania and enough of a push for a social and cultural change that the area became a self-proclaimed autonomous neighborhood or a comune of sorts. Officially speaking, Christiania or Freetown as many inhabitants call it, is a large social commune with in the capital of Denmark, that is governed by its own special Christiania law of 1989 and merely supervised by the Copenhagen Municipality. To enter Freetown you pass through a set of make shift gates, which read 'You are now entering the EU' [European Union] as you exit them back into the streets of Copenhagen. There are no pictures allowed to be taken with in the commune and this is mostly due to the Cannabis trafficking, which was considered legal in Christiania up until 2004, when the conservative party was elected into office in Copenhagen and a push or the regulation and conformation of the whole of Copenhagen.

Although there are still ongoing negations on its 're-legalization', marijuana is still very much for sale in the streets of Freetown. The unfortunate thing is, what the inhabitants of Christiania consider, the 'invasion' of the Copenhagen Police has caused the trafficking of pot to leave the safe and ordered confines of the commune and into the streets and hands of illegal immigrants and criminals. Which, as the natural progression of these sort of things go, has caused an increase in violent and gang related crimes in Copenhagen.

With out getting too liberal or hippy-dippy [commonly used phrase or just a Heidi Staib phrase??], its interesting to look at Christiania and the social impacts it implies. For instance, how allowing a legitimate family business of cannabis sales inside a safe and self governed commune can prevent crime and violence elsewhere. Just some food for thought....