After an absence of two years, our free city festival is back.. and how! This year we are gathering at a new location in the center of Brussels. The Varkensmarkt at the Bronks theater will be transformed into a real festival site for one day. A great line-up of Brussels bands sets the tone for what will be a great reunion. Are you coming as well? To celebrate Labour Day; to celebrate our beautiful city of Brussels!
• LINE UP •
13.30 – 14.15: Bakanai
14.30 – 15.30: KiffHush
16.00 – 17.00: Ana Diaz
17.30 – 18.30: Leblanc invites
18.45 – 19.45: Bandler Ching
📍 Place du marché aux cochons, 1000 Bruxelles
• MORNING PROGRAMME •
The day kicks off at 11.00 with a very interesting debate about ‘the place of undocumented workers in Brussels’. Afterwards you can enjoy a lunch, organised by Vooruit Molenbeek.
At 12.45, a march departs from LCD Randstad to the Varkensmarkt under the musical guidance of BRUiTAL.
📍 LDC Randstad, Hovenierstraat 45, 1080 Molenbeek
From a city for cars to a city for people
In recent years we have managed to enforce a major shift. Brussels has evolved from a city for cars to a city with pedestrian areas and cycle paths. Boulevard Anspach for example is no longer one of Brussels’ busiest traffic arteries. It now is a welcoming pedestrian area. Another example is Place Fernand Cocq, where cars have been banned from the streetscape. Even on the small ring, cyclists finally have the space they deserve.
It has not been easy to achieve this big change, but thanks to the perseverance of Pascal Smet, the battle for the street gained momentum. There is still a long way to go, but the turnaround has begun and cannot be reversed. C’est parti!
A city of and for the Brusselers
Fewer cars means more space for terraces, for play areas and for trees. In short, a Brussels for the Brusselers. By making the best possible use of all this space, we made room for art, culture and leisure. Essential for a vibrant city as Brussels.
For example, the slopes to Palais de Justice no longer serve as car parks. We now use it to host several Brussels projects. Although the corona crisis has put the artistic sector on hold, luckily not much of that remains today. In Brussels, different cultures and people come together.
Brussels’ potential is amazing and its youngest citizens should be able to benefit from it. Many young Brusselers are now finding their way to Dutch-language education. Thanks to our aldermen in the various municipalities, many new school locations have been added.
Everyone has a right to the city
A Brussels that moves forward for everyone. That is our priority. Away with the car dominance. Let us welcome a city of and for the Brusselers A city where parks and greenery reign and that invites to ride your bike or to walk around. An attractive city to live in and not just to commute to.
However, the fact that apartment and house prices have skyrocketed makes living in the city unaffordable for an increasing group of people. This housing crisis is not new, but the group of people for whom living (and certainly buying) in Brussels is too expensive is steadily growing.
We must do everything to avoid becoming yet another popular but unaffordable European capital. The combination of rising energy prices and poorly insulated houses makes this fight even more urgent.
After the big shift in public space, it is now time for a similar housing (r)evolution. Because everyone has a right to the city. Houses for people, not for profit. After the “battle for the street”, the “right to the city” is the crucial turnaround that we want to initiate.