The hologram protest

In Spain, groups rallying against the “Ley Mordaza” (the so-called Gag Law) have created a new way of protesting — holograms. They held their first hologram protest on Friday, April 10. Not only a way for people to show up together without getting hurt, holograms represent what could easily become the disappearance of protesting itself when the law goes into effect July 1.

With the hashtag #10Ahologramaslibres, 18,000 people protested against the new Spanish “citizen security law” — the result of a mix of new guidelines for the National Security Act, amendments to the Spanish penal code and the implications of the anti-terror law. Protesters nicknamed the law “Leyes Mordaza” (Gag Law), because it drastically restricts rallying in public places and freedom of expression.

TT: “We stand to express the people’s rejection of the #LeyesMordaza”

According to national polls, a vast majority of Spanish citizens are opposing the new law. They have been protesting since last December, soon after the Spanish house of representatives took the first step toward passing the law.

The videos

The quirky demonstration was coordinated by Hologramas por la Libertad (Holograms for Freedom).

Hologramas por la libertad.

Here is the introductory video of Hologramas por la Libertad — “With the new law, it will be impossible to protest in front of Parliament, impossible to hold a public gathering in the streets without incurring in a fine, impossible to rally without previous permission — impossible, that is, unless you become a hologram.”

Here is a short video of the protest as the holograms march by and disappear by the side of the screen, a strange apparition of ghosts with banners and chants.

In the link below you can watch a longer video.

First Hologram Protest in History Held Against Spain's Gag Law

How it was organised

Hologramas por la Libertad and No Somos Delito called citizens to participate by way of posting a written or recorded voice message, or by recording a video via webcam. The end product was assembled with projections of those real people who sent images and their sounds, a real night backdrop of the Spanish Congress building using the translucent image typical of holograms . There’s not yet a full hologram taking shape in the streets, but more like a film.

Ideas and materials for the holograms and the campaign were distributed in a “diffusion kit”.

What will happen under the Leyes Mortaza

Here you can find an itemized list of what the new law implies (via revolution_news.com).

• Photographing or recording police — 600 to 30.000€ fine.
• Peaceful disobedience to authority — 600 to 30.000€ fine.
• Occupying banks as means of protest — 600 to 30.000€ fine.
• Not formalizing a protest — 600 to 30.000€ fine.
• Carrying out assemblies or meetings in public spaces — 100 to 600€ fine.
• Impeding or stopping an eviction — 600 to 30.000€ fine.
• Presence at an occupied space (not only social centers but also houses occupied by evicted families) — 100 to 600€ fine.
• Police black lists for protesters, activists and alternative press have been legalized.
• Meeting or gathering in front of Congress — 600 to 30.000€ fine.
• Appealing the fines in court requires the payment of judicial costs, whose amount depends on the fine.
• It allows random identity checks, allowing for racial profiling of immigrants and minorities.
• Police can now carry out raids at their discretion, without the need for “order” to have been disrupted.
• External bodily searches are also now allowed at police discretion.
• The government can prohibit any protest at will, if it feels “order” will be disrupted.
• Any ill-defined “critical infrastructure” is now considered a forbidden zone for public gatherings if it might affect their functioning.
• There are also fines for people who climb buildings and monuments without permission. (This has been a common method of protest from organizations like Greenpeace.)