Freetown Christiania: Denmark’s Controversial Commune

The Christiania area within Denmark’s capital is a place both reviled and celebrated. It is a controversial community considered a successful social experiment by some, a lawless drug den by others. Christiania’s shift from military base to hedonistic commune can be seen as the ultimate flower power siege, but four decades on it’s certainly not all peace, and its future hangs in the balance.

Fashioned from city ramparts built by King Christian IV in 1617, and the military barracks of Bådsmandsstræde, Christiania (also called Freetown Christiania) is an autonomous 850-strong community. It began after the barracks were abandoned in 1971 and local residents broke-in to use the base as a playground for their children, complaining about the lack of affordable housing in Copenhagen. (The shed above was used for executions, with 46 civilians sentenced to death for crimes committed in Denmark during World War Two.)

On 26 September 1971, journalist Jacob Ludvigsen proclaimed Christiania “the land of the settlers”, adding: “The objective of Christiania is to create a self-governing society whereby each and every individual holds themselves responsible over the wellbeing of the entire community. Our society is to be economically self-sustaining and, as such, our aspiration is to be steadfast in our conviction that psychological and physical destitution can be averted.”

And thus a community was born, the spirit of which has become synonymous with the hippie movement, collectivism and anarchy – in contrast to its disciplined military past. The neighbourhood is governed by the Christiania Law of 1989, which transfers parts of its supervision from the municipality of Copenhagen to the state, which owns the former base.

Christiania’s relationship with the authorities is complicated and controversial. Residents govern themselves by concensus, but pay taxes for water, electricity and waste disposal. Acceptance of drug addicts and other social misfits has helped build Christiania’s identity, to the point where they are considered as important to the community as the “entrepreneurs” who run it.

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