SchNEWS newsletter

SchNEWS emerged out of "Justice?", Brighton's campaign against the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act.

One of the focal points of this campaign was the squatting of an old courthouse in central Brighton in September 1994, from which began live "newsreading performances", amongst other demonstrations, direct action protests, events, talks, parties. After the eviction of the courthouse, one of the newsreaders and another activist involved began a newsletter, initially meant to act as a collective memory for the groups formed under the Justice? banner.

The original working name was The SchNEWSPAPER which was the form of the dummy-run version that featured the first headline "Man sits down in park". The first version of SchNEWS was a pilot issue created by David M. Berry and Gibby Zobel in Luther Street, Brighton, was published on 16 November 1994, being one side of A4.

SchNEWS quickly built up a national readership, gaining popularity for presenting its news in a concise, witty and jargon-free language. While its initial focus was resistance to the Criminal Justice Bill (CJB), it quickly moved onto other relevant social and environmental struggles in the UK and abroad, outlasting the anti-CJB cause and Justice? itself.

It went on to cover the protests against the building of the M11 motorway link road in London, the anti-Newbury bypass protests in Berkshire and the actions of Reclaim the Streets. It also reported on labour issues such as the Liverpool Dockers' Strike of 1995–97, fights against the privatisation of public services, racism, climate change and genetic engineering.

SchNEWS maintains an archive website at https://schnews.org/