Anti-police posters return to London bus stops

Anonymous members of the Special Patrol Group (SPG) have struck again on London’s bus stops. The activist group made headlines last year with their posters accusing the the Met Police of racism and incompetence. The artwork, designed to look like Metropolitan Police information posters, was all taken down last year, but now new work has now emerged that takes the police force to task once again and lays bare the SPG’s issues with London’s police force.

The SPG is unhappy that the Met made its own propaganda posters this year, spending nearly a million pounds of taxpayer’s money on a positive messaging campaign. The SPG said in a statement: “In total the campaigns cost £989,275, including media and production costs, direct mail and social media, and independent evaluation. 240 different messages were created.”

In retaliation, the activist group made some of its own posters, highlighting its issues with the police and using the hashtag #ACAB, which stands for All Cops Are Bastards. The posters display different messages, with one in Victoria reading: “Operation Tiberius uncovered 42 of our senior officers letting criminals get away with murder. For the right price.” The poster also brands the force “totally corrupt”.

Another says: “In 2013 we spent £9.6m telling you we’re not violent, racist and corrupt. It’s propaganda pure and simple.” Other posters talk about the pointless targeting of cannabis users and another questions the number of people who died in police custody. Check them all out in the gallery and keep your eyes out around London.