THE WACO RE-ENACTMENT

international | arts and media | other press Wednesday September 08, 2004 16:52 by pat c

THE WACO RE-ENACTMENT

The ICA Thurs 16 September, Meet in Foyer at 7pm for Coaches
**Please** book in advance!

Artist Rod Dickinson will reconstruct the FBI's covert psychological warfare assault on the infamous Branch Davidian religious community in Waco, Texas, at a secret, remote location close to London, on Thursday 16 September.

In 1993, the FBI laid siege to the religious community led by David Koresh for 51 days, intimidating them with a continuous barrage of white noise, rock music and an array of repetitive sounds played at 110 decibels.

Using first-hand testimonies from interviews with survivors and academic researchers, Dickinson will recreate some of these original sounds, which included babies crying, circling helicopters, high pitched rabbit screams and dentist drills. The reconstructed audio will be broadcast at 100 decibels at a remote location surrounded by wire fencing and bright floodlights.

The reconstructed audio from the psychological warfare siege will also be streamed over the internet in real time for 24 hours a day for over a month at: www.wacoreenactment.org

Background Information on the Waco siege
The extensive press coverage of the Waco siege in 1993 barely acknowledged the FBI's psychological intimidation tactics and the FBI have denied their use - despite the existence of written records documenting the events. The millenarian Branch Davidians believed their prophecies were coming true when the heavily armoured BATF (Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms) officers raided their home. The Davidians retaliated against the FBI and the resulting stand-off culminated in a fire that killed 80 Davidians. Some of the survivors are currently serving life sentences in US state penitentiaries.

£8, £7 Concs. £6 ICA Members
ICA, The Mall, London, SW1
Tickets & Information: 020 7930 3647 / www.ica.org.uk