Because of Heavy police repression protestors wear mask to avoid identification & are prepared to fight back against police attack using Paton's,slings,stones and many wear crash helmets for further protection. Ropes along the side of the demo and the linking of arms helps to protect the demo against police attacks. All trained medical personnel and a sound car is employed.
Intro:
The idea behind compiling this information is to help find a new direction and new tactics for civil insurrection in north America. There has been much controversy surrounding such actions in the Anarchist and antiauthoritarian communities, especially pertaining to the ‘Day Of Action” which has followed the four continental anarchist conferences. This is not intended to fuel this controversy, instead, it is designed to talk about how we can constructively turn these and other spontaneous demonstrations into a viable and effective means of expressing ourselves. It is all too obvious that a change from the current tactics, which date back to the 1960s and are no longer effective, is necessary. For all those who still cling to the belief that healing circles and sit ins are the way to effect change, then you are hopelessly lost. Yes these actions do bring needed attention to a cause, but the powerful elite and their hired henchmen (the Government) have developed far more brutal and effective means to make these actions ineffective alone..
A European Example:
For the sake of practical and time tested experience, in this pamphlet we look to the west german anti-authoritarian community. The west german Government is one of the most oppressive states in western europe and at the same time boasts one of the largest and most organized anti-authoritarian communities. Most people in the movement would describe themselves as “Autonomes” , Meaning they are free individuals, Autonomous of any particular party or dogma. Most cities have a sizable and very effective autonome` communities, while often having their own cultural and political centers.Ther they can organize , meet people,party and try to develop a free , nonsexist non-racist anarchist community. in hamburg there is a community center which has become integrated into an entire squatted city block called haffenstrasse. many of these centers have set up nightly or weekly “people’s kitchens” where people can eat even if they have no money. the autonomous community places a significant emphasis on solidarity, especially towards workers,students and liberation struggles around the world (which the north american anti-authoritarian community greatly lacks). The “Black Bloc” This is a tactic commonly used by the autonomies as an effective way of adding militancy while encouraging self defense and equal participation at protest marches. the black bloc or ” Revolutionary Block” is most commonly identified by the fact virtually all the participants dress entirely in black clothing and keep in close formation with each other. this is an attempt to identify as a group while at the same time being able to defend themselves from police attack.At almost all demonstrations marches, there is a revolutionary block, often at the lead or tail end of the protest”..at the front of the demo in pink(wimming for a just world),next comes green block (stop the destruction of rain forest),then the red block(exploitation or socialism), then finally the black block(against everything of course)...
For the sake of protection against attack, the participants in the black bloc commonly keep in a close group and often link arms to prevent penetration of the group by police. often times, the people on the outer edge of the group will also hold ropes. Furthermore,most of the participants wear hoods or balaciavas to prevent identification by the police and many will also wear crash helmets,Batans,slings,stones,etc,have also been effectively employed to repel police attacks.It is common and effective tactic to do selective property damage as the protest march passes by obviously related targets along the route. for instance, as the group passes a bank during an ant-imf demo, several black bloc participants may break from the group and trash the bank, while quickly returning to the protection of the group as a whole. this is an effective use of numbers and a great way to direct anger at a specific targets.
To further protect against police repression, already in use practices of demonstration participation will make this more effective. the ‘un-arrest” is an effective way to physically remove those arrested from police custody - maybe in the form of pulling someone out of the cops hands or even freeing them from police vehicles. affinity groups are also very effective. this means going to the demo with a specific group of people with the intention of looking out for each other and sticking together. this insures no lone stragglers who are easily picked of by the police. further more, by dressing all in similar clothing, undercover police will be less likely to infiltrate the group - as to not be mistaken for protesters if the cops do decide to attack the demo! as a conclusion please note however that this is just a a suggestion for actions in north america. we realize that the actions described here are not a means to and end by themselves. we must creatively work together to build a strong and determined movement of resistance on many fronts. And remember, it is love and freedom that propels us to our dreams! written by a minneapolis anarchist group. please copy and distribute around north america. feel free to add anything we have forgotten or overlooked. we would like to see further discussion on this topic in zines and journals, as well as community discussion groups.