please make one of these for this.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pj2NOTanzWI

the wedge tactics were widely used by the antifascist 43 Group and its efficacy is discussed in the 43 Group by Morris Beckman throughout. it is well worth a read.

 http://www.newsfromnowhere.org.uk/books/DisplayBookInfo.php?ISBN=0903738759

Excellent post - now have an idea about the weak points, perhaps today we should be preparing for Tuesdays events by making our reinforced banners to break the kettle...
Will be posting a pictoral step by step guide on the site later...but its not rocket science...

Step 1...sheet of plywood or similar (dont use the garden gate-you'll still have to transport it)

Step 2 ...bit of battening and a handle type thing on the back (could reappropriate one from a public loo door..?)

Step 3 ...Decorate the front with a suitable slogan / poster of choice

Step 4 ...Finish your ensemble by wearing a cycling / skateboard helmet

.... Bingo - ready made sheild and headgear strong enough to take a battering from the truncheons of dibblewhilst exiting the kettle!

Check the photos from an earlier post of this in action by our Italian comrades
 http://www.eidonpress.com/shoot/show/id/36754

Dear Mrs November,

I do so enjoy your night classes. You get so much out of them. I remember your Tai Chi classes. It was the last time you described me as a "patronising bastard". Thereafter you just beat the dobby oil out of me.

My point is: yes creating a wedge at the weak points is an excellent idea. But remember: if you have a strong point at the centre and two weak points either side then the strong point at the centre will surge forwards. You need a tactic for when that happens. Do you create a protestor weak point at the central police strong point, on purpose, for the police to surge through. It might allow those at the police weak points to move forward but then cut the crowd in two. Perhaps a follow on tactic of a circle mosh pit might work. Certainly you might want to look at the computer game version first:  http://www.pyweek.org/e/Wibble/

Now get thee back to thy knitting - or did you take up that course in economics instead.

Your loving ex-husband

Mister November 30th.

PS did you really get a restraining order on the grounds of me being a "tory arse"?

On 24th Nov, people lined up behind a long banner and tried to push the police. It was about 60 people vs 20 cops. We didn't make it through. Another time some people tried to use a large metal fence front on against the police but this also didn't work as the cops lifted it up and diluted it's force.

More useful is if we use banners to break out that are ones that are hinged in the middle, or tied with good rope. Or use two metal barriers for crowd control that are still bracketed together. Equal force is usually not enough to break through. The point is to split the line with a wedge.

If you look at the two pics: The two banners are made from strong wood and can be used as a wedge to force the line. The other pic has many crash barriers to also form a wedge with lots of folks behind. Both of these ways through should be held high enough to stop cops hitting those behind with batons. But you also need a lot of people behind to stop the cops just shutting the line again. Once it's been broken, the more who come through, the harder it is for the cops to regroup in a new line.

@Mister November 30th

I was thinking last week how a 'circle pit' might be an effective way of breaking out of a kettle given enough people, and enough thought about how to avoid weak points in the circle.

However, given that most so called 'punks' at shows don't know what a circle pit is nowadays, it could be difficult to gather enough people and momentum, not to mention the problems of people falling down (the police can knock us down and make things dangerous enough without us doing it too), and how terrifying it can be for anyone who is unaccustomed to a circle pit or the first-timers in a kettle.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7hu7j1HSdc

Useful to study crowd dynamics, surges, weak points and so on!!

In practice when you're likely to have lost your mates and be alone in a crowd, you need to conspire with strangers one at a time, pointing discretely to the target and saying to wait five minutes before going through, tell as many individuals as you can, don't judge people or guess who'll be in...rapid fire communication...after aminute start saying "in four minutes we're going through there-" then in 3 minutes etc down to one minute then get in position and scream "NNOOOOOWWWWWW!!!!!!!" and go head down.

You could always try "tickling" the cops, could be good for a laugh and they sure as hell won't expect it! :-)

In practice when you're likely to have lost your mates and be alone in a crowd, you need to conspire with strangers one at a time, pointing discretely to the target and saying to wait five minutes before going through, tell as many individuals as you can, don't judge people or guess who'll be in...rapid fire communication...after aminute start saying "in four minutes we're going through there-" then in 3 minutes etc down to one minute then get in position and scream "NNOOOOOWWWWWW!!!!!!!" and go head down.

Perhaps a line of Disabled such as myself on the frontline. With either angled boards on the front or a V shape to get through the line. I know that this would probably be difficult due to the fact the person is disabled. If it could be organised they would have to wear cycle safety helmets for obvious reasons.

Check out the original and best, Guide to Public Order Situations - updated every now and again from comments you send in, discussions and reflection on big protest experiences.

PDF available at earthfirst.org.uk/publicorderguide.pdf

Print copy and distribute!

that being said, using barriers to support a wedge is an excellent idea

I wish we could beat the crap out of you with batons and snatch squads you idiots. If it was not for that human rights act crap. We should be able to quell your anachistic antics you foolish individuals!

So there is a crowd of strangers stuck behind a police line, everyone wants to surge forward but it is hard to coordinate this. A fun alternative to a countdown is the Hokey Cokey, which most people know....

You put your left left in,
your left leg out,
in out in out
shake it all about
You do the hokey cokey and you turn around *not necessary if the front line of people have their arms linked*
That's what it's all about...
OOOOOHHH THE HOKEY COKEY
OOOOOHHH THE HOKEY COKEY
etc. etc.

This has worked for crowds at football matches trying to get passed police lines, and I think it's good as you get three surges at the end. It's also easy to start (with a loud voice) with no instruction to people beforehand -most people will cotton on quickly to what's about to happen. And the police will know it's coming but can do nothing about it...

at the last demo before christmas a hardend plastic (corex i believe), metal studed, v -shaped fold in the middle banner was used to try and break lines twice. the first time they forced the banner to rotate downwards ripping it from our hands. We managed to get it back when enough inderviduals broke through to break the police lines.the second time when the v shape when was fully in effect the police managed to divert the point side ways causing banner to fall shut back on the inderviduals at the front resulting in a guy getting crushed under it while police stomped on it. The promblem with the v is that the police see it coming and reinforce that part of the line. But also the people at the front can be hit from allsides by many of officers because of the increased surface area and they really fucking go for if youve covered ur head they go for your legs. You cant see where your going or get a good footing to push forward so you cant direct the point.Often the pressure from the back causes the structure to buckle or as happend last time close in on itself trapping the few individuals that managed to with stand the police onslaught. resulting in them getting dragged to the ground. the police know how to deal with reinforced banners and watching a video of the students protests recently you can hear police discussing how they use similar banners at smash edo.
while this all sounds very pesimistic if you are going to make a reinforced banner:

- reinforce the structure somehow, possibly make a insertable cross beem to hold the shape.
- make it hard
- make it big to provide protection to all parts of your body
- put lots of handles on it as many as possible.
or
- protect your own body and encourage your friends to
- be dirusptive bounce about poke police
- if you do break through the line dont just run off, get to a point where your safe from being re -kettled then if possible go back to the back of the cops stand behind them push them make them feel like there surrounded.
- the book block worked very well last time.

our strength comes from our autonomy and ability to react to the situation thinking on our feet.trying to beat them at their own game of overwhelming force is difficullt because you cant get all the equipment on the tube! Although it would be nice to see a sexy reinforced banner work.

In this video you can see the banner in action from 13.07 and 14.51 you can hear the police discuss smash edo briefly.

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQdYxXyUJkQ

Re 26th March, not going to hyde park?

We're here for the long stay, not just a day.

Pro action; Tent deployments allow large areas to be taken very quickly.
They will stop police charges, especially mounted ones as they will not be able to ascertain what tents are occupied and what ones are not (Health & Safety).
Each tent will have to be dealt with by the police individually, 1,000 tents + would create a logistical nightmare.
Your basic 1 person tent takes up an area 3 x 4.

> Pro action; Tent deployments allow large areas to be taken very quickly.
> They will stop police charges, especially mounted ones as they will not be able to ascertain what tents > are occupied and what ones are not (Health & Safety).

That's just fucking dangerous nonsense. It was even obvious before climate camp in the city. The police charge over tents, they smash them up, they go round them, they push us into them as they are a fucking liability and obstruction.

Let's let go of this damn obsession with camping!

Read the EF! guide above for hints about barricades/obstructions. Basically a forest of tents/a solid barricade is bollocks for us, however the careful placing of objects that stops police lines but not us works.

The diagrams are about a physical confrontation. I'm thinking this conversation might be applied metaphorically as well. The weakest police officer (in terms of confrontation) might be the one most accessible to her/his humanity, least indoctrinated, most able to see YOU as a human being of worth rather than an enemy or object.

If you could identify someone with such a "weakness" in direct confrontation, they probably are the easiest place to get through. How would you recognize them? I suppose the look on their face, or their response if you approach them in a way that could be considered gentle - through your own looks or actions - of course not subservient, but treating them as an individual rather than part of a mass.

I'm interested in comments from people who have actually tried this. I'm speculating.