Some 'group' or 'affiliation of individuals' should organise a workshop on this very topic at this year's bookfair.

A 28 page half-sized zine on the history and development of the Black Bloc tactic in W. Europe and N. America and the Autonomist movements from which it arises. Feel free to download and distribute in your area.



 http://autonomousresistance.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/cant-stop-kaos-zine.pdf/

You might want to reconsider your use of wordpress. They are a corporate and will log your IP address, and the IP address of all your site visitors and pass that information to the police.

Use this instead.
 https://network23.org/

Run by activists for activists.

"attempt to carve a distinction between those who wish to target specific symbolic targets of global capitalism, and those who are just looking for a ruck with the cops"

Umm...actually think the police are specific targets of global capaitalism.

and...it isn't usually possible to target any specific symbol of global capitalism without getting into a ruck with the cops

and...don't see why fighting the police is a less defensible objective anyway. In fact, i'd say I have a lot more reason to kick the shit out of the coppers than to kick in the window of Ann Summers.

ACAB

You have a much bigger problem.

While I agree that the Black Bloc's tactics were very good on the day, I never saw those tactics in use while Labour were in power. What I saw were people dressed in black assembling, smashing up some stuff, then getting kettled for hours on end by a police "service" which were noticably more stringent, energetic and violent than they were on Saturday.

There are also a lot more people acting as Black Bloc now than there were during the time Labour were in power. A lot more!

Yes I think that people are very angry about the cuts to public services, but not as angry as they were during the awful human rights violations committed by Labour under the Blair regime. The Black Bloc were around then, but they tended to be a lot lazier and dis-inclined to take the fight forward. Now Labour are the only party in opposition, all of a sudden the Black Bloc are higher in number, more energetic, better organised and going up against a police "service" that seems disinterested in doing its job!

So I don't think its the original Black Bloc per-se that we are seeing at the moment, more a re-enactment of the old style Black Bloc made up of current Socialist's and Labour Party workers spilling out from the universities attempting to re-ignite the old class war real-politik.

I could be wrong I suppose, but as I go back to 98 and cut my teeth on the original Anti-Capitalist movement there's not much chance of that!

All I can see is the Labour Party fightback in which Anarchista and Socialista are currently in bed with each other. Where did the Black-Blocers go to when Labour were in power during the invasion of Iraq and Afghanistan?

Just my take on it of course but all I can see here is horse-trading between the various factions in Parliament, not a genuine alternative to war and public sector cuts used to pay for war when the purse is near empty.

Your problem is of course, that a lot of these activist's now are new on the scene and driven by short-sighted goal oriented solutions which will end, of course, with the election of the Labour party and the continuance of the public sector cutting regime. No real change to speak of.

Very pathetic to see Ed Miliband rebuking the protesters in public for their violence, while claiming to be standing on the shoulders of decidedly more violent movements for change such as Apartheid in South Africa or the civil rights movement in the US. Have absolutely no idea who those comments were addressed to given the juvenile stupidity of those comments?

Must have been aimed at the English Middle Class!

Of course it may have been the case that a lot of Anarchists simply wanted to stamp their mark on the awful contradiction of the Unions holding a protest at public sector cuts, while inviting the leader of their own party to announce a policy of its own public sector cuts. In which case the Anarchist's did very well on the day. Superb effort all round.

However, from a political narrative point of view, the discussion and debate that should have followed public outrage at this hypocritical act of blatant opportunism by Ed Miliband and his PR consultants, has of course been replaced by debate, once again, about the use of violence at protests...a debate we have had a thousand times before! In this context, the Black Bloc/Anarchismo, is simply acting as the seed of mainstream political party strategy.

"You smash the shops up on the streets, we'll handle the political distraction you create".

Press releases issued by the Black Bloc before an action. Hmmmm, can't see how that would ever be effective. The most effective tactic you can use is to own your own actions instead of rising to the hook bait dangled in front of you by political planners and strategists. The public reaction to this "Austerity regime" is non-aligned. They don't want Labour back but they also want an opportunity to fight the axe in the own back yard. They resent not being able to speak out without being smothered by opportunistic Labour Party workers on the political make.

Labour cannot and will not be an alternative. They are simply exploiting the situation for their own ends. The Unions are simply the tool by which that exploitation is enacted.

The Black Bloc/Anarchists should think about building a genuine alternative movement at a time when the people are desperate to see its appearance. In case you hadn't noticed, there is a gap in the political spectrum left by the merger between the Conservative and Lib Dems.

There is Government, and there is a main opposition, but there is no established "third party"! In short, there is a vacuum!

When it comes to the mainstream press, the BB is never going to have a better name. Perhaps in time the BB will realise that the press should be one of the principal targets of their actions.

It is total rubbish to suggest that the black block are police provocatuers! The black block originated amongst anarchists in Greece in the late 1980s where they became an effective tactic at large demonstrations often many thousands strong. The black block movement then caught on across Europe and North America during the 1990s.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6zPwo37-fA

The black block originated in the European sqatting scene in the 1970/80s, not Greece!

"and...it isn't usually possible to target any specific symbol of global capitalism without getting into a ruck with the cops

and...don't see why fighting the police is a less defensible objective anyway. In fact, i'd say I have a lot more reason to kick the shit out of the coppers than to kick in the window of Ann Summers."

Shouldn't come as a surprise to read comments advocating the targeting of the police.

It seems Labour tactic at the moment is to get in a position to do deals with the police in order to leverage some gaps in policing in London to allow for violence to take place. Those deals are qualified by information sharing between Labour party workers and the police. Saturday's violence was characterised by inaction on the part of many officers brought about by disruption in organising at the top level. Too few officers in place and poor planning meant a lot of officers were outnumbered.

This allowed for a moderate level of violence and damage but nothing that couldn't easily be dealt with. Overall, the damage done was, at best, only slight and easily fixed.

It allowed for the political distraction Labour needed to re-align itself in support of the public cuts policy, it allowed Anarchist's to be further maligned in the media and it allowed the announcement of the formation of a new, resurgent Black Bloc, something Labour are clearly going to need to further leverage policy realignments in future.

None of this amounts to a genuine alternative to the cuts themselves. All this achieves, is to further consolidate the power of the mainstream political parties in order to bring about a severe program of austerity for the ordinary working people of the UK. This while Britain continues to wage wars for the resources Capitalism needs to survive.

In this regard, Anarchist's/Black Bloc can more easily be understood as offshoots of the mainstream political parties, used as tactical devices to effect further political intrigue and to further strengthen the dominion and authority of the established political order over the working class people of Britain. When one sees the A symbol and the phrase 'Class War', one sees not a defence of the working class, but a declaration of war against the working class, waged by their self-declared defenders in league to that which perpetually robs the people of their livelihoods.

This situation cannot continue to develop.

The Anarchist's need time for a period of reflection and introspection regarding the problems they are encountering with their failure to effectively strategise, free of excessive 'management' by Socialist's and Labour party loyalist's. Anarchism must always stand for a rejection of the mainstream political order and an embracing of autonomy and community. Further IMC must choose this time to comprehensively reject being used as a tool for establishment voices and must seek to consolidate and strengthen the original principles that brought it into existence.

I should not need to remind you that a great deal has been achieved in this last decade. The Capitalist order is substantially weaker now than it was when we started. Now is not the time to waiver or offer help to that which we are committed to overthrow.

Now is the time to press down and to finish what we have started. We have an opportunity to destabilise one hemisphere of the Capitalist political order, in order to decisively campaign against its opposite twin. Socialism has nothing to offer, ergo we have nothing to offer them.

We must not waste this opportunity.

"It seems Labour tactic at the moment is to get in a position to do deals with the police in order to leverage some gaps in policing in London to allow for violence to take place. Those deals are qualified by information sharing between Labour party workers and the police."

I'd like to see evidence for this pretty wild claim.

@Greek(maybe) Anarchist(for sure not)

The bb first began to concretely emerge in the 1980s Autonome movement in Germany.

A good article about bb with the title: The Emergence of The Black Bloc and The Movement Towards Anarchism.

 https://athens.indymedia.org/front.php3?lang=el&article_id=1170653

You understand it is silly to call yourself Greek and Anarchist together at the same time.

"I'd like to see evidence for this pretty wild claim."

The Labour Minister Yvette Cooper was seen on BBC 24 this morning expressing 'concern' over public service cuts directed at the police. The alliance is clear and unmistakable. Labour clearly and obviously have adopted a policy of an alliance between the party and police. This isnt a wild claim, its simply the reality of political posturing and rhetoric at a time when Labour are in opposition.

I hardly need to remind you that under Labour, the police service were far more violent toward the various protest groups including Anarchist's and even those protesting against the wars Labour were waging. There were often serious injuries involved with this style of political policing. Kettling, snatch squads, Forward Intelligence Teams (FIT), NETCU and proscription of protest groups as 'extremists' and in some cases even 'terrorists' all originated and were consolidated under Labour. In one obvious case, a death was reported. Serious assaults were common-place under that regime including spinal and head injuries. Between 2007 and 2009, the police were largely out of control in London. The Home Office under Labour, were never concerned with that state of affairs!

It shouldn't come as a surprise that labour might offer deals with the police in order to represent their 'interests' over future funding. It shouldn't come as a surprise that the police might be 'accommodating' to such a proposal!

According to 'Labour Party Research', something close to 10,000 police officers are to be lost from front-line policing roles by the end of 2012. Labour's tactic here is two-fold. Preserve the relationship between the party and its authoritarian credentials by insisting that the UK must retain a high number of police on the streets (they would, wouldn't they?) and preserving that relationship between party and police in order to consolidate its control over street groups and unknowns, ready to provoke at the required point when police planning is apparently weakened as a result of the public cuts they now support!

As an Anarchist, I would expect you to see an opportunity here! Or perhaps as a Labour party worker, I would expect you to begin hearing alarm bells!

quote:

"I have nothing but admiration for the black bloc who rampaged through the streets on saturday..."

The sort of actions the 'black bloc' do like to do are also promoted by state sponsered agent provacators like Mark Kennedy...especially if its matter of violent direct action against the police. So people have to be very very careful about violent type actions, both people violence and property. Kennedy (and others) was installed very deeply with the 'inner circle' of protest scene in the UK. I saw him, the way he was working, at the 2007 Rampart Centre London 'anarchist' bookfair afterparty. So did others who were there...in some ways the place was akin to a CIA station house. Infiltration by babylon agents will have this fundimental impact on the energy and actions of protest groups scenes. It abolutely cannot be tolerated...and as the group conversation suggested after Kennedy and his red haired girlfirend left the room that night at Rampart,(after refusing to partate in the ganga sacrment) the best way is to test out babylon by LSD. If people wont do it, then don't work with them.

And don't remove this comment (tired sigh)

Bles

@A: "You understand it is silly to call yourself Greek and Anarchist together at the same time. "

Not it's not, if someone is from Greece and they believe in anarchy they are a Greek Anarchist. Simple.

Whether or not you believe in nation states (I'm guessing that is what you are getting at) is irrelevant. You are just including some geographical background which might be helpful to understand where you are coming from.

@anon

what I am trying to say is if you are anarchist you do not believe in countries and nations therefore you do not call yourself greek, british etc etc but anarchist.

On the other hand I understand what you mean when you say: You are just including some geographical background...... it's a misunderstood.

People in this country remember tory-made mass unemployment, and know this fight needs to be fought. The history books remember riots in the 1980s as reasonably justified.

Today the debate is not one in newsrooms or in parliament, but out in the country where there is genuine anger.

A suprising number of people think the student protestors were quite justified for their spiky response. Even though they got slandered by the failing mass media.

The debate about the mass media, should be about the effective challenge of the massive new media. The battle for the "hearts and minds" is rageing. As how the images we create, both symbolic and effective, are recieved by the unemployed youth of tommorow. Whether they cheer or jeer? they decide.

The rubish about plain clothes cops causing effective disruption is just not true. Its power crazed stalinists who intentionly fuck off hundreds of people so they can call themselves "the hero of the revolution" but in reality EVERYONE spits on the grave of their failed soviets. Then they dont even show up on any of our spectacular massive demos. The real heros are the "hotheads" who activly lead from the front, with the various anarcho banners proudly held high.



RE: "I think this is worth talking about, even if nothing is done"
Well I think more of this is worth doing, even if there is no disruptive power-crazed chatter!