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{{short description|Tactic used by groups of protesters}} | |||
{{Anarchism}} | |||
{{For|the Sudanese political organization|Black Bloc (Sudan)}} | |||
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], in Washington, DC, in 2009. Some black bloc protesters wear hoods, allowing their faces to be viewed, while others use such items as scarves, dark sunglasses or masks to conceal their faces as much as possible.]] | |||
{{Anarchism sidebar|Theory}} | |||
{{anarcho-communism sidebar|variants}} | |||
A '''black bloc''' (sometimes '''black block''') is a tactic used by protesters who wear black clothing, ski masks, scarves, sunglasses, motorcycle helmets with padding or other face-concealing and face-protecting items.<ref name="origin">. Retrieved 7 November 2008.</ref><ref name="BlackBlocBlue">{{Cite news|last=Carlson|first=Kathryn Blaze|title=The Black Bloc: A look at the anarchists who could be the biggest G20 security threat|url=http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/06/14/the-black-bloc-a-look-at-the-anarchists-who-post-the-biggest-g20-security-threat/|newspaper=National Post|date=14 June 2010}}</ref> The clothing is used to conceal wearers' identities from both the police and politically different organizations by making it difficult to distinguish between participants. It is also used to protect their faces and eyes from ], which is used by police during protests or civil unrest. The tactic also allows the group to appear as one large unified mass.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.crimethinc.com/2008/10/11/fashion-tips-for-the-brave/ |title=Fashion Tips for the Brave |publisher=] |access-date=26 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170121191958/https://crimethinc.com/2008/10/11/fashion-tips-for-the-brave |archive-date=21 January 2017}}</ref> Black bloc participants are often associated with ], ], ], ] and the ]. A variant of this type of protest is the Padded bloc, where following the ] movement protesters wear padded clothing to protect against the police. | |||
A '''black bloc''' is an ] of individuals, that come together during some sort of protest, demonstration, or event involving ], ], or ], and wear all black. Black clothing and masks are used to make the bloc appear to be one large mass, promote solidarity, create a clear revolutionary presence, (usually associated with ]), and also to avoid being identified by authorities, who videotape<ref name="Videotape">, ]</ref> and conduct information gathering at protest events. There is a mistaken belief, especially among the mainstream news media, that the "Black Bloc" is an international organization of some kind, when in fact it is nothing more than a tactic used by a subset of demonstrators. There may be several black blocs within a particular ], with different aims and tactics. Like all ], they are based on common trust between those involved, and usually share a common goal such as blocking delegates from entering a trade meeting, and a mutual understanding of shared tactics. Black blocs tend to be made up largely of anarchists, but can include many other anti-capitalist groups. | |||
The tactic was developed in the 1980s in the European ]'s protests against ] evictions, ], and restrictions on abortion, as well as other influences.<ref name="origin"/> Black blocs gained broader media attention outside Europe during the ], when a black bloc ] of ], ], ], and other ] retail locations in downtown ].<ref name="origin"/><ref name="PunchANazi">{{Cite news|last=Lennard|first=Natasha|title=Neo-Nazi Richard Spencer Punched--You Can Thank the Black Bloc|url=https://www.thenation.com/article/if-you-appreciated-seeing-neo-nazi-richard-spencer-get-punched-thank-the-black-bloc/|newspaper=National Post|date=22 January 2017}}</ref> | |||
Black blocs are differentiated from other anti-globalist groups by their routine use of vandalism and property destruction to bring attention to their opposition to multi-national corporations and the support perceived to be enjoyed by these companies from Western governments. An example of this activity is the destruction of storefronts of ], ], ], and other multi-nationals with retail locations in downtown Seattle during the 1999 ]. | |||
==History== | |||
The tradition of black blocking grew out of the ] movements in ] in the ]; Autonomen wore black during militant action in the process of ] defenses, and during solidarity-demonstrations for the ]. One explanation for the Autonomen's clothing choice is that black was the color of the leather jackets that ]ters wore for warmth and to deflect blows from police batons, whereas ski masks were practical ways to filter out ] and to protect one's identity. They were dubbed by the German media as ''der schwarze Block''. The tradition was first seen in the ] during protests against the ] in ], ] ] where it was initiated by ], a North American revolutionary anarchist organization. Black as a color has historically been associated with ], dating back to the ]s which accompanied bread riots at the time leading up to the ]. | |||
===Precursors=== | |||
In February 1967, the anarchist group ] marched on ] in New York City wearing black clothes and ]. This was the first instance of a social movement in the western world utilizing masks and black dress, which were used not for purposes of disguise but to signify a ] uniform identity. In this regard, Black Mask may have indirectly influenced the black bloc tactic.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Grindon|first=Gavin|title=Poetry Written in Gasoline: Black Mask and Up Against the Wall Motherfucker|journal=]|volume=38|issue=1|year=2015|doi=10.1111/1467-8365.12129|page=194}}</ref> | |||
===West German origins=== | |||
Typical actions of a black bloc are marching in a bloc, being a visible manifestation of anarchist and anti-capitalist politics, taking to the streets without a permit, distracting police, misleading police about protester motions, 'unarresting' people already arrested by police, administering first aid to persons affected by tear gas in areas where protesters are barred from entering, building barricades, attacking/disarming police, and unmasking police who pose as black blockers. Some black blockers also engage in ], ] and ]. Although black blocking is usually connected with some form of ], black blocs also participate in wholly ], as well as action that falls entirely within traditional definitions of ]. Property destruction carried out by black blocs tends to have symbolic significance: common targets include banks, institutional buildings, outlets for ]s, ] and sex shops, gasoline stations, and video-surveillance cameras. The reasons for engaging in property destruction often include reasons other than symbolic protest. | |||
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The black bloc tactic to wear black clothing,<ref name="origin"/> ski masks, scarves, sunglasses, motorcycle helmets with padding or other face-concealing and face-protecting items was developed in response to increased use of police force following the 1977 ] demonstration.<ref>{{cite web | publisher = TopFoto | url = http://www1.topfoto.ltd.uk/gallery/Germany1963_1988/ppages/ppage37.html | type = gallery | title = History of Germany 1963–1988 | first = Ullstein | last = Bild | date = 19 February 1977 | place = UK | access-date = 13 August 2011 | page = 37 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151222115931/http://www1.topfoto.ltd.uk/gallery/Germany1963_1988/ppages/ppage37.html | archive-date = 22 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | publisher = TopFoto | url = http://www1.topfoto.ltd.uk/gallery/Germany1963_1988/ppages/ppage39.html | type = gallery | title = History of Germany 1963–1988 | first = Ullstein | last = Bild | place = UK | date = 19 February 1977 | language = de | access-date = 13 August 2011 | page = 39 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151222120945/http://www1.topfoto.ltd.uk/gallery/Germany1963_1988/ppages/ppage39.html | archive-date = 22 December 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | page = 40 | publisher = TopFoto | url = http://www1.topfoto.ltd.uk/gallery/Germany1963_1988/ppages/ppage40.html | type = gallery | title = History of Germany 1963–1988 | first = Ullstein | last = Bild | place = UK | date = 19 February 1977 | language = de | access-date = 13 August 2011 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151222092038/http://www1.topfoto.ltd.uk/gallery/Germany1963_1988/ppages/ppage40.html | archive-date = 22 December 2015}}</ref> | |||
On 1 May 1987, demonstrators in ] were confronted by West Berlin police.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.kreuzberger-chronik.de/chroniken/2004/mai/geschichte.html | work =Kreuzberger Chronik | title = Der Mythos von Bolle – Sie lesen das Original! aus Berlin-Kreuzberg | place = ] |language=de |access-date=13 August 2011}}</ref> After this, thousands of violent rioters attacked the police with rocks, bottles and Molotov cocktails. The riots at the ] became famous after the police had to completely pull out of the "SO 36" neighborhood in Kreuzberg for several hours, and rioters looted shops together with local criminals.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.morgenpost.de/printarchiv/berlin/article198052/Die_Nacht_als_Bolle_in_Kreuzberg_abbrannte.html |title=Die Nacht, als Bolle in Kreuzberg abbrannte | place = Berlin | work = Berliner Morgenpost |date=30 April 2007 |language=de |access-date=13 August 2011}}</ref> | |||
Groups such as the ] and ] advocate participating in black bloc activity, and have similar agendas. Groups that have engaged in similar forms of action include ], ], and ]. During the ] ] summit in ], militant demonstrators rejected the name "Black Bloc" and chose instead to be called the "Anthracite Bloc" or the "Charcoal Bloc." | |||
When ] came to Berlin in June 1987, he was met by around 50,000 demonstrators protesting against his ] policies. This included a black bloc of 3,000 people. In November 1987, ] residents and thousands of other protesters and fortified their squat, built barricades in the streets and defended themselves against the police for nearly 24 hours. After this the city authorities legalised the squatters residence.<ref>Katsiaficas, George. New Jersey: Humanities Press International, 1997, pp. 124–131.</ref> | |||
After the protests of global summits that occurred across ] during the summer of ], European courts have started to prosecute activists on ], ], ], ], and ] charges for alleged black bloc activity. This was the case with the ], a group of 25 artists imprisoned for a month after the ] summit in ]. The ] is conducting Europe-wide investigations of black bloc activity in terms of an international conspiracy. The heavy sentences given to demonstrators arrested during and after the ] summit in ] ] (see also '']''), as well as the terrorism charges levied against those arrested during and after the ] summit in ], ], and the ] summit near ], ], ], reflect this view. | |||
Since the late 1980s, Berlin's Kreuzberg district has hosted May Day clashes between anarchists and police.<ref>{{Cite news |title=May Day in the Capital: Berlin's Peaceful Day of Rage |work=Der Spiegel |date=2011-05-02 |url=https://www.spiegel.de/international/germany/may-day-in-the-capital-berlin-s-peaceful-day-of-rage-a-760095.html |language=en |issn=2195-1349 |df=ymd-all }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=From France to Indonesia, Marking May Day With Protests |work=] |date=2017-05-01 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/01/world/europe/may-day-protests.html |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331 |df=ymd-all |quote=... the city's Kreuzberg neighborhood, for years the site of protests and violence during May Day rallies. }}</ref> When the ] and the ] ], autonomous groups hosted an international gathering of ] activists. Numbering around 80,000, the protesters greatly outnumbered the police. Officials tried to maintain control by banning all demonstrations and attacking public assemblies. Nevertheless, there were riots and ] shopping areas were destroyed.<ref>{{Citation |first=AG |last=Grauwacke |contribution=We Will Disrupt this Conference: Resistance to the 1988 IMF and World Bank Conference in West Berlin |publisher=Dissent Network! |title=Days of Dissent: Reflections on Summit Mobilisations |url=http://www.daysofdissent.org.uk./berlin.htm |place=UK |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511121605/http://www.daysofdissent.org.uk/berlin.htm |archive-date=11 May 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Citation | language = de | first = AG | last = Grauwacke | title = Autonome in Bewegung: aus den ersten 23 Jahren | publisher = Association A | isbn = 978-3-935936-13-2| year = 2003 }}</ref> | |||
== See also == | |||
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In the period after the fall of the ], the German black bloc movement continued traditional riots such as May Day in ], but with decreasing intensity. Their main focus became the struggle against the recurring popularity of ] in Germany. The "turn" came in June 2007, during the ]. A coordinated black bloc of 2,000 international people came to ], Germany, built barricades, rioted the streets, set cars alight and attacked the police during a mass demonstration.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.spiegel.de/politik/deutschland/0,1518,486280,00.html |title=G-8-Protest: Randale in Rostock – 430 verletzte Polizisten |work=Der Spiegel |date=2 June 2007 |language=de |access-date=13 August 2011}}</ref> 400 police officers were injured, as well as about 500 rioters, demonstrators and activists. According to the German ], the weeks of organisation before the demonstration and the riots themselves amounted to a revival for the militant left in Germany. Since the "Battle of Rostock", traditional "May Day Riots" after demonstrations every 1 May in Berlin, and since 2008 also in Hamburg, became more intense.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.spiegel.de/spiegel/print/d-78832416.html |title=DER SPIEGEL 23/2011 – Verfassungsschutz warnt vor linker Militanz |work=Der Spiegel |date=5 June 2011 |language=de |access-date=13 August 2011}}</ref> | |||
== External links == | |||
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===International development=== | |||
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====North America==== | |||
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] in Washington, D.C., on 21 March 2009.]] | |||
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The first prominent use of the tactic in United States of America occurred at the Pentagon, in Washington, D.C., on 17 October 1988, although anarchists had been using similar tactics in small numbers in preceding years in places like San Francisco, culminating with several hundred anarchists in black smashing glass store fronts and attacking vehicles in the Berkeley Anarchist Riot of 1989.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://larrylivermore.com/2011/08/19/1989-the-anarchists-riot-in-berkeley/|title=1989: The Anarchists Riot In Berkeley|date= 19 August 2011|author=Livermore, Larry}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.fifthestate.org/archive/333-winter-1990/anarchy-in-san-francisco/|title=Anarchy in San Francisco|author=Brubaker, Bob|display-authors=etal|date=Winter 1990}}</ref> In D.C., over one thousand demonstrators—a small number consisting of a black bloc—called for the end to U.S. support for the right wing death squads in El Salvador.<ref>See The Black Bloc Papers, page 35, Breaking Glass Press, Shawnee Mission, KS, 2010</ref> A black bloc caused damage to property of ], ], ], and other retail locations in downtown Seattle during the 1999 ].<ref>{{cite web |author=Rick Anderson |url=http://archive.seattleweekly.com/1999-12-22/news/delta-s-down-with-it/ |title=Delta's down with it – Page 1 |work=Seattle Weekly |date=22 December 1999 |access-date=13 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170409155843/http://archive.seattleweekly.com/1999-12-22/news/delta-s-down-with-it/ |archive-date=9 April 2017 |url-status=dead }}</ref> They were a common feature of subsequent ] protests.<ref>{{Cite book | |||
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|first= Luis A. | |||
|title= Policing Dissent: Social Control and the Anti-globalization Movement | |||
|year= 2008 | |||
|publisher= Rutgers University Press | |||
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In the years after the end of the Vietnam War, protest in the US came to assume more legalistic, orderly forms, and was increasingly dominated by the middle-class.<ref>Doug McAdam, et al. , ''Mobilization: An International Journal'' 10(1): 1-18.</ref> This corresponded with the rise of a highly effective police strategy of ] called "negotiated management".<ref>McPhail, Clark, David Schweingruber and John McCarthy. 1998. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130504232229/http://www.public.iastate.edu/~dschwein/policing.pdf |date=4 May 2013 }}, pp. 49-69, in ] and Herbert Reiter (eds), ''Policing Protest: The Control of Mass Demonstrations in Western Democracies''. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press.</ref> Many social scientists have noted the "institutionalization of movements" in this period.<ref>Doug McAdam, et al. "There Will Be Fighting in the Streets: The Distorting Lens of Social Movement Theory", ''Mobilization: An International Journal'' 10(1): 1-18.</ref> These currents largely constrained disruptive protest until 1999. In an unprecedented success for post-Vietnam era civil disobedience, the WTO Ministerial Conference opening ceremonies were shut down completely, host city Seattle declared a state of emergency for nearly a week, multilateral trade negotiations between the wealthy and developing nations collapsed, and all of this was done without fatalities. This occurred in the midst of mass rioting which had been set off by militant anarchists, some of them in a black bloc formation.<ref>, WTO History Project, University of Washington.</ref><ref>, BBC News, 1 December 1999.</ref><ref>John Vidal, , ''The Guardian'', 5 December 1999.</ref> | |||
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The call for the Seattle protest had originally come from ] (a network co-founded by the ]) which supported ] and a highly flexible definition of nonviolence.<ref>Geov Parrish, , ''The Seattle Weekly'', 17 November 1999.</ref> In the aftermath of the shutdown, however, various NGO spokespeople associated with Seattle DAN claimed that the riotous aspect of the WTO protests was counterproductive and undemocratic. They also asserted that it was only an insignificantly small group from Eugene, Oregon that engaged in property destruction. ] told ''The New York Times'' that "These anarchists should have been arrested",<ref>Alexander Cockburn and our readers, ''The Nation'', 14 February 2000.</ref><ref>Timothy Egan, , ''The New York Times'', 2 December 1999.</ref> while ] of ] stated that she had instructed Teamsters to assault black bloc participants.<ref> {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304002704/http://www.citizen.org/documents/Lori's%20War.pdf |date=4 March 2016 }}, ''Foreign Policy'', Spring 2000, p. 49.</ref> ] decried the NGO leaders as "hypocrites", and wrote that nonviolent activists ought to be "treating the young rock-throwers like sisters and brothers in the struggle." She also criticized the dominant nonviolent paradigm as "absurdly ritualized".<ref>Barbara Ehrenreich, , ''The Progressive'', June 2000.</ref> The solution to Ehrenreich's impasse was the growing acceptance of black bloc tactics in the anti-globalization movement.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hQSaAAAAQBAJ&q=ehrenreich.%20black%20bloc&pg=PA108|title=Understanding Occupy from Wall Street to Portland: Applied Studies in Communication Theory|last1=Heath|first1=Renee Guarriello|last2=Fletcher|first2=Courtney Vail|last3=Munoz|first3=Ricardo|date=2013-08-29|publisher=Lexington Books|isbn=9780739183229|pages=108–109|language=en}}</ref><ref></ref><ref>Cindy Milstein, , Institute for Social Ecology, 13 June 2001.</ref> | |||
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During ] the ] in ], a black bloc riot damaged a number of retail locations including an ], ], ] Store, Starbucks and many banking establishments.<ref name="autogenerated3">{{cite web |publisher=] |url=http://news.ca.msn.com/canada/cbc-article.aspx?cp-documentid=24700313 |title=G20 protest brings violence, arrests |work=MSN |access-date=27 June 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100629073427/http://news.ca.msn.com/canada/cbc-article.aspx?cp-documentid=24700313 |archive-date=29 June 2010 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="CP24">{{cite web| agency=The Canadian Press | url=http://www.cp24.com/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20100626/100626_blackbloc/20100626/?hub=CP24Home | title=Violent Black Bloc tactics hit Toronto during G20 protest | date=26 June 2010 | access-date=28 June 2010}}</ref> | |||
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On the day of President ]'s ], black bloc groups were present among other protests in Washington, D.C., and other places. The groups engaged in vandalism, rioting, and violence.<ref name="DwyerDomonokse">{{cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/01/20/510770716/in-d-c-group-of-protesters-breaks-windows-police-use-pepper-spray|title=In D.C., Group of Protesters Breaks Windows; Police Use Pepper Spray|last1=Dwyer|first1=Colin|last2=Domonokse|first2=Camila|date=20 January 2017|publisher=NPR}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01/20/anti-donald-trump-activists-try-block-access-inauguration/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/01/20/anti-donald-trump-activists-try-block-access-inauguration/ |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Donald Trump Protests: Limo 'Set on Fire' and 217 Arrested as Police use Tear Gas on Black-Clad Activists|last1=Lawler|first1=David|date=21 January 2017|work=]|access-date=20 January 2017}}{{cbignore}}</ref> At least 217 were arrested and six police officers sustained minor injuries, and at least one other person was injured.<ref name="DwyerDomonokse" /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2017/01/19/politics/trump-inauguration-protests-womens-march/|title=Police Injured, More than 200 Arrested at Trump Inauguration Protests|last1=Krieg|first1=Gregory|date=21 January 2017|publisher=CNN|access-date=21 January 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2017/live-updates/politics/live-coverage-of-trumps-inauguration/black-bloc-style-tactics-seen-as-chaos-erupts-in-downtown-d-c/|title='Black bloc' style tactics seen as chaos erupts in downtown D.C.|newspaper=The Washington Post|access-date=2017-01-21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://twitter.com/rc_kris/status/822472326059069440|title=Kris Cruz on Twitter|website=Twitter|language=en|access-date=2017-01-21}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/inauguration-anti-donald-trump-protesters-smash-windows-clash-washington-dc-police-ceremony-a7538031.html|title=Video captures moment anti-Donald Trump protest violence erupts|date=2017-01-20|newspaper=The Independent|access-date=2017-01-21|language=en-GB}}</ref> | |||
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In February 2017, an event at the ] by commentator ] was cancelled by college administrators after ] of a black bloc broke windows, shot fireworks, and caused a light fixture to catch fire.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/01/us/milo-yiannopoulos-berkeley/index.html|title=Berkeley protests of Yiannopoulos caused $100,000 in damage|author=Madison Park and Kyung Lah|website=CNN|date=2 February 2017|access-date=2017-02-08}}</ref> The cancellation of the event brought mainstream attention to anarchism and black bloc tactics.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/02/us/anarchists-respond-to-trumps-inauguration-by-any-means-necessary.html|title=Anarchists Respond to Trump's Inauguration, by Any Means Necessary|last=Stockman|first=Farah|date=2017-02-02|newspaper=The New York Times|access-date=2017-02-08|issn=0362-4331}}</ref> | |||
In May 2021, Portland protesters in black bloc turned out at multiple rallies and marches that marked the one-year anniversary of the ]. At one event the protesters wheeled a dumpster into the street and set its contents on fire, drawing police out. The rally was declared a riot by police.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Brown |first1=Karina |title=Riot Declared in Portland Protest for George Floyd |work=Courthouse News Service |date=2021-05-26 |url=https://www.courthousenews.com/riot-declared-in-portland-protest-for-george-floyd/ |language=en-US |access-date=2022-04-06 }}</ref> | |||
====Brazil==== | |||
During the ], groups of people using Black Bloc tactics started attending demonstrations, especially those held across the street from governor of Rio de Janeiro State ]'s residence and the state government palace.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://oglobo.globo.com/rio/black-blocs-a-baderna-premeditada-na-zona-sul-9094666|title=Black Blocs e a baderna premeditada na Zona Sul|date=19 July 2013|publisher=]|access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://oglobo.globo.com/rio/pm-culpa-black-blocs-por-confusao-em-laranjeiras-9135174|title=PM culpa Black Blocs por confusão em Laranjeiras|date=22 July 2013|publisher=]|access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref> Police face accusations of infiltrating the movement and, at times, acting as agents provocateurs by starting confrontations. Many leftists claim that video footage shows an infiltrated police officer throwing a molotov cocktail that wounded a riot policeman, although this has been denied by the police and hasn't been proven until today (2017).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2013/07/24/video-of-clashes-in-brazil-appears-to-show-police-infiltrators-among-the-protesters|title=Video of Clashes in Brazil Appears to Show Police Infiltration of Protesters|work=The New York Times|date=24 July 2013|access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref> Protester violence occurred regularly during the Brazilian protests (particularly the week of 17 to 21 June) even when not linked with the black bloc, or with police infiltration.<ref>. Igarape Institute, 13 March 2014</ref><ref>. ''The Guardian'', 21 June 2013</ref> | |||
Despite the denunciations by media, police, and even some activists, the black bloc tactic persisted in the movement. By October 2013, "The mask-wearers were welcomed by the protesters who wanted to wreak havoc during manifestations... Indeed, this sense of solidarity amidst the demonstrations, this shared manning of barricades, inspires a common determination to fight against the fear of repression." According to a report by two Brazilian leftists published in Al Jazeera, this coincided with a revival in the breadth of the street protests that had not been seen since its early days in June.<ref>. Al Jazeera, 23 October 2013</ref> On 10 October, the Rio teachers' union (Sepe) officially declared support for the recent black bloc actions, stating that the bloc were "welcome" at their demonstrations. Postings on teacher Facebook groups praised bloc participants as "fearless".<ref>. ''O Dios'', 10 October 2013</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://revolution-news.com/brazils-teachers-union-officially-declares-unconditional-support-for-black-bloc/ |title=Brazil: Teachers Union Officially Declares Unconditional Support for Black Bloc. |last1=Baker |first1=Jennifer |date=10 September 2013 |publisher=revolution-news.com |access-date=8 January 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119074147/http://revolution-news.com/brazils-teachers-union-officially-declares-unconditional-support-for-black-bloc/ |archive-date=19 January 2016}}</ref> | |||
====Europe==== | |||
On 1 May 2018, over 1,200 black bloc took part in demonstrations in Paris, France. Public infrastructures and stores were damaged.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Kettley |title=A Paris, le 1er mai des Black Blocs |work=]|date=2018-05-01 |url=http://www.leparisien.fr/economie/a-paris-le-1er-mai-des-black-blocs-01-05-2018-7692858.php }}</ref> During the demonstrations of the ] (autumn 2018-spring 2019) major damage was done by black bloc in ], ] and ]. The protest resulting in the most significant amount of property damage took place in Paris when protestors took to the streets on the ] on 16 March 2019.<ref>] (16 March 2019). ''].fr''. Retrieved 3 July 2019.</ref><ref>] (22 March 2019). '']''. Retrieved 3 July 2019.</ref> | |||
A group of about 400 black bloc demonstrators took part in the ] where they targeted various high end retail outlets; according to journalist ] this may have been the largest ever black bloc assembly in the UK. Mason says some of the participants were anarchists from Europe, others were British students who joined the demonstrations after participating in the ].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Mason|first=Paul|chapter=Ch. 3|title=Why It's Kicking Off Everywhere: The New Global Revolutions|location=London, Verso|year=2012|isbn=978-1-84467-851-8|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/whyitskickingoff0000maso}}</ref> A black bloc protested the opening of the ] ] in Milan.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Bacchi |first1=Umberto |last2=Iaccino |first2=Ludovica |last3=Mezzofiore |first3=Gianluca |title=Milan Expo 2015: Violent May Day protests at No Expo anti-capitalist demonstration |work=International Business Times UK |date=2015-05-01 |url=http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/milan-expo-2015-violent-may-day-protests-no-expo-anti-capitalist-demonstration-1499334 |access-date=2017-06-28 }}</ref> | |||
Amongst hundreds of thousands of protesters protesting the G20 Summit in Hamburg Germany were thousands of black clad rioters who clashed with police in a 3-day standoff resulting in millions of euros in property damage. At least 500 protestors were injured and more than 200 were arrested.<ref>{{Cite web |last1=Kettley |first1=Sebastian |title=Hamburg G20 protests: What is Antifa? Who are the 'Welcome to Hell' protestors? |work=] |date=2017-07-09 |url=https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/826336/Hamburg-g20-protests-what-is-Antifa-demonstrations-protestors-Welcome-to-Hell |access-date=2017-08-08 }}</ref> | |||
====Egypt==== | |||
On 25 January 2013, on the second anniversary of the Egyptian Revolution, black blocs made an appearance in the Egyptian political scenes where they reportedly<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/middle-east/5108-qblack-blocq-claims-responsibility-for-attacks-against-muslim-brotherhood|title=Black Bloc claims responsibility for attacks against Muslim Brotherhood|publisher=Memo: The Middle East Monitor|access-date=26 August 2013|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927231202/http://www.middleeastmonitor.com/news/middle-east/5108-qblack-blocq-claims-responsibility-for-attacks-against-muslim-brotherhood|archive-date=27 September 2013}}</ref> attacked various Muslim Brotherhood headquarters and government buildings and stopped traffic and metro lines in more than eight cities.<ref>{{cite web|publisher=AlAhram International politics (arabic edition)|title=Black Bloc...A model for non-traditional movements of violence in Egypt|url=http://www.siyassa.org.eg/NewsQ/2914.aspx|access-date=26 August 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170202212332/http://www.siyassa.org.eg/NewsQ/2914.aspx|archive-date=2 February 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|publisher=Alsharq Alawsat|title=The middle east,'Black Bloc'..An Egyptian Movement that raises the banner of violence against the Muslim Brotherhood|url=http://www.aawsat.com/details.asp?section=4&article=714648&issueno=12478|access-date=26 August 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801021240/http://www.aawsat.com/details.asp?section=4&article=714648&issueno=12478|archive-date=1 August 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://magmj.com/index.jsp?inc=5&id=12072&pid=3367&version=184 |title=Almogtamaa,'Black Block' ..Newest leftist 'anarchist' chaotic organizations to hit the Arab revolutions |publisher=Magmj.com |date=26 January 2013 |access-date=8 December 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131212053751/http://magmj.com/index.jsp?inc=5&id=12072&pid=3367&version=184 |archive-date=12 December 2013}}</ref><ref>. France24 (in arabic) {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131028132432/http://www.france24.com/ar/node/843168?ns_campaign=editorial&ns_source=twitter&ns_mchannel=reseaux_sociaux&ns_fee=0&ns_linkname=node_843168 |date=28 October 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://arabic.cnn.com/2013/middle_east/1/31/egypt.blackblock/index.html |title=CNN (in arabic) Egypt: Investigation into an Israeli scheme caught with a participant of Black Bloc |newspaper=Cnnarabic |publisher=CNN |language=ar|access-date=8 December 2013}}</ref> A group of young protesters, who identified themselves as the "Black Bloc", have marked the second anniversary of the Egyptian revolution by blocking the tramway tracks in Alexandria on Friday.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/1/64/63247/Egypt/Politics-/%E2%80%98Black-Bloc%E2%80%99-stops-tramway-in-Alexandria,-protests.aspx|title=Black Bloc stops tramway in Alexandria, protests in Cairo|publisher=Ahram Online|access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContentP/1/63243/Egypt/Live-Updates-Protests,-clashes-all-over-the-countr.aspx|title=Live Updates 1: Protests, clashes all over the country on revolution's anniversary|publisher=Ahram Online|access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-21228852|title=Black Bloc anarchists emerge|date=28 January 2013|work=BBC News}}</ref> Egyptian Prosecutor General Talaat Abdallah ordered the police and armed forces to arrest any participant in the Black Bloc, pointing out that the group was carrying out "terrorist activities"<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.news24.com/Africa/News/Egypts-Black-Bloc-in-govt-crosshairs-20130201|title=Egypt's Black Bloc in govt crosshairs|publisher=News24|access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref> and was considered by the government and under the new constitution a violent radical outlaw group.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.egyptindependent.com/news/public-prosecution-orders-arrest-all-black-bloc-members|title=Public Prosecution orders arrest of all Black Bloc members|work=]|date=29 January 2013|access-date=29 January 2013}}</ref> | |||
===Police infiltration=== | |||
On occasion, police and security services have infiltrated black blocs, for purposes of investigation. Allegations first surfaced after several demonstrations. At the 2001 ], among the many complaints about the police<ref>{{cite web|title=Media Advisory: Media Missing New Evidence About Genoa Violence|url=http://www.fair.org/activism/genoa-update.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314122126/http://www.fair.org/activism/genoa-update.html|archive-date=14 March 2012|publisher=]|access-date=26 August 2013}}</ref> there was mention of video footage which "suggests that men in black were seen getting out of police vans near protest marches."<ref>{{Cite news|last=Carroll|first=Rory|title=Men in black behind chaos: Hardliners plan 'actions' away from main protesters|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2001/jul/23/globalisation.davidpallister|access-date=28 June 2010|newspaper=]|date=23 July 2001|author2=John Vidal|author3=David Pallister|author4=Owen Bowcott}}</ref> In August 2007, ] admitted that "their officers disguised themselves as demonstrators" in Montebello. However, the officers purportedly did not engage in violence, and claimed that they were carrying rocks because other protesters were doing so. They were identified by genuine protesters because of their police-issue footwear.<ref>{{Cite news|title=Quebec police admit they went undercover at Montebello protest |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/quebec-police-admit-they-went-undercover-at-montebello-protest-1.656171|access-date=29 January 2014|publisher=]|date=23 August 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Topping|first=David|title=Bon Cop, Bad Cop|date=22 August 2007|url=http://torontoist.com/2007/08/bon_cop_bad_cop.php| publisher=Torontoist.com|access-date=28 June 2010}}</ref> According to veteran activist ], it was other participants in the black bloc who identified and exposed the undercover police.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rabble.ca/rabbletv/program-guide/2010/03/features/diversity-tactics-diversity-opinions |title=A Diversity of Tactics – A Diversity of Opinions|publisher=Rabble.ca |date=5 March 2010 |access-date=8 December 2013}}</ref> | |||
==Tactics== | |||
] | |||
{{Blockquote | |||
|quote = When we smash a window, we aim to destroy the thin veneer of legitimacy that surrounds private property rights... After N30 , many people will never see a shop window or a hammer the same way again. The potential uses of an entire cityscape have increased a thousand-fold. The number of broken windows pales in comparison to the number of spells—spells cast by a corporate hegemony to lull us into forgetfulness of all the violence committed in the name of private property rights and of all the potential of a society without them. Broken windows can be boarded and eventually replaced, but the shattering of assumptions will hopefully persist for some time to come. | |||
|source = ACME Collective, quoted in Paris (2003)<ref>{{cite journal|last=Paris|first=Jeffrey|title=The Black Bloc's Ungovernable Protest|journal=Peace Review|year=2003|volume=15|issue=3|pages=317–322|doi=10.1080/1040265032000130913|s2cid=144140995}}</ref> | |||
}} | |||
] black bloc organizing in ], Germany, in 2020]] | |||
Tactics of a black bloc primarily include ] of private property, ], and demonstrating without a permit. Tactics can also include use of defensive measures such as misleading the authorities, assisting in the escape of people arrested by the police ("un-arrests" or "de-arrests"), administering ] to people affected by ], ], and other ] measures in areas where protesters are barred from entering, building ]s, resisting the police, and practicing ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/zakkflash02072012/ |title=Hedging Our Bets on the Black Bloc: The Impotence of Mere Liberalism |publisher=Press Action |access-date=26 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514175233/http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/zakkflash02072012/ |archive-date=14 May 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.southerncrossreview.org/13/genoa.htm|title=Battle of Genoa|publisher=Southern Cross Review|access-date=16 November 2008}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Juris|first=Jeffrey S.|s2cid=145781235|title=Violence Performed and Imagined: Militant Action, the Black Bloc and the Mass Media in Genoa|journal=Critique of Anthropology|year=2005|volume=25|issue=4|pages=413–432|doi=10.1177/0308275X05058657}}</ref> Property destruction carried out by black blocs tends to have symbolic significance: common targets include banks, institutional buildings, outlets for ]s, gasoline stations, and video-surveillance cameras.<ref name="pressaction.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/zakkflash02152012/ |title=A Principled Stand on Diversity of Tactic: Avoiding Uniformity of Failure |publisher=Press Action |access-date=26 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130513100050/http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/zakkflash02152012/ |archive-date=13 May 2013}}</ref> | |||
There may be several blocs within a particular protest, with different aims and tactics.<ref name="K, 2001">K, 2001, "being black block" in ''On Fire: the battle of Genoa and the anti-capitalist movement'', p. 31, One Off Press.</ref> As an ] group, blocs often share no universally common set of principles or beliefs<ref name="K, 2001" /> apart from an adherence to—usually—leftist or ] values, although some anarchist groups have called for the Saint Paul Principles to be adapted as a framework in which diverse tactics can be deployed.<ref name="pressaction.com"/> A few radical right-wing groups, like some of the "]" of Europe<ref>{{Cite news|last=Nicola|first=Stefan|title=Germany's new neo-Nazis |url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2008/05/20/Germanys-new-neo-Nazis/UPI-87471211285700/ |access-date=28 June 2010|work=]|date=20 May 2008}}</ref> or the Australian so-called "]"<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Sunshine|first=Spencer|title=Rebranding Fascism: Nationalists|journal=Public Eye Magazine|date=April 2008|volume=23 |url=http://www.publiceye.org/magazine/v23n4/rebranding_fascism.html |access-date=28 June 2010}}</ref> have adopted "black bloc" tactics and dress. The political scientist Nicholas Apoifis, in his ethnography of anarchism in Athens, Greece, argues that black bloc action can constitute a form of ], due to its "flat and horizontal organisational structure, alongside its focus on solidarity."<ref>{{cite book|last=Apoifis|first=Nicholas|title=Anarchy in Athens: An Ethnography of Militancy, Emotions and Violence|publisher=Manchester University Press|year=2017|page=132}}</ref> | |||
==See also== | |||
{{Portal|Anarchism|Law|Politics|Society}} | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
* ] | |||
{{Clear}} | |||
==References== | |||
{{reflist}} | |||
==Further reading== | |||
{{refbegin}} | |||
* {{cite journal|last=Albertani|first=Claudio|title=Paint It Black: Black Blocs, Tute Bianche and Zapatistas in the Anti-globalization Movement*|journal=New Political Science|year=2002|volume=24|issue=4|pages=579–595|doi=10.1080/0739314022000025408|s2cid=143457869|issn=1469-9931}} | |||
* {{cite journal|last=Dupuis-Déri|first=Francis|author-link1=Francis Dupuis-Déri|title=The Black Blocs Ten Years after Seattle: Anarchism, Direct Action, and Deliberative Practices|journal=Journal for the Study of Radicalism|year=2010|volume=4|issue=2|pages=45–82|issn=1930-1189|url=https://www.academia.edu/2399689|doi=10.1353/jsr.2010.0005|s2cid=145429203}} | |||
* {{Cite book |last1=Dupuis-Déri |first1=Francis |author-link1=Francis Dupuis-Déri |title=Who's Afraid of the Black Blocs?: Anarchy in Action around the World |date=2014-07-01 |isbn=978-1-62963-046-5 |publisher=PM Press }} | |||
* {{Cite book |last1=Dupuis-Déri |first1=Francis |author-link1=Francis Dupuis-Déri |chapter=Black Blocs: A Complex Case of Radicalism |pages=291–302 |editor-last1=Kinna |editor-first1=Ruth |editor-last2=Gordon |editor-first2=Uri |title=Routledge Handbook of Radical Politics |date=2019 |isbn=978-1-138-66542-2 |publisher=Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group |location=New York }} | |||
* {{Cite book |last1=Feigenbaum |first1=Anna |last2=Frenzel |first2=Fabian |last3=McCurdy |first3=Patrick |title=Protest Camps |date=2013 |isbn=978-1-78032-357-2 |location=London |publisher=Zed Books Ltd. |pages=122–128 }} | |||
* {{cite journal|last=Gautney|first=Heather|title=Between Anarchism and Autonomist Marxism|journal=Working USA|date=September 2009|volume=12|issue=3|pages=467–487|url=http://slackbastard.anarchobase.com/?p=12332|doi=10.1111/j.1743-4580.2009.00249.x}} | |||
* Gee, Teoman (2001) . Alpine Anarchist Productions. | |||
* {{cite book|last=Graeber|first=David|title=]|year=2009|publisher=AK Press|location=Oakland|isbn=978-1904859796}} | |||
* {{cite journal|last=Graeber|first=David|title=Concerning the Violent Peace-Police: An Open Letter to Chris Hedges|journal=N+1|date=9 February 2012|url=http://nplusonemag.com/concerning-the-violent-peace-police|access-date=28 May 2012}} | |||
* {{cite web|url=http://dissent-archive.ucrony.net/dissentnetwork/node/3833.html|title=Of stones and flowers – Dialogue between John Holloway and Vittorio Sergi|first1=John|last1=Holloway|author1-link=John Holloway (sociologist)|first2=Vittorio|last2=Sergi|publisher=]|date=2007}} | |||
* Mohandesi, Salar (2012) Viewpoint Magazine. | |||
* {{cite journal|last=Paris|first=Jeffrey|title=The Black Bloc's Ungovernable Protest|journal=Peace Review|year=2003|volume=15|issue=3|pages=317–322|doi=10.1080/1040265032000130913|s2cid=144140995}} | |||
* Shantz, Jeff. ''Active Anarchy: Political Practice in Contemporary Movements.'' Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books, 2011. | |||
* , by Jeff Shantz | |||
* {{Cite journal |last1=Zúquete |first1=José Pedro |title=Men in Black: Dynamics, Violence, and Lone Wolf Potential |journal=Terrorism and Political Violence |volume=26 |issue=1 |pages=95–109 |date=2014-01-01 |doi=10.1080/09546553.2014.849920 |s2cid=145418547 |issn=0954-6553 }} | |||
* Green Mountain Anarchist Collective (NEFAC-VT) & Columbus Anti-Racist Action; , Black Clover Press, 2001. | |||
* Van Deusen, David; West, Sean; Green Mountain Anarchist Collective; , Catamount Tavern Press, this pamphlet shows a genesis of focus from organizing Bloc Blocs to organizing towards a libertarian-socialist society in northern New England. | |||
* Van Deusen, David; , foreword by ] of the '']'', Algora Publishing, 2017, {{ISBN|978-1-62894-303-0}}. | |||
* Van Deusen, David; , The Anarchist Library, 2017. | |||
* Van Deusen, David; Green Mountain Anarchist Collective; , Black Clover Press, 2001. | |||
* Van Deusen, David; Massot, Xavier; Green Mountain Anarchist Collective; , Breaking Glass Press, Shawnee Mission, Kansas, 2010. {{ISBN|0-9791671-0-8}} | |||
* Van Deusen, David; , 2015, this article looks at the ], why they came to take part in Black Blocs, and how they moved beyond the Black Bloc. | |||
{{refend}} | |||
==External links== | |||
{{Commons category|Black bloc}} | |||
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{{Anarcho-communism}} | |||
{{libertarian socialism navbox}} | |||
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Latest revision as of 21:26, 30 November 2024
Tactic used by groups of protesters For the Sudanese political organization, see Black Bloc (Sudan).
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A black bloc (sometimes black block) is a tactic used by protesters who wear black clothing, ski masks, scarves, sunglasses, motorcycle helmets with padding or other face-concealing and face-protecting items. The clothing is used to conceal wearers' identities from both the police and politically different organizations by making it difficult to distinguish between participants. It is also used to protect their faces and eyes from pepper spray, which is used by police during protests or civil unrest. The tactic also allows the group to appear as one large unified mass. Black bloc participants are often associated with anarchism, anarcho-communism, communism, libertarian socialism and the anti-globalization movement. A variant of this type of protest is the Padded bloc, where following the Tute Bianche movement protesters wear padded clothing to protect against the police.
The tactic was developed in the 1980s in the European autonomist movement's protests against squatter evictions, nuclear power, and restrictions on abortion, as well as other influences. Black blocs gained broader media attention outside Europe during the 1999 Seattle WTO protests, when a black bloc damaged property of Gap, Starbucks, Old Navy, and other multinational retail locations in downtown Seattle.
History
Precursors
In February 1967, the anarchist group Black Mask marched on Wall Street in New York City wearing black clothes and balaclavas. This was the first instance of a social movement in the western world utilizing masks and black dress, which were used not for purposes of disguise but to signify a militant uniform identity. In this regard, Black Mask may have indirectly influenced the black bloc tactic.
West German origins
The black bloc tactic to wear black clothing, ski masks, scarves, sunglasses, motorcycle helmets with padding or other face-concealing and face-protecting items was developed in response to increased use of police force following the 1977 Brokdorf demonstration.
On 1 May 1987, demonstrators in Berlin-Kreuzberg were confronted by West Berlin police. After this, thousands of violent rioters attacked the police with rocks, bottles and Molotov cocktails. The riots at the May Day in Kreuzberg became famous after the police had to completely pull out of the "SO 36" neighborhood in Kreuzberg for several hours, and rioters looted shops together with local criminals.
When Ronald Reagan came to Berlin in June 1987, he was met by around 50,000 demonstrators protesting against his Cold War policies. This included a black bloc of 3,000 people. In November 1987, Hafenstraße residents and thousands of other protesters and fortified their squat, built barricades in the streets and defended themselves against the police for nearly 24 hours. After this the city authorities legalised the squatters residence.
Since the late 1980s, Berlin's Kreuzberg district has hosted May Day clashes between anarchists and police. When the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund met in Berlin in 1988, autonomous groups hosted an international gathering of anti-capitalist activists. Numbering around 80,000, the protesters greatly outnumbered the police. Officials tried to maintain control by banning all demonstrations and attacking public assemblies. Nevertheless, there were riots and upmarket shopping areas were destroyed.
Unified Germany
In the period after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the German black bloc movement continued traditional riots such as May Day in Berlin-Kreuzberg, but with decreasing intensity. Their main focus became the struggle against the recurring popularity of Neo-Nazism in Germany. The "turn" came in June 2007, during the 33rd G8 summit. A coordinated black bloc of 2,000 international people came to Rostock, Germany, built barricades, rioted the streets, set cars alight and attacked the police during a mass demonstration. 400 police officers were injured, as well as about 500 rioters, demonstrators and activists. According to the German Verfassungsschutz, the weeks of organisation before the demonstration and the riots themselves amounted to a revival for the militant left in Germany. Since the "Battle of Rostock", traditional "May Day Riots" after demonstrations every 1 May in Berlin, and since 2008 also in Hamburg, became more intense.
International development
North America
The first prominent use of the tactic in United States of America occurred at the Pentagon, in Washington, D.C., on 17 October 1988, although anarchists had been using similar tactics in small numbers in preceding years in places like San Francisco, culminating with several hundred anarchists in black smashing glass store fronts and attacking vehicles in the Berkeley Anarchist Riot of 1989. In D.C., over one thousand demonstrators—a small number consisting of a black bloc—called for the end to U.S. support for the right wing death squads in El Salvador. A black bloc caused damage to property of GAP, Starbucks, Old Navy, and other retail locations in downtown Seattle during the 1999 anti-WTO demonstrations. They were a common feature of subsequent anti-globalization protests.
In the years after the end of the Vietnam War, protest in the US came to assume more legalistic, orderly forms, and was increasingly dominated by the middle-class. This corresponded with the rise of a highly effective police strategy of crowd control called "negotiated management". Many social scientists have noted the "institutionalization of movements" in this period. These currents largely constrained disruptive protest until 1999. In an unprecedented success for post-Vietnam era civil disobedience, the WTO Ministerial Conference opening ceremonies were shut down completely, host city Seattle declared a state of emergency for nearly a week, multilateral trade negotiations between the wealthy and developing nations collapsed, and all of this was done without fatalities. This occurred in the midst of mass rioting which had been set off by militant anarchists, some of them in a black bloc formation.
The call for the Seattle protest had originally come from Peoples' Global Action (a network co-founded by the Zapatistas) which supported diversity of tactics and a highly flexible definition of nonviolence. In the aftermath of the shutdown, however, various NGO spokespeople associated with Seattle DAN claimed that the riotous aspect of the WTO protests was counterproductive and undemocratic. They also asserted that it was only an insignificantly small group from Eugene, Oregon that engaged in property destruction. Medea Benjamin told The New York Times that "These anarchists should have been arrested", while Lori Wallach of Public Citizen stated that she had instructed Teamsters to assault black bloc participants. Barbara Ehrenreich decried the NGO leaders as "hypocrites", and wrote that nonviolent activists ought to be "treating the young rock-throwers like sisters and brothers in the struggle." She also criticized the dominant nonviolent paradigm as "absurdly ritualized". The solution to Ehrenreich's impasse was the growing acceptance of black bloc tactics in the anti-globalization movement.
During protests against the 2010 G20 summit in Toronto, a black bloc riot damaged a number of retail locations including an Urban Outfitters, American Apparel, Adidas Store, Starbucks and many banking establishments.
On the day of President Donald Trump's inauguration in 2017, black bloc groups were present among other protests in Washington, D.C., and other places. The groups engaged in vandalism, rioting, and violence. At least 217 were arrested and six police officers sustained minor injuries, and at least one other person was injured.
In February 2017, an event at the University of California, Berkeley by commentator Milo Yiannopoulos was cancelled by college administrators after protestors of a black bloc broke windows, shot fireworks, and caused a light fixture to catch fire. The cancellation of the event brought mainstream attention to anarchism and black bloc tactics.
In May 2021, Portland protesters in black bloc turned out at multiple rallies and marches that marked the one-year anniversary of the murder of George Floyd. At one event the protesters wheeled a dumpster into the street and set its contents on fire, drawing police out. The rally was declared a riot by police.
Brazil
During the June–July 2013 mass public demonstrations, groups of people using Black Bloc tactics started attending demonstrations, especially those held across the street from governor of Rio de Janeiro State Sérgio Cabral Filho's residence and the state government palace. Police face accusations of infiltrating the movement and, at times, acting as agents provocateurs by starting confrontations. Many leftists claim that video footage shows an infiltrated police officer throwing a molotov cocktail that wounded a riot policeman, although this has been denied by the police and hasn't been proven until today (2017). Protester violence occurred regularly during the Brazilian protests (particularly the week of 17 to 21 June) even when not linked with the black bloc, or with police infiltration.
Despite the denunciations by media, police, and even some activists, the black bloc tactic persisted in the movement. By October 2013, "The mask-wearers were welcomed by the protesters who wanted to wreak havoc during manifestations... Indeed, this sense of solidarity amidst the demonstrations, this shared manning of barricades, inspires a common determination to fight against the fear of repression." According to a report by two Brazilian leftists published in Al Jazeera, this coincided with a revival in the breadth of the street protests that had not been seen since its early days in June. On 10 October, the Rio teachers' union (Sepe) officially declared support for the recent black bloc actions, stating that the bloc were "welcome" at their demonstrations. Postings on teacher Facebook groups praised bloc participants as "fearless".
Europe
On 1 May 2018, over 1,200 black bloc took part in demonstrations in Paris, France. Public infrastructures and stores were damaged. During the demonstrations of the Yellow vests movement (autumn 2018-spring 2019) major damage was done by black bloc in Paris, Toulouse and Bordeaux. The protest resulting in the most significant amount of property damage took place in Paris when protestors took to the streets on the Champs-Élysées on 16 March 2019.
A group of about 400 black bloc demonstrators took part in the 2011 London anti-cuts protest where they targeted various high end retail outlets; according to journalist Paul Mason this may have been the largest ever black bloc assembly in the UK. Mason says some of the participants were anarchists from Europe, others were British students who joined the demonstrations after participating in the 2010 UK student protests. A black bloc protested the opening of the universal exposition Expo 2015 in Milan.
Amongst hundreds of thousands of protesters protesting the G20 Summit in Hamburg Germany were thousands of black clad rioters who clashed with police in a 3-day standoff resulting in millions of euros in property damage. At least 500 protestors were injured and more than 200 were arrested.
Egypt
On 25 January 2013, on the second anniversary of the Egyptian Revolution, black blocs made an appearance in the Egyptian political scenes where they reportedly attacked various Muslim Brotherhood headquarters and government buildings and stopped traffic and metro lines in more than eight cities. A group of young protesters, who identified themselves as the "Black Bloc", have marked the second anniversary of the Egyptian revolution by blocking the tramway tracks in Alexandria on Friday. Egyptian Prosecutor General Talaat Abdallah ordered the police and armed forces to arrest any participant in the Black Bloc, pointing out that the group was carrying out "terrorist activities" and was considered by the government and under the new constitution a violent radical outlaw group.
Police infiltration
On occasion, police and security services have infiltrated black blocs, for purposes of investigation. Allegations first surfaced after several demonstrations. At the 2001 G8 summit in Genoa, among the many complaints about the police there was mention of video footage which "suggests that men in black were seen getting out of police vans near protest marches." In August 2007, Quebec police admitted that "their officers disguised themselves as demonstrators" in Montebello. However, the officers purportedly did not engage in violence, and claimed that they were carrying rocks because other protesters were doing so. They were identified by genuine protesters because of their police-issue footwear. According to veteran activist Harsha Walia, it was other participants in the black bloc who identified and exposed the undercover police.
Tactics
When we smash a window, we aim to destroy the thin veneer of legitimacy that surrounds private property rights... After N30 , many people will never see a shop window or a hammer the same way again. The potential uses of an entire cityscape have increased a thousand-fold. The number of broken windows pales in comparison to the number of spells—spells cast by a corporate hegemony to lull us into forgetfulness of all the violence committed in the name of private property rights and of all the potential of a society without them. Broken windows can be boarded and eventually replaced, but the shattering of assumptions will hopefully persist for some time to come.
— ACME Collective, quoted in Paris (2003)
Tactics of a black bloc primarily include vandalism of private property, rioting, and demonstrating without a permit. Tactics can also include use of defensive measures such as misleading the authorities, assisting in the escape of people arrested by the police ("un-arrests" or "de-arrests"), administering first aid to people affected by tear gas, rubber bullets, and other riot control measures in areas where protesters are barred from entering, building barricades, resisting the police, and practicing jail solidarity. Property destruction carried out by black blocs tends to have symbolic significance: common targets include banks, institutional buildings, outlets for multinational corporations, gasoline stations, and video-surveillance cameras.
There may be several blocs within a particular protest, with different aims and tactics. As an ad hoc group, blocs often share no universally common set of principles or beliefs apart from an adherence to—usually—leftist or autonomist values, although some anarchist groups have called for the Saint Paul Principles to be adapted as a framework in which diverse tactics can be deployed. A few radical right-wing groups, like some of the "autonomous nationalists" of Europe or the Australian so-called "National-Anarchists" have adopted "black bloc" tactics and dress. The political scientist Nicholas Apoifis, in his ethnography of anarchism in Athens, Greece, argues that black bloc action can constitute a form of prefigurative politics, due to its "flat and horizontal organisational structure, alongside its focus on solidarity."
See also
- Anti-Nazi League
- Antifa (Germany)
- Antifa (United States)
- Battle of Cable Street
- Green Mountain Anarchist Collective
- Primera Línea
- Rebecca Riots
- Rock Against Racism
- Unite Against Fascism
- Anonymous (hacker group)
References
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{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Bacchi, Umberto; Iaccino, Ludovica; Mezzofiore, Gianluca (1 May 2015). "Milan Expo 2015: Violent May Day protests at No Expo anti-capitalist demonstration". International Business Times UK. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
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Further reading
- Albertani, Claudio (2002). "Paint It Black: Black Blocs, Tute Bianche and Zapatistas in the Anti-globalization Movement*". New Political Science. 24 (4): 579–595. doi:10.1080/0739314022000025408. ISSN 1469-9931. S2CID 143457869.
- Dupuis-Déri, Francis (2010). "The Black Blocs Ten Years after Seattle: Anarchism, Direct Action, and Deliberative Practices". Journal for the Study of Radicalism. 4 (2): 45–82. doi:10.1353/jsr.2010.0005. ISSN 1930-1189. S2CID 145429203.
- Dupuis-Déri, Francis (1 July 2014). Who's Afraid of the Black Blocs?: Anarchy in Action around the World. PM Press. ISBN 978-1-62963-046-5.
- Dupuis-Déri, Francis (2019). "Black Blocs: A Complex Case of Radicalism". In Kinna, Ruth; Gordon, Uri (eds.). Routledge Handbook of Radical Politics. New York: Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group. pp. 291–302. ISBN 978-1-138-66542-2.
- Feigenbaum, Anna; Frenzel, Fabian; McCurdy, Patrick (2013). Protest Camps. London: Zed Books Ltd. pp. 122–128. ISBN 978-1-78032-357-2.
- Gautney, Heather (September 2009). "Between Anarchism and Autonomist Marxism". Working USA. 12 (3): 467–487. doi:10.1111/j.1743-4580.2009.00249.x.
- Gee, Teoman (2001) "Militancy Beyond Black Blocs". Alpine Anarchist Productions.
- Graeber, David (2009). Direct Action: An Ethnography. Oakland: AK Press. ISBN 978-1904859796.
- Graeber, David (9 February 2012). "Concerning the Violent Peace-Police: An Open Letter to Chris Hedges". N+1. Retrieved 28 May 2012.
- Holloway, John; Sergi, Vittorio (2007). "Of stones and flowers – Dialogue between John Holloway and Vittorio Sergi". Dissent!.
- Mohandesi, Salar (2012) "On the Black Bloc." Viewpoint Magazine.
- Paris, Jeffrey (2003). "The Black Bloc's Ungovernable Protest". Peace Review. 15 (3): 317–322. doi:10.1080/1040265032000130913. S2CID 144140995.
- Shantz, Jeff. Active Anarchy: Political Practice in Contemporary Movements. Lanham, Maryland: Lexington Books, 2011.
- Black Blocs and Contemporary Propaganda of the Deed, by Jeff Shantz
- Zúquete, José Pedro (1 January 2014). "Men in Black: Dynamics, Violence, and Lone Wolf Potential". Terrorism and Political Violence. 26 (1): 95–109. doi:10.1080/09546553.2014.849920. ISSN 0954-6553. S2CID 145418547.
- Green Mountain Anarchist Collective (NEFAC-VT) & Columbus Anti-Racist Action; A Communiqué on Tactics and Organization to the Black Bloc, from within the Black Bloc, Black Clover Press, 2001.
- Van Deusen, David; West, Sean; Green Mountain Anarchist Collective; Neither Washington Nor Stowe: Common Sense For The Working Vermonter, Catamount Tavern Press, this pamphlet shows a genesis of focus from organizing Bloc Blocs to organizing towards a libertarian-socialist society in northern New England.
- Van Deusen, David; On Anarchism: Dispatches From The People's Republic of Vermont, foreword by Jeff Jones of the Weather Underground, Algora Publishing, 2017, ISBN 978-1-62894-303-0.
- Van Deusen, David; Van Deusen On North American Black Blocs 1996-2001, The Anarchist Library, 2017.
- Van Deusen, David; Green Mountain Anarchist Collective; On The Question of Violence and Nonviolence As a Tactic and Strategy Within The Social Protest Movement: An Anarchist Perspective, Black Clover Press, 2001.
- Van Deusen, David; Massot, Xavier; Green Mountain Anarchist Collective; The Black Bloc Papers: An Anthology of Primary Texts From The North American Anarchist Black Bloc 1988–2005, Breaking Glass Press, Shawnee Mission, Kansas, 2010. ISBN 0-9791671-0-8
- Van Deusen, David; The Rise and Fall of The Green Mountain Anarchist Collective, 2015, this article looks at the Green Mountain Anarchist Collective, why they came to take part in Black Blocs, and how they moved beyond the Black Bloc.
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