Comments on: disempowerment in front of the black bloc

By: Kaze no Kae

Kaze no Kae — Thu, 19 May 2011 01:07:05 +0000

Thats my understanding of the original purpose, anyway. Fair point about consent

By: Jake

Jake — Wed, 18 May 2011 20:46:29 +0000

Kaze no Kae says “Black blocs should get back to their original purpose, as action stewards defending demonstrators from the police.”

Have black blocs ever functioned like this? I don’t remember them doing so in the UK but maybe they did elsewhere.

Then there is still the issue of consent: if they are to be there at all it should be there because the demonstrators want them to be. Otherwise they are yet an other self-appointed vanguard, and we have enough of them already!

I’m not trying to have a go: the issue of self-defence is an important one. But different contingents on a demo can have their own stewards for example, of people known to those taking part. In fact this happens anyway to some extent.

Elsewhere Rudlfrocker says

“The big problem is the psychological barrier that this group is homogenous and ‘other’ ”

Well if there is a group of people all dressed the same and masked then it is very difficult for the rest of us to avoid the impression that it is ‘homogenous and other’ ! How to convince peole otherwise?

By: Kaze no Kae

Kaze no Kae — Wed, 18 May 2011 14:41:19 +0000

Speaking from the other side I can see how some of the actions of the black bloc might have been alienating for people outside it, particularly the firecrackers which tbh I didn’t see the point in anyway. Black blocs should get back to their original purpose, as action stewards defending demonstrators from the police. That way their positive relationship to the movement will be much more apparent.

Sorry to hear about your experience, AV. I didn’t see that, although I did see the start of the attack on the Ritz, and didn’t understand it at first because the Ritz in Manchester is just a cheap nightclub, so I didn’t realise the Ritz in London was basically a symbol of wealth. If I’d seen you get attacked I would have done my best to stop it. Was it a misunderstanding, do you think, or just a case of nihilist hooliganism?

By: AutonomousVeteran

AutonomousVeteran — Fri, 29 Apr 2011 12:40:23 +0000

Thanks for your honest and heartfelt account. For me it’s really good to see this kind of reporting from the day, which appears to be a real persons’ experience and not some partisan or hypocritical crap.
I was on the march, too – together with my partner and children. We had prepared an action, admittedly a fluffy one, which we couldn’t carry out because we were indirectly attacked by the black bloc and ironically protected by the police. Of course they didn’t mean to attack us, but nevertheless that is what happened. People were hurt and kicked, fireworks and paint bombs were shot at us, with the children at risk & ending up being very scared and traumatised. We were part of a lose group of parents, taking a shortcut near the Ritz.
Now I’m not having anybody telling me that we shouldn’t have been there. Police are always telling me that when we go to demos and actions with children and to me that is oppressive! On that day however the only people who oppressed us were the people who were shooting fireworks and smokebombs, and the black bloc people who didn’t stop them.
Black Bloc action is not justified in all situations, especially when it stops other people from doing their actions – or if it endangers other people, like it did on the day.

Nobody knows what is going to work in the long run, whether it’s fluffy actions, spikey actions, autonomous community projects or whatever. There is no hierarchy between those choices, unless you create one.

By: c0mmunard

c0mmunard — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 08:28:16 +0000

Rudolf – I think the writer knows that it isn’t a homogenous group. They make it clear, I think, that they understand the black block.

What differentiates this piece from so many liberal critiques is that it is based on the real experience of a definite, self-organised, working class grouping. We need to listen to these experiences, and take account of them: not just criticise everyone who doesn’t join the black bloc for not doing so. The article doesn’t say ‘black blocs are no good’. It says: there are issues with them – and offers some suggestions for how they could continue to be militant, but also perhaps be more inclusive.

You need to read or listen a bit more carefully.

By: rudolfrocker

rudolfrocker — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 17:02:23 +0000

I think you have bought the line that this is a homogenous group – it wasn’t – indeed it consisted of people just like yourself . The big problem is the psychological barrier that this group is homogenous and ‘other’ – that would seem to be the obstacle to be overcome. Cover your face, join in, make sure you have a buddy or affinity group with you – do what you feel is appropriate while never being isolated from the larger body of the bloc. Simples.

By: Jake

Jake — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 15:59:31 +0000

I think this is an important reflection and this seems to sum it up: “we will be stronger the more people can get involved and feel ownership of what they are doing.”
On the feeder march from Kennington we had a similar moment as to when the stewards tried to hold you up. It was when the march decided to stick to it’s route across Westminster Bridge despite the police wanting otherwise. It was a bit heart-in-mouth – we also had babies in buggies and so on. More on that at http://lambethsaveourservices.org/2011/04/04/lawa-reports-on-26th-march/
I sometimes get that feeling that there is an arrogance about among black blockers whereby they have a whole justification of not wanting to relate to anyone else because it’s not about winning over opinion but just ‘doing it’ – and they extend that to include everyone on the march. A bit more self-reflection would be good.