Black bloc
Encyclopedia
A black bloc is a tactic for protests and marches, whereby individuals wear black clothing, scarves, ski masks, motorcycle helmet
s with padding, or other face-concealing items. The clothing is used to avoid being identified, and to, theoretically, appear as one large mass, promoting solidarity.
The tactic was developed in the 1980s by autonomists
protesting squatter evictions, nuclear power
and restrictions on abortion
among other things. Black blocs gained broader media attention outside Europe
during the 1999 anti-WTO demonstrations
, when a black bloc damaged property of GAP
, Starbucks
, Old Navy
, and other multinational
retail locations in downtown Seattle.
"The Black Bloc" is sometimes incorrectly reported as being the name of a specific anarchist
group. It is, rather, a tactic that may be adopted by groups of various motivations and methods.
, rioting and street fighting
, demonstrating without a permit, misleading the authorities, assisting in the escape of people arrested by the police, administering first aid
to persons affected by tear gas in areas where protesters are barred from entering, building barricade
s, and resisting the police. Property destruction carried out by black blocs tends to have symbolic significance: common targets include banks, institutional buildings, outlets for multinational corporation
s, gasoline stations, and video-surveillance cameras.
There may be several black blocs within a particular protest
, with different aims and tactics. As an ad hoc
group, they share no universally common set of principles or beliefs apart from an adherence to–usually–radical left
or autonomist values. A few radical right-wing groups, like some of the "autonomous nationalists" of Europe
or the Australia
n National-Anarchists
have adopted "black bloc" tactics and dress.
demonstration by the German police in 1980, particularly aimed at anti-nuclear
activists and squatters. Key areas for this development were Hafenstraße
, Hamburg
, and Kreuzberg
, Berlin
. These were social spaces occupied by dissident
s who preferred to create their own social institutions based on communal living and alternative community centres. In June 1980, the German Police forcefully evicted the Free Republic of Wendland
, an anti-nuclear protest camp
in Gorleben
, Wendland
. This attack on 5,000 peaceful protesters led many former pacifists to become willing to use violent methods. By December 1980 the Berlin City Government organised an escalating cycle of mass arrest
s, followed by other local authorities across West Germany
. The squatters resisted by opening new squats, as the old ones were evicted. Following the mass arrest of squatters in Freiburg
, demonstrations were held in their support in many German cities. The day was dubbed Black Friday following a demonstration in Berlin at which between 15,000 to 20,000 people took to the streets and destroyed an expensive shopping area. The tactic of wearing identical black clothes and masks meant that the autonomen were better able to resist the police and elude identification. The German media labeled them der schwarze Block ("the black block"). In the Netherlands
, similar militant resistance developed, but the wearing of ski-masks was less prevalent and the phrase Black Helmet Brigade was used.
In 1986 Hamburg squatters mobilised following attacks on the Hafenstraße. A demonstration of 10,000 took to the streets surrounding at least 1,500 people in a black bloc. They carried a large banner saying "Build Revolutionary Dual Power!" At the end of the march, the black bloc then engaged in street fighting that forced the police to retreat. The next day 13 department stores in Hamburg were set alight, causing nearly $10 million in damage. Later that year, following the Chernobyl
disaster, militant anti-nuclear activists used the tactic.
On 1st May 1987, a peaceful peoples fest in Berlin-Kreuzberg was attacked by West German police
. In consequence of the unprovoked attack, thousands of people attacked the police with rocks, bottles and molotov cocktails. The riots became famous after the police had to completly pull out of the so called "SO 36" Neigbhourhood in Kreuzberg for several hours, and rioters looted shops together with residents.
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. A couple of months later, police intensified their harassment of the Hafenstraße squatters. In November 1987, the residents were joined by thousands of other Autonomen 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.
On 1st May 1988, radical left groups organised a May Day
demonstration through Berlin-Kreuzberg, ending in riots even heavier than the year before. The police were attacked with steel balls fired by slingshots, stones, fireworks and molotov cocktails. On 2nd May, headline of the Berlin newspaper B.Z. was "Beirut?? Nein, das ist Berlin!" (Beirut?? No, it´s Berlin!). The riots finally became a tradition in Berlin-Kreuzberg and have recurred every 1st May since, but never as fatally as in the first two years. When the World Bank
and the International Monetary Fund
met in Berlin in 1988, the autonomen 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 riot
s and upmarket shopping areas were destroyed.
In the period after 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 black block of 3,000 people built barricades, set cars alight and attacked the police during a mass demonstration in Rostock
. 400 police officers were injured, and also about 500 demonstrators and activists. According to the German Verfassungsschutz, the weeks of organisation before the demonstration and the riots themselves were amounted to a revival for the militant left in Germany. Since the "Battle of Rostock", traditional "May Day Riots" after demonstrations every May 1st in Berlin, and since 2008 also in Hamburg, became more intense, and violence of the autonomen
against police officers and political enemies at demonstrations of radical left groups have dramatically increased.
was in 1989 at a protest at the Pentagon
. Other early use in the US were the Earth Day Wall Street Action in 1990 and the February 1991 protests against the Gulf War
. These were initiated by Love and Rage
, a North American revolutionary anarchist organization active in New York
. Black blocs gained significant media attention when 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. During 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.
, amongst the many complaints about the police there was mention of video footage in which "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." On these occasions, some were identified by genuine protesters because of their police-issue footwear.
Motorcycle helmet
A motorcycle helmet is a type of protective headgear used by motorcycle riders. The primary goal of a motorcycle helmet is motorcycle safety - to protect the rider's head during impact, thus preventing or reducing head injury or saving the rider's life...
s with padding, or other face-concealing items. The clothing is used to avoid being identified, and to, theoretically, appear as one large mass, promoting solidarity.
The tactic was developed in the 1980s by autonomists
Autonomism
Autonomism refers to a set of left-wing political and social movements and theories close to the socialist movement. As an identifiable theoretical system it first emerged in Italy in the 1960s from workerist communism...
protesting squatter evictions, nuclear power
Nuclear power
Nuclear power is the use of sustained nuclear fission to generate heat and electricity. Nuclear power plants provide about 6% of the world's energy and 13–14% of the world's electricity, with the U.S., France, and Japan together accounting for about 50% of nuclear generated electricity...
and restrictions on abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
among other things. Black blocs gained broader media attention outside Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
during the 1999 anti-WTO demonstrations
WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999 protest activity
Protest activity surrounding the WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999, which was to be the launch of a new millennial round of trade negotiations, occurred on November 30, 1999 , when the World Trade Organization convened at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center in Seattle, Washington,...
, when a black bloc damaged property of GAP
Gap (clothing retailer)
The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...
, Starbucks
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
, Old Navy
Old Navy
Old Navy is an American clothing brand as well as a chain of stores owned by Gap, Inc., with corporate operations in San Francisco and San Bruno, California. It is one of the first major corporations to house headquarters in the new Mission Bay district of San Francisco.Gap, Inc. was run by...
, and other multinational
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
retail locations in downtown Seattle.
"The Black Bloc" is sometimes incorrectly reported as being the name of a specific anarchist
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
group. It is, rather, a tactic that may be adopted by groups of various motivations and methods.
Tactics
Tactics of a black bloc can include vandalismVandalism
Vandalism is the behaviour attributed originally to the Vandals, by the Romans, in respect of culture: ruthless destruction or spoiling of anything beautiful or venerable...
, rioting and street fighting
Street fighting
Street fighting is a colloquial term used to denote unsanctioned, illegal in some countries, hand-to-hand fighting in public places, between individuals or groups of people....
, demonstrating without a permit, misleading the authorities, assisting in the escape of people arrested by the police, administering first aid
First aid
First aid is the provision of initial care for an illness or injury. It is usually performed by non-expert, but trained personnel to a sick or injured person until definitive medical treatment can be accessed. Certain self-limiting illnesses or minor injuries may not require further medical care...
to persons affected by tear gas in areas where protesters are barred from entering, building barricade
Barricade
Barricade, from the French barrique , is any object or structure that creates a barrier or obstacle to control, block passage or force the flow of traffic in the desired direction...
s, and resisting the police. Property destruction carried out by black blocs tends to have symbolic significance: common targets include banks, institutional buildings, outlets for multinational corporation
Multinational corporation
A multi national corporation or enterprise , is a corporation or an enterprise that manages production or delivers services in more than one country. It can also be referred to as an international corporation...
s, gasoline stations, and video-surveillance cameras.
There may be several black blocs within a particular protest
Protest
A protest is an expression of objection, by words or by actions, to particular events, policies or situations. Protests can take many different forms, from individual statements to mass demonstrations...
, with different aims and tactics. As an ad hoc
Adhocracy
Adhocracy is a type of organization that operates in opposite fashion to a bureaucracy. The term was first popularized in 1970 by Alvin Toffler, and has since become often used in the theory of management of organizations , further developed by academics such as Henry Mintzberg.- Etymology :The...
group, they share no universally common set of principles or beliefs apart from an adherence to–usually–radical left
Left-wing politics
In politics, Left, left-wing and leftist generally refer to support for social change to create a more egalitarian society...
or autonomist values. A few radical right-wing groups, like some of the "autonomous nationalists" of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
or the Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n National-Anarchists
National-Anarchism
National-Anarchism is a radical, anti-capitalist, anti-statist, right-wing political and cultural ideology which emphasizes ethnic tribalism. As a prelude to an anticipated racial civil war and a collapse of the capitalist system, National-Anarchists seek to establish autonomous villages for...
have adopted "black bloc" tactics and dress.
German origins
This tactic was developed following increased use of police force following the 1977 BrokdorfBrokdorf
Brokdorf is a municipality in the district of Steinburg, in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany.-Anti Nuclear protests:The Brokdorf Nuclear Power Plant is located in Brokdorf. During the building phase in the 70's and 80's there were violent protests of nuclear power by opponents...
demonstration by the German police in 1980, particularly aimed at anti-nuclear
Anti-nuclear
The anti-nuclear movement is a social movement that opposes the use of nuclear technologies. Many direct action groups, environmental groups, and professional organisations have identified themselves with the movement at the local, national, and international level...
activists and squatters. Key areas for this development were Hafenstraße
Hafenstraße
Hafenstraße is a common German abbreviation of St. Pauli-Hafenstraße, a street in St. Pauli, a quarter of Hamburg, Germany....
, Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, and Kreuzberg
Kreuzberg
Kreuzberg, a part of the combined Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg borough located south of Mitte since 2001, is one of the best-known areas of Berlin...
, Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
. These were social spaces occupied by dissident
Dissident
A dissident, broadly defined, is a person who actively challenges an established doctrine, policy, or institution. When dissidents unite for a common cause they often effect a dissident movement....
s who preferred to create their own social institutions based on communal living and alternative community centres. In June 1980, the German Police forcefully evicted the Free Republic of Wendland
Free Republic of Wendland
The Free Republic of Wendland was a protest camp established in Gorleben, Germany on 3 May 1980 to protest against the establishment of a radioactive waste dump there. On 4 June 1980, the police moved in to evict the camp.- See also :* Anti-nuclear movement in Germany...
, an anti-nuclear protest camp
Protest camp
Protest camps are physical camps that are set up by activists, to either provide a base for protest, or to delay, obstruct or prevent the focus of their protest by physically blocking it with the camp...
in Gorleben
Gorleben
Gorleben is a small municipality in the Gartow region of the Lüchow-Dannenberg district in the far north-east of Lower Saxony, Germany, a region also known as the Wendland....
, Wendland
Wendland
Wendland may refer to either of the following regions or people:*Wendland may refer to a region once inhabited by Wends, an old Germanic term for Slavic tribes living in close proximity to the Germanic tribes:...
. This attack on 5,000 peaceful protesters led many former pacifists to become willing to use violent methods. By December 1980 the Berlin City Government organised an escalating cycle of mass arrest
Mass arrest
A mass arrest occurs when the police apprehend large numbers of suspects at once. This sometimes occurs at illegal protests. Some mass arrests are also used in an effort combat gang activity. This is sometimes controversial, and lawsuits sometimes result...
s, followed by other local authorities across West Germany
West Germany
West Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
. The squatters resisted by opening new squats, as the old ones were evicted. Following the mass arrest of squatters in Freiburg
Freiburg
Freiburg im Breisgau is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. In the extreme south-west of the country, it straddles the Dreisam river, at the foot of the Schlossberg. Historically, the city has acted as the hub of the Breisgau region on the western edge of the Black Forest in the Upper Rhine Plain...
, demonstrations were held in their support in many German cities. The day was dubbed Black Friday following a demonstration in Berlin at which between 15,000 to 20,000 people took to the streets and destroyed an expensive shopping area. The tactic of wearing identical black clothes and masks meant that the autonomen were better able to resist the police and elude identification. The German media labeled them der schwarze Block ("the black block"). In the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, similar militant resistance developed, but the wearing of ski-masks was less prevalent and the phrase Black Helmet Brigade was used.
In 1986 Hamburg squatters mobilised following attacks on the Hafenstraße. A demonstration of 10,000 took to the streets surrounding at least 1,500 people in a black bloc. They carried a large banner saying "Build Revolutionary Dual Power!" At the end of the march, the black bloc then engaged in street fighting that forced the police to retreat. The next day 13 department stores in Hamburg were set alight, causing nearly $10 million in damage. Later that year, following the Chernobyl
Chernobyl
Chernobyl or Chornobyl is an abandoned city in northern Ukraine, in Kiev Oblast, near the border with Belarus. The city had been the administrative centre of the Chernobyl Raion since 1932....
disaster, militant anti-nuclear activists used the tactic.
On 1st May 1987, a peaceful peoples fest in Berlin-Kreuzberg was attacked by West German police
Polizei
Polizei is the German word for police. It might refer to:-National agencies:*Bundespolizei - Federal Police of Germany*Bundespolizei - Federal Police of Austria*Bundeskriminalamt - Federal Criminal Office of Germany, comparable to the FBI...
. In consequence of the unprovoked attack, thousands of people attacked the police with rocks, bottles and molotov cocktails. The riots became famous after the police had to completly pull out of the so called "SO 36" Neigbhourhood in Kreuzberg for several hours, and rioters looted shops together with residents.
When Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
came to Berlin in June 1987, he was met by around 50,000 demonstrators protesting against his Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
policies. This included a black bloc of 3,000 people. A couple of months later, police intensified their harassment of the Hafenstraße squatters. In November 1987, the residents were joined by thousands of other Autonomen 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.
On 1st May 1988, radical left groups organised a May Day
International Workers' Day
International Workers' Day is a celebration of the international labour movement and left-wing movements. It commonly sees organized street demonstrations and marches by working people and their labour unions throughout most of the world. May 1 is a national holiday in more than 80 countries...
demonstration through Berlin-Kreuzberg, ending in riots even heavier than the year before. The police were attacked with steel balls fired by slingshots, stones, fireworks and molotov cocktails. On 2nd May, headline of the Berlin newspaper B.Z. was "Beirut?? Nein, das ist Berlin!" (Beirut?? No, it´s Berlin!). The riots finally became a tradition in Berlin-Kreuzberg and have recurred every 1st May since, but never as fatally as in the first two years. When the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
and the International Monetary Fund
International Monetary Fund
The International Monetary Fund is an organization of 187 countries, working to foster global monetary cooperation, secure financial stability, facilitate international trade, promote high employment and sustainable economic growth, and reduce poverty around the world...
met in Berlin in 1988, the autonomen 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 riot
Riot
A riot is a form of civil disorder characterized often by what is thought of as disorganized groups lashing out in a sudden and intense rash of violence against authority, property or people. While individuals may attempt to lead or control a riot, riots are thought to be typically chaotic and...
s and upmarket shopping areas were destroyed.
In the period after the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
, 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
Neo-Nazism
Neo-Nazism consists of post-World War II social or political movements seeking to revive Nazism or some variant thereof.The term neo-Nazism can also refer to the ideology of these movements....
in Germany. The "turn" came in June 2007, during the 33rd G8 Summit
33rd G8 summit
The 33rd G8 summit took place at Kempinski Grand Hotel in Heiligendamm in the old Duchy of Mecklenburg in the Northern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern on the Baltic Coast. The group of eight leaders met together from 6 June to 8 June 2007...
. A black block of 3,000 people built barricades, set cars alight and attacked the police during a mass demonstration in Rostock
Rostock
Rostock -Early history:In the 11th century Polabian Slavs founded a settlement at the Warnow river called Roztoc ; the name Rostock is derived from that designation. The Danish king Valdemar I set the town aflame in 1161.Afterwards the place was settled by German traders...
. 400 police officers were injured, and also about 500 demonstrators and activists. According to the German Verfassungsschutz, the weeks of organisation before the demonstration and the riots themselves were amounted to a revival for the militant left in Germany. Since the "Battle of Rostock", traditional "May Day Riots" after demonstrations every May 1st in Berlin, and since 2008 also in Hamburg, became more intense, and violence of the autonomen
Autonomism
Autonomism refers to a set of left-wing political and social movements and theories close to the socialist movement. As an identifiable theoretical system it first emerged in Italy in the 1960s from workerist communism...
against police officers and political enemies at demonstrations of radical left groups have dramatically increased.
International development
The first recorded use of the tactic in United States of AmericaUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
was in 1989 at a protest at the Pentagon
The Pentagon
The Pentagon is the headquarters of the United States Department of Defense, located in Arlington County, Virginia. As a symbol of the U.S. military, "the Pentagon" is often used metonymically to refer to the Department of Defense rather than the building itself.Designed by the American architect...
. Other early use in the US were the Earth Day Wall Street Action in 1990 and the February 1991 protests against the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
. These were initiated by Love and Rage
Love and Rage
The Love and Rage Revolutionary Anarchist Federation was formed in the United States in 1993 out of the remaining groups in the Love and Rage Network.-Background:...
, a North American revolutionary anarchist organization active in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Black blocs gained significant media attention when a black bloc caused damage to property of GAP
Gap (clothing retailer)
The Gap, Inc. is an American clothing and accessories retailer based in San Francisco, California, and founded in 1969 by Donald G. Fisher and Doris F. Fisher. The company has five primary brands: the namesake Gap banner, Banana Republic, Old Navy, Piperlime and Athleta. As of September 2008,...
, Starbucks
Starbucks
Starbucks Corporation is an international coffee and coffeehouse chain based in Seattle, Washington. Starbucks is the largest coffeehouse company in the world, with 17,009 stores in 55 countries, including over 11,000 in the United States, over 1,000 in Canada, over 700 in the United Kingdom, and...
, Old Navy
Old Navy
Old Navy is an American clothing brand as well as a chain of stores owned by Gap, Inc., with corporate operations in San Francisco and San Bruno, California. It is one of the first major corporations to house headquarters in the new Mission Bay district of San Francisco.Gap, Inc. was run by...
, and other retail locations in downtown Seattle during the 1999 anti-WTO demonstrations
WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999 protest activity
Protest activity surrounding the WTO Ministerial Conference of 1999, which was to be the launch of a new millennial round of trade negotiations, occurred on November 30, 1999 , when the World Trade Organization convened at the Washington State Convention and Trade Center in Seattle, Washington,...
. They were a common feature of subsequent anti-globalization protests. During the 2010 G20 Summit
2010 G-20 Toronto summit
The 2010 G-20 Toronto summit was the fourth meeting of the G-20 heads of government, in discussion of the global financial system and the world economy, which took place at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, during June 26–27, 2010...
in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, a black bloc riot damaged a number of retail locations including an Urban Outfitters
Urban Outfitters
Urban Outfitters, Inc. is a publicly traded American company that owns and operates five retail brands: Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain, and BHLDN....
, American Apparel
American Apparel
American Apparel is a clothing manufacturer in the United States. It is a vertically integrated clothing manufacturer, wholesaler, and retailer that also performs its own design, advertising, and marketing...
, Adidas
Adidas
Adidas AG is a German sports apparel manufacturer and parent company of the Adidas Group, which consists of the Reebok sportswear company, TaylorMade-Adidas golf company , and Rockport...
Store, Starbucks and many banking establishments.
Police infiltration
Police and security services have infiltrated black blocs with undercover officers. Since all members conceal their identities, it is harder to recognize infiltrators. Allegations first surfaced after several demonstrations. At the 2001 G8 summit in Genoa27th G8 summit
-Overview:The Group of Seven was an unofficial forum which brought together the heads of the richest industrialized countries: France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada starting in 1976. The G8, meeting for the first time in 1997, was formed with the addition...
, amongst the many complaints about the police there was mention of video footage in which "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." On these occasions, some were identified by genuine protesters because of their police-issue footwear.
See also
- 2010 G-20 Toronto summit protests2010 G-20 Toronto summit protestsThe 2010 G-20 Toronto summit protests began one week ahead of the summit of the leaders of the G-20 on June 26 and 27 in Toronto. Protests included demonstrations, rallies, marches, as well as a destructive riot that broke out on June 26 which caused vandalism to several businesses in Downtown...
- Antifa
- Anti-globalization movementAnti-globalization movementThe anti-globalization movement, or counter-globalisation movement, is critical of the globalization of corporate capitalism. The movement is also commonly referred to as the global justice movement, alter-globalization movement, anti-globalist movement, anti-corporate globalization movement, or...
- Anti-nuclear movement in GermanyAnti-nuclear movement in GermanyThe anti-nuclear movement in Germany has a long history dating back to the early 1970s, when large demonstrations prevented the construction of a nuclear plant at Wyhl. The Whyl protests were an example of a local community challenging the nuclear industry through a strategy of direct action and...
- Rebecca RiotsRebecca RiotsThe Rebecca Riots took place between 1839 and 1843 in South and Mid Wales. They were a series of protests undertaken by local farmers and agricultural workers in response to perceived unfair taxation. The rioters, often men dressed as women, took their actions against toll-gates, as they were...
- Union flying squadUnion flying squadA union flying squad is an unofficial group of autonomous workers who carry out actions for the benefit of their labor struggle. Squads are a form of affinity groups and may be formed by union members who feel that the union bureaucracy is not working satisfactorily in their interest or for the...
- ZengakurenZengakurenFounded in 1948, Zengakuren is a communist / anarchist league of students in Japan. The word is an abridgement of which literally means “All-Japan League of Student Self-Government.” Notable for organizing protests and marches, Zengakuren has been involved in Japan’s Anti-Red Purge Movement,...
Further reading
- A Communique On Tactics by the Green Mountain Anarchist Collective & Anti-Racist Action
- The Black Bloc Papers, by Xavier Massot & David Van Deusen
External links
- Infoshop: Black Blocs for Dummies
- "Blocs, Black and Otherwise" by CrimethInc.CrimethInc.CrimethInc., also known as CWC , is a decentralized anarchist collective of autonomous cells. CrimethInc. emerged in the mid-1990s, initially as the hardcore zine Inside Front, and began operating as a collective in 1996...