Violence in Genoa: the target and the turning point
Brian Holmes | 24.07.2001 14:53
Brian Holmes
e-mail:
106271.223@compuserve.com
A network of individuals, independent and alternative media activists and organisations, offering grassroots, non-corporate, non-commercial coverage of important social and political issues.
Brian Holmes | 24.07.2001 14:53
Brian Holmes
e-mail:
106271.223@compuserve.com
www.indymedia.org
Projects
print
radio
satellite tv
video
Africa
Europe
antwerpen
armenia
athens
austria
barcelona
belarus
belgium
belgrade
brussels
bulgaria
calabria
croatia
cyprus
emilia-romagna
estrecho / madiaq
galiza
germany
grenoble
hungary
ireland
istanbul
italy
la plana
liege
liguria
lille
linksunten
lombardia
madrid
malta
marseille
nantes
napoli
netherlands
northern england
nottingham imc
paris/île-de-france
patras
piemonte
poland
portugal
roma
romania
russia
sardegna
scotland
sverige
switzerland
torun
toscana
ukraine
united kingdom
valencia
Latin America
argentina
bolivia
chiapas
chile
chile sur
cmi brasil
cmi sucre
colombia
ecuador
mexico
peru
puerto rico
qollasuyu
rosario
santiago
tijuana
uruguay
valparaiso
venezuela
Oceania
aotearoa
brisbane
burma
darwin
jakarta
manila
melbourne
perth
qc
sydney
South Asia
india
United States
arizona
arkansas
asheville
atlanta
Austin
binghamton
boston
buffalo
chicago
cleveland
colorado
columbus
dc
hawaii
houston
hudson mohawk
kansas city
la
madison
maine
miami
michigan
milwaukee
minneapolis/st. paul
new hampshire
new jersey
new mexico
new orleans
north carolina
north texas
nyc
oklahoma
philadelphia
pittsburgh
portland
richmond
rochester
rogue valley
saint louis
san diego
san francisco
san francisco bay area
santa barbara
santa cruz, ca
sarasota
seattle
tampa bay
united states
urbana-champaign
vermont
western mass
worcester
West Asia
Armenia
Beirut
Israel
Palestine
Topics
biotech
Process
fbi/legal updates
mailing lists
process & imc docs
tech
Comments
Hide the following 4 comments
Where do we head next
24.07.2001 22:03
Well written piece ! I was present at Seattle and saw much of the same dynamic which you describe. Particular regarding property destruction. Specifically I saw the Black Bloc stay very focused in its targets; Starbucks, MacDonalds, Nike etc. However many locals that did not possess the level political development of the Bloc decided to join in and trashed anything and everything indiscriminately. This needs to be stopped for the good of the movement. How one goes about this is a matter open to discussion. My personal view is the Bloc for the time being should focus its actions on the Police adopting the Self Defense Strategy that was used by the Black Panther Party in the US in the late 1960s. Allow the Pigs to make the first move then respond with overwhelming force. Serve notice to the establishment if the pull the kind of shit they did Sunday Morning at the GSF/Indymedia Center that they will be using the body bags on themselves
the voice of justice
Global blockade of stock markets V the WTO
25.07.2001 02:10
Mike Taylor
e-mail: m-t@supanet.com
replies to the 2 comments
25.07.2001 08:43
Problem is, we're not just talking about an organized "Black Bloc," unfortunately. Getting the window-smashers as a whole to behave like the Black Panthers is a great idea, but it will be impossible cause there's no community behind them to protect and to inspire. Lots of them (I don't say all) are violent loners or small gangs from another city or country. It's not the same sociology. The point of my text was to think about what to do in situations where you CAN'T target the violence anymore. I do think it's a dangerous situation.
Reply to Mike:
The stock markets are the nerve center of globalized capitalism, for sure. But any direct-action protest against the stock markets that doesn't have important backing from labour movements and ecology/civil-society associations will be repressed with absolute savagery. I mean it'd be like the Gulf War. June 18th caught London by surprise. That's over. I believe in the necessary relation between politics, media work, and direct action. So a protest against the stock markets would have to be the coordinated target of the whole movement, with political and media work at least as good as that of the GSF in Genoa. And their work was and continues to be very very good, let me say. With a lot more political and media impact than anywhere else, except probably Canada.
Brian
violence
25.07.2001 13:41
the first violence is eating a big mac.
the first violence is not buying organic.
the first violence is shopping at the gap.
the first violence is buying a pair of nikes.
the first violence is getting a visa card.
the first violence is puchasing an suv.
the first violence is not recycling.
the first violence is allowing ourselves and our communities to drift down capitalism brook a little further every day, one by one, we're swept 'alone' in with the tide.
we cannot afford to wait until the next action, today we must change, and tomorrow too.
we do not need more actions we need creative alternatives.
we shop.
we are our own enemies.
we need to focus on us; they will do what they will anyhow.
ironically, qatar will lead the movement home. we'll go to our respective back yards and sit in our own shit... next to the people we let go. we'll be forced to work with neighbors (rather than stangers at protests) and confront our own hypocricies. sure there's a place for good globalization and mass mobilizing - but they should grow more effective with time... are they?
rona