Anarchists fight with police...and win!
cardiff anarchist network | 01.04.2009 18:03 | G20 London Summit
After breaking through police lines and storming of the royal bank of Scotland, anarchists are claiming victory.
We’ve had a great day. It’s been fantastic! We said we’d storm the bank and we did. They couldn’t stop us. We broke through the police lines and the royal bank of Scotland was trashed. We’ve won! We’ve done what we said we would. It feels fantastic. We’ve had a brilliant day!
We estimate numbers of demonstrators at 8,000. The police were saying about 4,000 in Threadneedle St alone so add on a few thousand to that.
The journalists caused horrendous problems. When we wanted to get through police lines, they were pushing back against us. They were real nerds. They kept pushing in between us and the cops, which was a real problem because when the police were hitting people the journalists were stopping us getting to the injured. Their presence was also stopping demonstrators from going through police lines. In terms of numbers there, half were protestors and half journalists.
The police have used batons on people. They’ve used horses but not for charging. It’s been baton charges. It is arguable that they were less aggressive because the press was there. They could’ve been more aggressive. It could’ve have been worse. Whether the presence of the press tempered them is a possibility.
http://southwalesanarchists.org/2009/04/01/anarchists-fight-with-policeand-win/
We estimate numbers of demonstrators at 8,000. The police were saying about 4,000 in Threadneedle St alone so add on a few thousand to that.
The journalists caused horrendous problems. When we wanted to get through police lines, they were pushing back against us. They were real nerds. They kept pushing in between us and the cops, which was a real problem because when the police were hitting people the journalists were stopping us getting to the injured. Their presence was also stopping demonstrators from going through police lines. In terms of numbers there, half were protestors and half journalists.
The police have used batons on people. They’ve used horses but not for charging. It’s been baton charges. It is arguable that they were less aggressive because the press was there. They could’ve been more aggressive. It could’ve have been worse. Whether the presence of the press tempered them is a possibility.
http://southwalesanarchists.org/2009/04/01/anarchists-fight-with-policeand-win/
cardiff anarchist network
e-mail:
cardiffanarchists@riseup.net
Homepage:
http://www.southwalesanarchists.org
Comments
Hide the following 33 comments
Heh - read that article in a welsh accent !
01.04.2009 18:24
CLUE: is it wasn't for journalists you would have had your head stoved in and no one would have known. Your cause would remain unknown, your voice relegated to a 3rd class website full of stolen images and halfwit 6th form rantings.
p.s when you come up with a workable alternative operating system for the world, do let everyone know. One. Sentence. At. A. Time. Isnit ?
Down with this sort of thing !!
nerdy journo
Now, now - there's no need for that....
01.04.2009 18:38
Welsh Mandy in Camden
Fuck you journo
01.04.2009 18:48
Welsh anarcho
typical xenophobic bleating from parasite journo
01.04.2009 18:49
Some people do, other people just leech from and write about other people doing.
anon
Journalist are worse than soldiers!
01.04.2009 18:50
So although on this occassion I agree the police were restrained but that was due to the foreign press because wanker journalists from the BBC, SKy, Fox, Telegrpah, Evening Standard would report from the zionist neocon point of view!
Soldiers argue they follow orders on the battlefield but journalists are scum when they knew the WMD bullshit but instead they chose to like the wanker tabloids write about how in 45 minutes the British could be attacked with missiles!
John Smith
Dear nerdy Journo
01.04.2009 18:51
I'm sure your racist filth will get censored soon.
not welsh
Help for a lazy journo
01.04.2009 19:20
Groovy Bob
Homepage:
http://www.zcommunications.org/zparecon/ippstop.htm
A cracking day
01.04.2009 20:28
Violence won't abolish capitalism, friends. Many also decry the media. I decry them, on account of their poxy distorted crap they often put out. If you don't like the Press, don't buy their newspapers, for to do so would be double-standards, eh? So a couple of banks got their windows cracked? That will really be a big expense for the Fred the Shred's, then? Mmmm? Boycotting is the best, legal way of opposing capitalism, mates, and educating what's possibly best described as those of the masses who put the politicians in power.
Richard Crossland, sometime MP, once said: "Never educate the masses", but that doesn't mean it's illegal to educate them, in a non-inciting way! Remember, our materialistic-minded society has greatly contributed to our current bad economy. One thing is certain, and that's don't hold out the slightest hope for any fairy dust. Old G. Brown and company are going to need more than fairy dust to put this global financial mess straight!
Francis H. Giles
For god sake, anarchists!
01.04.2009 20:33
You are soo naive too. You think you just have to show up wearing masks and there will be automatic anarchy. Then you just stand around and wait for someone else to start shit up. It was pathetic.
Nobody was prepared; where was the tools to break up concrete? Where were the bottles and sticks? Do you actually think you can win a fight with the cops by pushing them? You think you can win a boxingmatch against them?
The truth is that the state won today. The cops were in total control. The anarchists lost. Big.
Smarten up, fools!
@-commie
Don't need them
01.04.2009 20:45
Stroppyoldgit
e-mail:
dodgy@umpire.com
sticks
01.04.2009 21:09
The democratic majority won today by paying taxes to hire police to beat the riff-raff of society. Unfortunately they hold back and never seem to finish the job. Spare the rod, spoil the child
morris
I was taking a (predictable) piss
01.04.2009 21:21
Post script: Remember this: The 'right' appear have more fun than the 'left' but the indifferent have the best drugs.
nerdy journo
some tough love
01.04.2009 21:36
sorry guys, there really isn't enough of you to take you seriously.
I mean theres about 180,000 vegans in the UK which is just 0.3% of the population - and no one takes them seriously, what chance do you think you'll stand?
Assuming it is 8,000 (which it is probably not). Thats just 0.00013% of the population. Its just a freak show to the rest of us.
stats
Victory?
01.04.2009 22:11
Dom
A victory.
01.04.2009 22:18
Given our admittedly limited resources, that was the most we could manage. We achieved that, and should celebrate it as such.
Gwent Anarchist
Homepage:
http://southwalesanarchists.org
@ neardy journo
01.04.2009 23:34
Glyndwr
@ neardy journo
02.04.2009 00:01
just
We've Won?!
02.04.2009 00:16
Wow! A bank with some broken windows! Medals all round for the sad lifeless muppets! :O)
The Joker
Great British Public - quietly appreciate the sentiment, if not the style
02.04.2009 01:00
Morris said: "The democratic majority won today by paying taxes to hire police to beat the riff-raff of society. Unfortunately they hold back and never seem to finish the job. Spare the rod, spoil the child"
> The point is that throughout the UK, I bet for every person who finds violent disorder repugnant and a waste of taxpayers money, there is one person who either openly or quietly takes great satisfaction that the RBS windows were smashed in, with a large number of people actuallly going as far as to say "that's what the fuckers deserve - a nice symbolic statement which nicely gets the message over - one we share". The news channels even made note that some pensioners joined the demo today!
I think this demo was a huge success, and will positively resonate with working class people and even some middle class people (and even some people with wealth who don't share the same values as the 'get-rich quick- no-matter-what-the-cost' mentality). Well done to all those brave soldiers out there who fucking went out on a limb today. Nice-one!
Of course, the irony in it also is that the public now has a 75% stake in the bank. Still, it is symbolic - not lost on many also the connection with the attack on Sir Fred's home.
venture anarchist
Strange that the RBS windows weren't boarded up
02.04.2009 01:14
waltzing matilda
matildas right
02.04.2009 05:13
1. rbs was not boarded up
2. rbs building was closed (unoccupied - staff given day off)
3. rbs was were people were penned in for ages by the police.
my personal theory is that police wanted rbs trashed early - so as to give them justification to get heavy handed with people any time they wanted after that.
shakin stevens
Indymedia "free speech"...aye right!
02.04.2009 10:23
Taffy Duck
Bank Staff
02.04.2009 10:29
What would you have done if they were there though? Would you have given the lads and lassies a hammering and a beating for being part of the RBS?
Danny Bhoy
Welsh ..
02.04.2009 10:31
Another Journo
anti-welsh bigotry is okay on indymedia...
02.04.2009 10:42
All journalists are legitimate targets.
anti-english bigot
The english are a backward people
02.04.2009 10:48
Cymru am byth
@anti-english bigot
02.04.2009 10:52
Only extreme regimes attack journalists. Regimes like the Nazi Party, Ba'ath Party etc.
The first thing that goes with the likes of you is any sense of humour, followed by the sense of proportion. Get over yourself.
Yet Another Journo
Rambo ramblings
02.04.2009 10:59
Organic Oranges
who can't take a joke now?
02.04.2009 11:03
anti-english bigot
@ Organic Oranges
02.04.2009 11:05
Seems by your comment, your sexist enough to assume the author was male too huh?
Glyndwr
Newport - City of architecture!
02.04.2009 11:18
How would we know we'd gone on a wrecking spree though? The place look slike it's already been in a wrecking spree. So we wouldn't really know the difference though would we?
Dumphy the Dragon
@ Glyndwr
02.04.2009 11:21
Has Rambo come down from his/her/it's wrecking spree high yet?
Organic Oranges
Anarchists are "claiming victory" hahahaha
02.04.2009 23:24
Lenny