Date: Sun, 6 Aug 2000 18:47:08 -0700 (PDT)
From: Jamal Hannah <jah-AT-iww.org>
Subject: Re: EMERGENCY REQUEST FOR AN ANARCHIST DECLARATION OF PROTEST TACTICS


I dont know, Nicolas... it seems to me that it's a valid point that we
should try to behave with some kind of ethical standards, instead of a
violent free-for-all.  The cops can  make some stuff up, but we're to
blame when we do stupid things...

 - JH

On Sat, 5 Aug 2000, Nicolas G. wrote:

> 
> First of all, your a cop lover (we can only go after riot cops now).
> Second, who in the anarchist movement is talking about mass murder and 
> shooting GAP shoppers?
> And finally, sorry, but the Molotov has been the anarchist's best friend 
> throughout the years.
> 
> Redskin greetings,
>       Nicolas G.
> 
> >From: Sherbert Shoover <sshoover-AT-eatmydirt.com>
> >Reply-To: Sherbert Shoover <sshoover-AT-eatmydirt.com>
> >To: a-infos-AT-lists.tao.ca, aac-AT-lists.tao.ca, radyouth-AT-egroups.com,    
> >anarchism-AT-egroups.com, anarchy-list-AT-lists.village.virginia.edu,    
> >chuck-AT-tao.ca
> >Subject: EMERGENCY REQUEST FOR AN ANARCHIST DECLARATION OF PROTEST TACTICS
> >Date: 5 Aug 2000 17:38:02 -0000
> >
> >EMERGENCY REQUEST FOR AN ANARCHIST DECLARATION OF PROTEST TACTICS
> >
> >In recent months during the past few protests in the United States, law 
> >enforcement agencies, both local and federal, have been creating false 
> >allegations of the discovery of lethal weapons and chemicals. They have 
> >been trying with great effort to associate such discoveries with political 
> >protesters and anarchists in particular.
> >
> >Supposed discoveries include:
> >* Molotov cocktails in Washington, D.C. during the IMF and World Bank 
> >protests
> >* Harmful and fatal chemicals on arrested protesters, which they claim were 
> >to be used on law enforcement officials in Seattle, Washington; Washington, 
> >D.C. and Philadelphia, PA.
> >* Cyanide in a McDonald's (and later other locations) in Minneapolis, 
> >Minnesota during the ISAG protests 
> >(http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/ap/20000725/us/animal_genetics_protesters_5.html)
> >* A supposed bomb was found in Philadelphia, PA during the Republican 
> >National Convention 
> >(http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/cdh/20000731/lo/ticking_package_sent_with_love_from_illinois_1.html; 
> >and another involving dry ice)
> >* Water balloons filled with acid being thrown at police during the RNC in 
> >Philadelphia, PA
> >* Harmful weapons to be used against police officers from the Puppetganda 
> >center in Philadelphia, PA
> >* A van filled with skunks, mice, snakes, spiders, and other creatures and 
> >claiming they were going to be used by activists; anarchists in particular 
> >(http://www.workingforchange.com/news/article.cfm?ItemId=5853)
> >
> >I'm sure there are many more. And it seems as if they get greater with each 
> >protest. It is not hard at all for local or federal law enforcement agents 
> >to distort realities or even dress up as protesters and commit harmful 
> >acts, setup harmful devices, or use harmful chemicals against other 
> >protesters, police officers, and civilians. By doing so, they are very 
> >easily able to turn the public, the police, and other protesters against 
> >other activists. Black bloc anarchists are the easiest targets because of 
> >their courage to refuse to worship the God of private property. Some are 
> >willing to destroy, create, reuse, and redecorate property. This in itself 
> >is not a harmful activity, and is perhaps greater for the good of the 
> >growing movement than it is bad.
> >
> >The problem occurs when real violence (or the threat of) begins to be used 
> >more and more. At this time it is increasingly suspicious as the threats 
> >and actions seem to be increasing with each major protest. There is little 
> >reason to violently hurt civilians, (unengaged) police officers, and other 
> >protesters since it seems to generally produce a public fear and hatred 
> >towards protesters, for good reason. I think it can be agreed that the use 
> >of extreme violence (killing, hurting innocent people, hurting other 
> >protesters, using harmful/poisonous chemicals against people, bombs and 
> >other instruments of mass murder, etc.) to further the support of anarchism 
> >is an utter failure. Perhaps this is still a hot discussion, but I'm fairly 
> >certain it is not. Remember the _Anarchist Cookbook_? 
> >(http://www.spunk.org/cookbook.html)
> >
> >Besides the use of external devices and substances, person to person combat 
> >seems to be an effective form of anti-protester propaganda. One instance in 
> >Philadelphia, PA included a 40-60 year old, overweight, Ben & Jerry looking 
> >guy who attacked a civilian simply because the civilian had thrown 
> >something harmless towards the feet of a female dressed in black. This same 
> >man is believed to be the man who strangled a credentialed journalist. A 
> >post and picture on the Philadelphia Independent Media Center web site have 
> >shown this guy was most likely an undercover cop 
> >(http://www.phillyimc.org/article.pl?sid=00/08/02/2246250&mode=thread). 
> >There has also been reports of agents dressed up as black bloc members and 
> >then hurting and arresting other protesters 
> >(http://www.phillyimc.org/article.pl?sid=00/08/02/1645203&mode=thread).
> >
> >Perhaps another action we need to examine is attacking unengaged police 
> >officers. When the police are clothed in shorts and shirts, on bikes, and 
> >someone comes along and violently attacks one of them when they are doing 
> >nothing, it is exactly what they want. I think we can do much more creative 
> >tactics to unleash the violence inherit in that institution, the same 
> >violence that is always used once protesters are away from the eyes of the 
> >cameras, without making ourselves look like violent thugs superficially. 
> >Being careless in this area just reinforces the false reality they are 
> >trying to create in the public mind. Not to mention we are participating in 
> >actions we despise from them when we assult and hurt non-active police 
> >officers (those who are not in the process of abusing people).
> >
> >For instance, in Washington, DC an undercover cop was trying to instigate 
> >an unprovoked attack on police officers during the mass arrest of the 
> >Prison Industrial Complex protesters. He pretended to be drunk and possibly 
> >homeless (he looked unkempt, but had a new looking red backpack and decent 
> >looking clothes on) and kept saying everyone was "pussies" for not 
> >attacking the police officers. He kept cursing at the police officers. The 
> >proof of him being an undercover officer came when he had later misplaced 
> >his cell phone which contained a long list of police contacts.
> >
> >The laws they are ready to create and enforce can be seen in John Timoney's 
> >interest in using federal racketeering laws to keep protesters from 
> >protesting outside of their local city 
> >(http://www.magicnet.net/~jza/local/pi-courts8300.html). John Timoney has 
> >also overtly requested federal law enforcement agencies to investigate (and 
> >dismantle of course) the growing political and social justice movement 
> >(http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20000803/pl/campaign_protests_dc_19.html). 
> >They are able to get away with this because they have this suspicious 
> >"evidence" and they are able to stir up a scare and war mentality onto the 
> >public mind.
> >
> >Generally, thanks to the monopoly on the mediums of mass information 
> >dissemination, the law enforcement agencies have the greatest advantage in 
> >portraying themselves as the good forces in their war against good and 
> >evil. We must not allow federal and local law enforcement agencies to have 
> >a monopoly on the public mind. We must not allow them to pick us apart with 
> >little effort.
> >
> >Perhaps many of us are afraid of excluding anything, which could be a very 
> >easy downfall for us. If we continue to be silent about this and turn a 
> >blind eye, we will not be able to distinguish the actions of federal and 
> >local agents from fellow protesters and we would not know how to respond, 
> >no matter how harmful or absurd the actions may be.
> >
> >For instance, if someone claiming to be an "anti-globalization" activist or 
> >anarchist opens fire on people in a GAP store, would you stand by them? Or 
> >real accusations such as planting cyanide in public places and businesses? 
> >Would you support unprovoked violence and murder in an anarchist society 
> >even if those doing it claimed to be doing it for political reasons? It is 
> >also arguably authoritarian to use harmful violence against others, unless 
> >your life or many lives are in immediate danger or as a final resort in 
> >select situations.
> >
> >We cannot just sit around while more agents dress up as black bloc 
> >protesters, plant phoney bombs and lethal chemicals everywhere, engage in 
> >violence against innocent people, and tell lies to television cameras and 
> >reporters. The possibilities for them to ruin us are endless so long as we 
> >do not confront them.
> >
> >If we seriously plan on winning this long, hard struggle, we must first 
> >find the "tactics" the order maintainers use to discredit us, and declare 
> >those cannot be our actions. We must confront all of their attempts to 
> >destroy political dissent and fight back. We cannot forget the power of 
> >COINTELPRO, especially now that we are well aware of what it did.
> >
> >For this very serious and increasing problem, I must request that we 
> >immediately develop a declaration that states our overall purpose and 
> >general feelings towards various elements of "direct action." We must 
> >destroy the public fear they are trying so hard to create. We cannot let it 
> >continue. And we can do this without having to reduce our politicial 
> >activism to predictable, unnoticed, legally permitted marches. We can work 
> >together to produce a declaration and perhaps have one ready before the 
> >Democratic National Convention. In fact, producing such a declaration at 
> >the North American Anarchist Conference would be much better since speedier 
> >consensus can be used.
> >
> >It should not be a guideline of tactics, but rather a statement 
> >disassociating ourselves from those actions which are suspicious and seem 
> >to only work against us as activists, anti-authoritarians, and anarchists. 
> >And we should explain in plain detail the reasoning behind the use of 
> >nonviolent illegal activity that we generally do approve of and participate 
> >in.
> >
> >Perhaps most fellow anarchists and anti-authoritarian activists do not 
> >agree with me, in which case this request will rightfully be ignored.
> >
> >
> >Have fun playing spot the feds at the NAAC. Best wishes to all.
> >
> >In Solidarity,
> >
> >Sherbet Shoover
> >
> >(The email used to deliver this message was only created to be used for the 
> >delivery of this message only.)
> >
> >----
> >
> >From Noam Chomsky's introduction to Cointelpro: The FBI's Secret War on 
> >Political Freedom.
> >
> >"Several model actions were proposed to [FBI] agents, who were instructed 
> >"to take an enthusiastic and imaginative approach to this new 
> >counter-intelligence endeavor", including an action apparently directed at 
> >the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (DAN?) in 1967, in which 
> >local police alerted by FBI, arrested leaders "on every possible charge 
> >until they could no longer make bail" so that they spent most of the summer 
> >in jail....
> >
> >"During these years FBI provocateurs repeatedly urged and initiated violent 
> >acts, including forceful disruption of meetings and demonstrations on anf 
> >off university campuses, attacks on police, bombings and so on. Meanwhile 
> >government agencies financed, helped organize, and supplied arms to right 
> >wing terrorist groups that carried out fire-bombings, burglaries, and 
> >shootings, all with the knowledge of the government agencies responsible - 
> >in most cases the FBI....
> >
> >"... it was revealed that FBI infiltrators had been engaged in a campaign 
> >of arson, terrorism, and bombings of university and civic buildings, and 
> >where the FBI arranged a robbery, entrapping a young black man who was paid 
> >$75 for the job, and killed in a police ambush.
> >
> >"Many details are now available concerning the extensive campaign of terror 
> >and disruption waged by the government during these years, in part through 
> >right-wing paramilitary groups organized and financed by the national 
> >government but primarily through the much more effective means of 
> >infiltration and provocation.
> >
> >More free information on COINTELPRO can be found at 
> >http://www.icdc.com/~paulwolf/cointel.htm
> >
> >
> >Sign up for your FREE Email at http://mail.chek.com
> 
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