TOP 10 TIPS FOR PROTESTERS OCCUPYING COLLEGES, FIGHTING POLICE
COMMUNIQUE #10
Protester taking 5-pound hammer to Minneapolis police car during the 2008 Republican National Convention. Photo credit: JB Nicholas.
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1. The primary objective of any protest operation is to complete the protest and escape without being arrested. Sometimes it's not possible to escape. When a mission is not escapable, protesters should acknowledge this with their eyes wide open, fully aware of potential consequences. It is every protester's right to refuse missions. Some have more to lose than others. Their decisions must be respected.
2. Pitched or set-piece battles for control of real estate with police should be avoided whenever possible. Whenever possible, protesters should employ guerilla tactics. They should appear to be ordinarily civilians, execute the protest mission, then blend back into the civilian population. Protesters will almost always lose set-piece battles for real estate. When an occupation is challenged, protesters should fade away and establish another camp by surprise in another location.
3. Some set-piece battles cannot be avoided. Some high-profile occupations sometimes need to be defended to spread propaganda of the deed. In these exceptional situations, these basic tactical rules should be deployed to maximize resistance:
4. When selecting an occupation site, avoid open fields whenever possible. The optimal occupation site is surrounded by obstacles of some kind that channel attackers into defendable choke-points. Think like the 300 Spartans defending Greece at the Battle of Thermopylae. Inside buildings, establish barricades in stairwells and doorways. Stop attackers before they break through the chokepoints. Don’t forget the roof. Control the high ground.
Here’s an excellent example of this defensive strategy in action.
5. Devise a simple defense plan everyone knows before an attack. If possible, establish multiple defensive perimeters so that when attackers breach one, they are stopped by another. For example, don't just take an office in a building, take the entire floor. If numbers allow, take the entire building and the immediate perimeter outside. When a defensive line is breached, retreat to the next defensive line, and so on.
6. A wide variety of non-lethal tools can be deployed to make a defense more effective, beginning with umbrellas, shields, screens or tarps. The objective is to topple and disorient attackers—not to do actual, physical harm to them. Assuming the floor is hard, small, round balls of some kind—marbles, ball-bearings—can be used to impede attackers' movements. Transmission fluid and other highly-slick liquid substances can be used. On the other side, sticky substances can also be used to make movement difficult. If a building has fire hoses, use those. Fireworks are also effective, especially in the dark. Kill the lights. Make them find you.
6. If inside, bring large industrial fans to blow teargas and smoke grenades back at the police. Smelly substances short of Pepper Spray can also be used to disorient attackers. Fans can be used to send it toward attackers. Assume electricity will be cut. Bring power generators and extra gasoline to power fans.
Protester with firework during the 2008 Republican National Convention. Photo credit: JB Nicholas.
7. Wear all black. Everyone should wear the exact same color and type of clothing to make identification of specific individuals difficult and to create the impression of force in numbers--like uniforms do. Mask up. Wear eye-protection and, if a man, a jockstrap. Attackers love to hit protesters in the groin, usually by stabbing them with the end of a riot stick. Similarly, never turn your back on an attacker. Attackers love to attack people from behind. Always face the enemy.
8. Know when to give up. When captured, don't resist. You don't have to go willingly, but don't try to punch through a face shield. Live to make bail and fight again another day. If paraded in front of the press during a perp walk, be as graceful as possible. Be like one of the protesters arrested at Emory University: sing a slave spiritual and shame your captors. Have jail support and lawyers already ready.
9. IF ARRESTED, DON'T SAY ANYTHING TO ANYONE. DEMAND A LAWYER IMMEDIATELY AND REPEATEDLY. EXPECT POLICE TO IGNORE YOUR DEMANDS. EXPECT POLICE TO LIE AND SAY YOUR FRIENDS SAID THIS OR THAT. EXPECT POLICE TO SEND A POLICE OFFICER DRESSED LIKE A PROTESTER INTO THE CELL. IF YOU DON'T KNOW SOMEONE, DON'T SPEAK TO THEM. ESPECIALLY ABOUT ACTIVITIES. Similarly, police have microphones everywhere. Assume everything you say in custody anywhere is being recorded. Give your name, and nothing else.
10. Assume your telephonic and Internet-enable communications are monitored. Make plans in person only. Use burner phones. Delete call records and text messages regularly, if not every hour then every day, so that if arrested police won't be able to see your communications. If contact with police is expected, get rid of the phone. Don't carry it during high-risk actions.
If you have some more tips, send them here: thefreelancenews@proton.me
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