[lbo-talk] Lockdown NYC

Chuck0 chuck at mutualaid.org
Fri Apr 23 14:23:13 PDT 2004


Nathan Newman wrote:
> Which means that if protesters want to have an impact, they have to go for
> really large numbers, say in the millions, rather than delude themselves
> that small "guerrilla actions" will get them anywhere. The cops will shut
> down anything other than a total overwhelming turnout.

Actually, Nathan, small guerilla actions will get us somewhere if we use the right strategy. My understanding is that we anarchists will be unveiling a new strategy for the GOP convention. Of course, I can't talk about it. ;-)

Ten thousand cops will not be enough.


> That was the lesson from the large antiwar marches-- when the numbers hit a
> few hundred thousand, the cops would rather cooperate with protests than end
> up with total chaos.

Any veteran street activist should understand this phenomenon. This is where I part company with many of my fellow direct actionists. They tend to think that we can do cool stuff with a limited amount of protesters. My goal is always to put as many people on the streets as possible, since the presence of sheer numbers pacifies the police and ties their hands.

Chuck0



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