So You Think You’re a Dissident?
It was by accident. A friend and I turned a corner and there it was, a chain-link fences mounted on cement medians. Behind, stood rows of silent, helmeted police. As we walked the side of its parameter, I was amazed by the quiet, and by the fact that I wasn’t being tackled and handcuffed. Groups of others stood around as well. We had made it to The Wall, and none of us new exactly what to do. Riot police on one side, looky-loos on the other, and silence. It was odd and intimate. For the most part, we all talked and took photos. After hours of mindless braying, it was a relief to finally have a conversation. An older gentlemen talked with us about the Black Bloc.
“They want this civilization to collapse,” he told us, “and then a new one will rise from its ashes.”
“Who runs the new civilization?” I asked.
“I don’t think they’ve thought that far ahead.” he responded.
Afterward we walked up Yonge Street, following the route that the Black Bloc was said to have taken earlier that day. Store front windows had been broken at regular intervals up to College street. Unlike what some newspapers have claimed, it wasn’t just the franchises that got hit. Local places were hit as well. Zanzibars marquee was damaged (apparently, the new civilization won’t have strip clubs), and the jewellery store at Gerrard and Yonge looked to have been looted (political dissidents have gotta eat too, you know).
In the wake of the hijacked protests, Facebook and Twitter are awash with comments about the event. Some say that the police cars were ‘decoys’ to tantalize the crowd into violence. Others are claiming that the police had infiltrated the Black Bloc’s ranks to instigate violence. Some editorials express outrage at police inaction (especially during the Bloc’s run up Yonge), some are railing about police brutality (especially on the day after). Among the plethora of perspectives, I hope that can agree on two things.
Firstly, these kinds of violent protests no longer work (Actually, I’m beginning to believe that the effectiveness of public demonstrations has run its course). They do not gain the public’s sympathy or support, which should be their primary goal. I’ll be clear: NO CAN HEAR WHAT YOU WANT. Protests like these have become a spectacle by the extreme, for the extreme, their very own “So You Think You’re a Dissident?” There must be a new paradigm. I don’t know what it is. But I think we can start by changing the approach. Instead of thinking “I have a right to do this, and that’s all that matters,” rational people should be asking themselves, “Is what I’m doing effective in bringing about the change I want?”
The second point is that genuine demonstrators are being used by the parasitic Black Bloc. This group could not operate without the cover of decent protesters, who are right now being involuntarily arrested on behalf of these vandals, wrapped in their brochure-length manifestos.
During the protest I was asked by a member of this group to stop taking pictures and to show some solidarity, as if I were there to support him. It’s time to break the illusion of support. At future demonstrations they should be called out. If demonstrators want to chant, then they should start by chanting something like, “Black Bloc Blows!”
Funny, for years I’ve admired the participants of these kinds of protests. I listened to stories about Seattle and Quebec City with awe. What changed my perspective turned out to be quite simple: it finally happened in my city. Breaking things to make a point loses its impact when it’s your shit being broke.
Addendum:
Innocent and mistreated by police?
Want justice? The first step is to start telling your G20 stories:
http://ccla.org/2010/06/29/resources-for-g20-related-complaints/
And here:
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Pat Connors:
June 27th, 2010 at 11:28 pm
Thank you for sharing this, Rocco. It took a great deal of honesty and courage to do so. It takes a real man to be able to learn and grow.
Jacob:
June 28th, 2010 at 6:18 am
I think there’s a lot of insight here… but I certainly don’t consider a smashed in Starbucks or Scotiabank “my shit being broken. ” I totally agree the black bloc, at least in this context, was counter-productive. But it isn’t violent to smash in an closed (absent of people) Starbucks and more importantly the police could have easily stopped the destruction and chose not to, for obvious reasons. It’s not our job to protest the sanctity of the protest from the black bloc, while it is the police’s job to keep the streets safe – but they were too busy arresting completely non-violent protestors, justifying their violent actions by the black blocs actions – an innocent person’s eye for an eye (a Starbuck mermaid’s eye). And I really doubt the people who damaged the Starbucks are the same ones who damaged Zanzibars. Some of the destruction was a tactical (closed mega corporations, and some of it was just apolitical, ignorant assholes taking the opportunity to ‘smash it good’ ala teenage Homer Simpson. The black bloc didn’t do us any favors, but I think the police are pretty big fans of their tactics.
Mike:
June 30th, 2010 at 5:39 pm
Awesome piece, not just opinion but an experience!
Rocco:
July 19th, 2010 at 10:30 am
Thanks Mike
Zig Zag:
May 11th, 2012 at 2:38 am
“Your” shit being broken? You own the banks and corporate stores do you? Sounds like you were scared and that’s what changed your opinion about militant protests. It’s ok to be scared but courage is overcoming your fear and pushing on. Don’t rationalize your fear as a ‘political analysis’ cuz it isn’t. Do you have any clue as to what resistance means in practise? Think it’s all about “winning over the masses” living in the most privileged and imperialist states in human history? I have no doubt many people will embrace militant tactics once they lose their privileged lifestyles.