MKE ARA Analysis of this last weekends actions against the NSM

MKE ARA, 28.08.2006 15:46

This is a summary of the recent Midwest regional ARA (anti racist action) actions against the NSM and their protectors, the state.

On the 25th

After more than a month of promotion and trying to persuade people into caring about something so obvious as fascism in our own backyards we managed to attract a relatively small but more experienced group of down ass folk from the Midwest (mainly from Milwaukee, Madison, and Chicago). We held a regional ARA meeting the day before the NSM rally to come to a consensus about what we were willing as a group to do and what seemed possible with the numbers present. Since actual confrontation didn’t seem likely with the projected numbers of the police being 500, with the numbers of our small group being about 20 at the meeting, and 3 layers of fencing, our strategies focused on intimidation of NSM members and prevention or at least a delay of the arrival of their police escorted convoy.

On the 26th

We had found out the day previous that the Clarion hotel located on Rimrock road off of John Nolen was housing NSM members. Through coincidence and inexperience we managed to miss them as some of their cars left the hotel grounds to go to where they were being bussed out of in the morning. With this missed opportunity and maybe the best chance for actual confrontation, we had more time until the rally to have meetings, scout the area around the capital, flyer at the farmers market, and get ready.

We positioned scouts along what we thought would make sense to be the most logical routes for their convoy to take from the Clarion hotel. When the convoy got to streets our group was alerted of what street they would be entering the capital square from. When we received the last call, we hurriedly got in bloc, pulled out the black flags, banners and then chased toward the intersection the NSM would be making their way into the capital from. People screamed at the bus of Nazis until they sweat and their foreheads turned red.

At this point there was no real attempt to form a blockade in the path of the convoy. If we would have all made it to that intersection quicker or had more people been a part of the bloc (as many as later on) it would have been possible to put a halt to the convoy for a considerable amount of time. There were many less police on this side of the capital and they weren’t as prepared as they were later in the day when we suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The buses were followed for as far as police would let us into the parking lot of the capital building and they unloaded while the bloc continued to chant anti police and anti nazi slogans at police and nazis.

From here the bloc made it’s way along the capital lawn chanting until it came to a door on the side of the building guarded by two police. The majority of the bloc went into the building running and chanting from the inside. (I wasn’t present here, so I’m don’t know exactly what happened)

After this the bloc made it’s way out of the capital lawn and decided to try to go rally people in the crowd of the scheduled protest area. The bloc was met not with anger and annoyance, but cheers and clapping from those in attendance. Many people, at least 10 people, donned masks or didn’t and joined us in our march through the crowd chanting anti fascist/anti racist slogans. This popular support from the crowd might have helped to keep the arrests of the day to a relative minimum.

A build up of police began forming around us in response to a combination of the bloc surrounding, shouting down a fascist supporter in the crowd and some people attempting to throw rotten tomatoes at the Nazis and then police. In an attempt to reform as a more cohesive and tight group there was some confusion between people in the bloc and the police took this opportunity to grab at least three people from the group. (Details of this are and should be left out for the protection of the people involved) Tension between the bloc and the police was much higher as many more police began forming around the group’s periphery. At this point the bloc decided to move through the crowd who was largely much more supportive of us more than the police and Nazis, to a place where more people would see police harassing us and tolerate it less. Some people decided to take off and rearrange some of their clothes at this point and leave the group for their safety and comfort levels. The bloc after this point kept in consistent motion walking back and forth through the crowd chanting.

When Nazis stopped their rally and went inside the bloc, with many more following took this cue to run around the building to where it knew the Nazis were being bussed out. A human blockade was formed in front of a crosswalk preventing police vans and Nazi buses from leaving the area. This held for a little while until horses were ridden through the crowd and over the bodies and feet of people in their way. (how nice of police to use animals already dominated, and commodified as weapons against others fighting domination). With the blockade broken and trampled the buses were able to pass through. Another person was tackled and arrested for yelling anti police renditions of Ol’ McDonald had a farm into a bullhorn. The bloc then wandered around and followed and harassed a fascist supporter who had been seen in the crowd. After the crowds wandered off and there were no more fascists to pester, people changed clothes and dispersed.

When people met at the public safety building at 4:30pm to support those arrested earlier in the day most of those arrested had already been released. Bail money was raised, with the help of those present and others, for the remaining two and they were out within hours. Food was bought and shared with those in the group outside and waited for those who were held inside (thanks to Chicago).

A protest was scheduled for 8pm at the Clarion hotel to embarrass the hotel and harass the remaining NSM members spending the night there. A few people came and waited around the parking lot that weren’t part of the original bloc and they met with the ARA contingent. Together they stormed the Clarion hotel parking lot flooding into the lobby, banging drums, blowing trumpets, yelling and handing out anti fascist literature (reminiscent of SHAC and IMF World Bank protests). People were asked to leave the property and left, containing their protest to the parking lot and sidewalks until the police came. The police told people they wanted everyone to leave and lied to the group about what they could and couldn’t do. The group having experienced the combination of protest and sidewalk in the past knew the law just as good as any officer would and told them so. Local news came by and filmed the situation carefully leaving the sign or name of the hotel out of the coverage they gave. All the while police had been discussing what to do with the group with their superiors and decided to allow everyone to stay with a large number of restrictions (no yelling, banging on drums, or talking to hotel patrons). So people tired from two days of constant meetings and police beatings and with hours ahead of driving ahead, decided to call it quits. A little after the groups left Nazis cowardly decided to peak their heads outside to see if the antifascists were gone.

For the most part the event was very positive in that regional anarchists were able to work together with relative success in planning and confrontations with police, that an alternative and direct approach for change was presented to those interested in change, the community there was very welcoming and supportive of the bloc (even if for the most part paternalistic), laudable and reasonable (in terms of concerns with safety and numbers) attempts were made at halting the convoys and it was for the most part really fun for those involved. Far more people should have militantly confronted the Nazis or at least wanted to. People can always find better things to do than prioritize a days worth of time for something as incredibly blatant and ridiculously obvious as fighting genocidal thinking. One major thing we can deduct from comparing this event is that having a small, cohesive and experienced group is far better than having a large inexperienced group who cause panic and confusion in times it should be felt by our enemies.

Was it as confrontational as people in the group wanted or should have justifiably been? Definitely not, but it was a step in the right direction toward an ongoing revolutionary praxis. As they say, praxis makes perfect.

Nazis aren’t at the capitol anymore, that doesn’t mean that there still aren’t racists at the Capitol, that we aren’t living on mountains of heaping rotting dead bodies of the ghosts of systematic and cultural racism and domination. This doesn’t go away if we keep ignoring it. Ignoring these problems is the real racism of this society. It is what allows for it to continue happening and it doesn’t end unless we end it ourselves!

check it 29.08.2006 - 13:25 Some excellent on the spot video coverage of the blockade you won't find in the capitalist news.  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNY-tifgGmg  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7JJX_HDNCxo Shout-outs to the videographer. nmc> a couple of quick notes 29.08.2006 - 15:00 1) about the jail solidarity: i have *never* seen a group of anarchists and punks pull someone's bail out of pocket, on the spot. super kudos to all who took the hat and pitched in. 2) there was one more arrest after the body of protesters left the clarion. a local woman, extremely fired up and genuinely ready to storm the hotel, wen t inside to contact a friend staying there. she wsa escorted out by security and arrested. we all owe her our thanks and support. 3) yo, madison ara: you saw how many folks joined us as soon as we showed up? those are people you should be mobilizing. i know they didn't respond to the call-out or the flyers, but now you know who they are in person; now you've been in the streets with them. so next time you see one of them, thank them, then invite them to work on the next big thing. especially if you see the woman from the clarion. there were a lot of hiccups in the works; we've got a lot to learn about running meetings, co-ordinating actions, and holding the line. nevertheless, i'm really pleased with the way things went down, and i look forward to seeing y'all again. -cap'n bob cap'n bob> Hope that was humor 29.08.2006 - 19:59 I hope the *never* part about anarchists pulling bail money out of their own pockets on the spot was an attempt at humor. I haven't ever encountered a situation where bail money was an issue. The anarchist group I belong to has a large bail fund permanantly set aside just for actions like this, and the one in Lansing, MI in April which ARA helped with. Natasha> about that videographer 29.08.2006 - 20:13 fyi although i liked the video, dont give the videographer too much credit. in case you didnt know, he's a right-wing blogger who was filming in order to make fun of the protesters. he posts on Madison.com (the madison mainstream newspaper website), and works for the state journal i think. his son is also in the various videos, but i think his son is more reasonable than his dad (who posts right wing hawkish bullshit in his blog), and actually says in some of the videos that he likes the anarchists and is impressed by them. the dad (the videographer) keeps encouraging the police to pepperspray/teargas/arrest the ARA bloc bystander> . 30.08.2006 - 01:52 Seriously.. that videographer was about as smart as his kid. kilgore trout> Ha.... 11.09.2006 - 12:26 You were tired of two days of police beatings....seriously.....4 of you were arrested....lol~if that makes you tired, then you ought to re-think your whole reason for protesting. I liked the article I read about Miles being innocent. A simple CCAP check of him revealed a past drug conviction. Who knows what other types of people are in your ranks.....maybe you should recruit members NOT all drugged up who can manage to NOT get themselves arrested. Thanks for the laughs ARA....come back soon....lol Madison Jon> buy klipal 14.08.2007 - 19:28 nice news thanks!Amineurin buy klipal> e-mail:: posser@isof.net Homepage:: http://cialis evra 14.08.2007 - 20:15 nice news thanks!Risperdal evra> e-mail:: idfo@dssewt.net Homepage:: http://kenalog buy avandia 15.08.2007 - 12:23 buy paracetamol buy avandia> e-mail:: hf@jofdke.com Homepage:: http://temovate