part ii: critical thesis "tactical defiance"

8/17/2019 Part II: Critical Thesis "Tactical Defiance"

1/40

Tactical Defiance

[The Weapons of Performative Violence in Battle for Visibility]

Critical Thesis


2/40


3/40

2

Borne out of a longing to better understand human society, the Global Database of Events

Language and Tone provides comprehensive global reports depicting social occurrences of broad

nature. Within the project exists a program entitled the GDELT Event Database which is1

specifically designed to map uprisings on a global scale. “The GDELT Event Database records

over 300 categories of physical activities around the world, from riots and protests to peace

appeals and diplomatic exchanges.” 2

This program has become extremely useful for tracking the severity of global unrest. In

some geographic locations, resistance is mostly characterized by sanctioned, permitted, marches

that run a peaceful course. In others, actions almost always escalate to rioting and physical

conflict. What causes or allows for these escalations? What determines the perceived need for

more physically aggressive vs. creatively oriented action? Let’s begin by examining some of the

major regions of recent uprising of the last quarter century.

I. Greece

History of Resistance

The history of Greek struggle bears a charred past of igneous rebellion. It would seem

that ideals of struggle, conflict , and anti-authoritarianism are indeed embedded in the very fibers

of Greek culture. The divisions of resistance in Greece are vast, most recently the frontline

1 http://www.gdeltproject.org/ 2 http://www.gdeltproject.org/

http://data.gdeltproject.org/documentation/CAMEO.Manual.1.1b3.pdf


4/40

3

agendas have presented opposition to capitalist exploitation and austerity measures. With3

seemingly little correlation to the causal influences of the recurrent mobilizations in Greece,

violent confrontation with police forces has appeared to be inevitable in the Hellenic Republic.

As this study will show, the breeding grounds of radical resistance often pool in the cold

dark corners of repressive military dictatorships. Collecting and precipitating in the shadows of

the Greek military junta of the late 60’s, different visions of radical resistance began to take

form. Hasty categorization by the authoritative forces of the time would depict these divisions of4

resistance as proponents of communism, though the actual elements at work were much more

variegated in both creed and action. In The Anti-Authoritarian Choros , an insightful study of

the socialization and radicalization of Greek youth, E. Dimitris Kitis notes that during the period

known as Metapolitefsi (regime change), Greece saw “a set of narratives, places, and tactics

crystallized into an anarchist or anti-authoritarian choros.” 5

A keystone on the timeline of anti authoritarian development is the Polytechnic uprising

of 1973. The greek youth had grown restless under the military rule of Georgios Papadopoulo.

Mounting student agitation to issues of censorship and military drafting boiled over into a

standoff beginning on November 14. After 3 days of student led occupation of the Polytechnic6

campus in Athens, which embraced tactics of barricades and guerilla radio broadcasts, the

confrontation came to a head when orders sent a AMX-30 tank through the gates of the

3 Vradis, Antonis, and Dimitris Dalakoglou. Revolt and Crisis in Greece: Between a Present Yet to Pass and a Future Still to Come . Oakland: AK and Occupied London, 2011. Print 4 Kitis, E. Dimitris. "The Anti-Authoritarian Chóros: A Space for Youth Socialization and Radicalization in Greece(1974–2010)." Journal for the Study of Radicalism 9.1 (2015): 1-36.5 Ibid.6 Kassimeris, G. "Junta by Another Name? The 1974 Metapolitefsi and the Greek Extra-parliamentary Left."

Journal of Contemporary History 40.4 (2005): 745-62. Web.


5/40

4

university, causing injuries and death to protesters. This tragic error made by the powers of7

state created martyrs of greek youth and of education, catalyzing unforeseen momentum and

solidarity of resistance.

This military aggression can be seen as one of the direct causes for the continued violent

conflict and street battles waged by fire and stone in the Hellenic republic. Since the end of

military rule in Greece in 1974, a tradition to commemorate this tidemark of resistance has

emerged in annual celebrations of the rebellion. Over the years, these vigilant celebrations held8

in remembrance of the spirit of rebellion and the student martyrs of state violence, have become

host to the cohesion of different groups of resistance. These congregations have led to the

development of new social movements borne from the turmoil of the military junta. Kitis

describes these assemblages as “...cross-fertilizations between traditional working class

movements involved in capital-labor conflicts with feminism, gay rights, black struggles,

environmentalism, and initiatives for world peace.” This gradual development also saw the9

formation of alliances between ”unions, farmers, minority and immigrant groups.” In these10

fateful exchanges, Anarchism would rise become a pillar of Greek resistance.

Student and youth led resistance groups remained active after the fall of the dictatorship

in 1974. In efforts to prevent the violence that befell the students of Polytechnic, the

constitutional right of University Asylum was implemented in 1982. Though the military had11

withdrawn its ranks, the searing hot wounds of violent repression, torture, and kidnapping

7 Kitis, E. Dimitris. "The Anti-Authoritarian Chóros: A Space for Youth Socialization and Radicalization in Greece(1974–2010)." Journal for the Study of Radicalism 9.1 (2015): 1-36.8 IBID.9 IBID.10 IBID.11 http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/10/world/europe/10iht-greece.html?_r=0


6/40

5

remained strong in the minds and hearts of the youth. The sight of uniforms and guns close to

university students were almost to painful to bear for most Greeks.

The asylum right prohibited state authorities from entering universities, making campuses

fertile ground for preparation for street actions over the last quarter century. University property

and materials were often used by student protestors to create barricades, projectiles, and shields.

University buildings would be occupied and reserved as a safehouse post street actions, where12

makeshift medical and mental aid quarters could be constructed.

Sprung from the the dynamics of post-junta revolutionary youth groups, came the birth

of Punk Rock in greece in the 1980’s, accompanying a growing foundation of anti authoritarian

resistance. Acquainted with opportunity, radical organizers began to recruit from these13

countercultural hotbeds. It has been noted by Dimitris Kitis that many punk rock bands were

formed in working class neighborhoods in which many residents had experience in street action

scenarios. Kitis contends that along with the influence of the Greek farm workers, punk rock14

also heavily influenced the arrival of confrontational tactics like street fighting to the cities of

Greece . For example, “ The practice of dou (Greek:) consisted of a gate-crashing technique,15

whereby the crowd would charge the concert security or police en masse and head-to-head in

order to gain access to the rock concert without a ticket.” 16

While student groups organized, professors pressured, and debased government officials

attempted to push change through paper, anarchists, punks, and other anti authoritarian youth

12 Babasidis, Kyriakos A. The Political and Cultural Dynamics of University Asylum Law in Greece . Thesis.Department of Social Policy, The University of Hull, 2003. Print.13 Kitis, E. Dimitris. "The Anti-Authoritarian Chóros: A Space for Youth Socialization and Radicalization inGreece (1974–2010)." Journal for the Study of Radicalism 9.1 (2015): 1-36. Web.14 Ibid.15 Ibid.16 Ibid.


7/40

6

groups stood the frontline battling the footsoldiers of the state. At the close of the 20th century,

Greece saw the older, more experienced groups, be joined and subsequently frontlined by these

anti-authoritarian youth brigades.

Modern Tactics

Following 4 decades of cumulous resistance that saw the molding of groups into both

radical and reformist factions, the Greek financial crisis of 2008 brought people of different

backgrounds to the streets en mass. Once again Greece saw the emergence of anti17

authoritarian, anarchist, and punk subcultures frontlining the collective street resistance. Though

the principle of autonomy was essential to the actions of the many separate groups, people came

together under banners of distrust for Greek parliamentary competency and condemnation of the

impending capitalist agenda.

The early mobilizations of 2008 developed tactics of occupation, at first mainly in city

squares and then filtering into abandoned squats. This tactic of occupation provides “a center or

hub for mobilization,” or a homebase for action. Here, the greek protesters would implement18

forms of direct democracy, in which everyone at the designated assembly would be polled for

consensus before an action was launched. These assemblies of direct democracy point to the

dissatisfaction of the Greek masses with their current form of governmental representation.

In December of 2008, street action saw marked increase in intensity in response to the

killing of unarmed 15-year old Alexandros Grigoropoulos by police. Heavy handed riots and19

17 Vradis, Antonis, and Dimitris Dalakoglou. Revolt and Crisis in Greece: Between a Present Yet to Pass and a Future Still to Come . Oakland: AK and Occupied London, 2011. Print 18 Kitis, E. Dimitris. "The Anti-Authoritarian Chóros: A Space for Youth Socialization and Radicalization in Greece(1974–2010)." Journal for the Study of Radicalism 9.1 (2015): 1-36. Web. 19 Becatoros, Elena. "Greek Policeman Guilty of Murder in Teen Death." AP Online . 11 Oct. 2010. Web. 2016.


8/40

7

large scale disorder pervaded greek cities with widespread property damage and injury to police

officers. Actions that started as demonstrations of grief and visibility quickly became street

battles. Greece saw distinctive escalations between day and night actions. Preparations for

day actions often incorporated art builds, public forums, and planning for march routes. In

contrast, preparations for night actions generally involved collective demolition of street

curbs for stockpiling of stone munitions and, of course, the fiery greek ritual clandestinely

described in verse, "Again and again, a certain liquid in a certain glass container." 20

Under a multitude of agendas and in response to the perceived inaction of

politicians, Greek protesters placed emphasis on confronting the embodiment of authority

in the police. Protesters also sought to damage and deface the edificial symbols of capitalist

oppression, beginning the physical push to implement their political and social ideals. As

noted in the Anti Authoritarian Choros, “rioting usually takes place under the cover and in

the margins of mass demonstrations.” Street actions of the early 21st century began to21

incorporate color coordination within gatherings, protesters plotting to cause property

damage or inflict damage on police would form autonomous factions or “blocs” within a

march. The tactic known as “Blac-Bloc”, borrowed from German squatters resistance, saw

rise in the cities of Greece. Under this tactic all people dressed the same, concealed by22

masks, they offered no separation of identity that could be used in subsequent criminal

investigations or judicial trials. Black bloc cells operate on strict formation, as the tactic as

a whole relies on the strength of connection between each individual. Lines would form

20 Kitis, E. Dimitris. "The Anti-Authoritarian Chóros: A Space for Youth Socialization and Radicalization inGreece (1974–2010)." Journal for the Study of Radicalism 9.1 (2015): 1-36. Web.21 Ibid.22 George Katsiacas, The Subversion of Politics: European Autonomous Social Movements and theDecolonization of Everyday Life (Oakland, CA: AK Press,2006)


9/40

8

behind the length of banners which were usually reinforced with materials like chicken

wire. The banners, which enclose the front and sides of the bloc, employ artistry to portray

political griefs while also offering tactical utility by establishing parameters of the bloc and

strengthening its defences. Typically, this tactic would call for protesters to link arms, as

once the bloc is compromised in one section it can be severed, the division posing great

danger to the protesters. Blac Bloc operates on formative movements reminiscent of the

coagulation, members of the cell are constantly re aggregating to close breaches at the

point where police apply pressure. In some assemblies, a faction known as the Pink Bloc,

a primarily feminist and queer based organization, would dress in bright colors or in clown

costumes taking position between blac bloc and police riot line formations in attempts to

de escalate the situations and offer performative or comedic interruption to the scenes of

violence. 23

This march tactic allows for the merging of a multitude of beliefs and stratagem to

operate collectively, even within the presence of dissenting ethical codes. Those who want

to take action within the accepted guidelines of Greek law would be distanced from more

radical persuasions. To solidify the distinctive boundaries, autonomous zones are formed

within marches in which it is known and accepted that individuals in these zones will not

be following any previously stated guidelines for the days’ street action. Children and more

vulnerable protesters would often be given notice of a planned escalations within

autonomous zones through the discharge of colored smoke and invocation of specific

chants.

23 Kitis, E. Dimitris, and Tommaso M. Milani. "The Performativity of the Body: Turbulent Spaces in Greece." Linguistic Landscape An International Journal Linguistic Landscape LL 1.3 (2015): 268-90. Web.


10/40

9

To help organize the cohesion and efficiency of like minded individuals within the

chaos of large scale street mobilizations, the formation of affinity groups has proven useful

for Greek protesters. Affinity groups tend to be smaller packs of 5-8 where individuals

share common goals and interests for the action and hold themselves accountable to other

members of group. Responsibilities within affinity groups would range from dispensing

medical aid to providing lookout posts and accounting for any members that had been

arrested post action.

A staple of Greek resistance in the 21st century has been the tactic of street fighting.

This tactic of conflict is usually characterized by hand to hand combat with heavily

armoured riot police, often making use of close quarters weapons such as sticks, clubs, and

flagpoles. The tactic also employs the use of projectiles like stones, bottles, and molotov

cocktails. In long range projectile engagement, clusters of protesters break bloc rank to

hurl objects at police and are absorbed back into the crowd, retaining cover and animinity.

Tactics of de arrest are also encouraged in these circles as authority is not recognized and

subsequent arrests are seen as illegal abductions.

Within these forms of violent confrontation, Greek protesters are not expecting to

win a war by force, nor do they expect the change they seek to be implemented at the

conclusion of a street battle. The fact is, state forces have virtually unlimited resources to

suppress the resistance, while protesters will eventually run out of the obliterated

fragments of pavement they stand on. These realities are not beyond the comprehension of

those that dedicate themselves to this style of resistance. In this way, the effectiveness of

street fighting tactics are derived primarily from the impetus psychological effects of a


11/40

10

community of people forcing an armed guard to retreat, even if their victory is only

momentary. By engaging police ground units in the immediate proximity of an action with

enough exertion to force them to retreat, protesters can also create the physical space necessary

to engage in targeted property destruction. In response to frustrations of diplomatic processes,

street fighting is seen as a viable tactic for producing immediate results. 24

In the last 5 years, incendiary attacks by highly radicalized anarchist groups have become

increasingly prevalent. Forming in 2008, the Conspiracy of Fire Cells have launched campaigns

of attempted parcel bombings, prisoner escapes. and armed bank robberies, all in the name of

insurrectionary anarchism. Factions like the Conspiracy of Fire cells will often engage in25

incendiary attacks targeting banks, atms, media corporations, and police stations. They primarily

attack these facilities under cover of nightfall when no one is present and later claim

responsibility through the electronic release of publicized statements. Though many of its

members are currently incarcerated, the Conspiracy of Fire cells maintain a strong influence on

the radical swaying greek youth through the steady release of statements on underground news

sources that filter into social media. Broadcasting their messages in Spanish , Greek , Italian ,

French , Portuguese , and German , Greek insurrectionary resistance elements have inspired

solidarity campaigns of property damage in several different countries. It is imperative to note26

that these attacks, while broadly characterized by corporate media and politicians alike as

violence, operate on elements distinct to state sponsored violence. Property damage and attacks

24 Keating, Josh K. "What Do We Know about the Conspiracy of the Fire Nuclei?" Foreign Policy What Do We Know about the Conspiracy of the Fire Nuclei Comments . 25 Ibid.26 http://conspiracycellsoffire.blogspot.com

https://de-contrainfo.espiv.net/2015/11/11/diciembre-negro/https://pt-contrainfo.espiv.net/2015/11/10/diciembre-negro/https://fr-contrainfo.espiv.net/2015/11/10/diciembre-negro/https://it-contrainfo.espiv.net/2015/11/10/diciembre-negro/https://gr-contrainfo.espiv.net/2015/11/10/diciembre-negro/https://es-contrainfo.espiv.net/2015/11/10/diciembre-negro/


12/40

11

of arson are a unique form of performative violence, a concept which will be further developed

in the conclusions of this study.

In recent months anti authoritarian resistance has shifted their focus of engagement. In

response to growing ultranationalist and white supremacist organizing and action in Europe,

many anarchist elements have began responding to the Syrian refugee crises. Ardent opponents

of laws and borders, anarchist elements have begun assisting in the illegal entry of refugees who

land on the rocky shores of Lesvos. Illegal anarchist squats have been converted into shelters27

for the refugees. These groups have also taken to confronting ultra nationalist and white

supremacist groups who have been organizing marches and rallys with alarming frequency.

II. Chile


Much like Greece, Chile saw a major developments in tactics of resistance formed in the

wake of an oppressive military dictatorship. Influence of western elite would help install General

Augusto Pinoche in 1973 though a military coup that was meant to lead the country onto a path

of successful free market economics. Selected through the process of scholarship, a group of28

promising young Chilean economic students were brought to the University of Chicago to study,

they returned to hold high ranking governmental positions integral to foundation of Pinochet's

27Alexandrides, Antonis. "Who Cares for the Refugees?" OpenDemocracy . 28 Constable, Pamela, and Arturo Valenzuela. A Nation of Enemies: Chile under Pinochet . New York: Norton, 1991.Print.


13/40

12

military dictatorship. ( Sergio de Castro, Minister of Finance, 1977–1982; José Piñera, Minister

of Economy, 1976–1979; and Alvaro Bardón , Minister of Economy, 1982–1983) 29

However, in practice, the capitalist restructuration of chilean economy through the

overthrow of the socialist president led to the disappearance, torture, and execution of thousands

of Chileans. A Nation of Enemies by Pamela Constable and Sam Hall Kaplan describes the

effects of the regime installation pockmarked by, “tales of indignities endured, hopes crushed,

families torn apart or forced to make painful choices to survive in a climate of conformity and

intimidation.” In 1973, the very same year of the Greek uprising at the Polytechnic, the30

democratically elected president Allende was found dead in his fortress, besieged by his own

general. As one embittered leftist described, “It was like the death of a son, the end of a

world... ” 31

In the shattering of Allende’s ambitious dreams of democratic socialism came a

nightmarish military dictatorship. In preparation for large scale resistance to the coup, General

Pinoche led countless raids, abductions, and fire squads against those expected to rebel. Food

rationing, curfews, and torture of political dissidents were hallmarks of the Pinochet regime, all

considered to be necessary evils to preserve the character of Chile and “liberate the fatherland

from the marxist yoke…” 32

The guerilla radio broadcasts by rebels that sounded the call to arms against the coup

went largely unheeded by the Chilean masses. The combative rhetoric from desperate dissidents

further catalyzed harsh military repression and fruitless searches for nonexistent weapons

29 Soto, Angel. "Founding Fathers of Chile's Capitalist Revolution, The." Yale J. Int'l Aff. 2 (2006) 30 Constable, Pamela, and Arturo Valenzuela. A Nation of Enemies: Chile under Pinochet . New York: Norton, 1991.Print. 31 Ibid.32 Ibid.

http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Alvaro_Bard%C3%B3n&action=edit&redlink=1http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Pi%C3%B1era


14/40

13

stashes. Though the coup passed largely uncontested in force from the of Chilean masses, these33

observations cannot discredit the actions of those that did offer armed resistance to the military

takeover. As a Nation of Enemies describes, “In a few factories and universities... handfuls of

students and workers attempted to repel invading troops. At the Sumar Textile plant, about 40

union activists armed with rifles and machine guns held and army helicopter at bay, then fled to

the leftist shantytown of La Legua, where the battle continued for several days.” 34

But the crude militias were no match for the newly installed Chilean dictatorship, and,

“despite months of bravado, leftist leaders had no real defence plan and few weapons...troops

entering most factories encountered only confused, frightened men.” Many members of the35

previous government turned themselves in, the politicians and civilians that were taken against

their will by the authorities endured bouts of brutality and degradation. Horrific stories of, “ the

sixteen-year-old girl who nearly went insane from electric shock; the elderly mayor who was

forced to eat excrement, even for those who escaped physical reprisal, the overthrow of Allende

brought terror, guilt, and disillusionment.” 36

A Nation of Enemies depicts the years of the Pinochet regime as a world of unfathomable

cruelty, severed and cleaved by a polarized populous. While the economic elite enjoyed37

prosperity and security in martial order, the middle and lower classes became, perhaps

irretrievably, disillusioned to political power. As tanks and soldiers occupied city squares we

once again see the repressive measures of state control solidify the resolve of resistance in the

revolutionary cycle.

33 IBID.34 IBID.35 IBID.36 IBID.37 IBID.


15/40

14

In contrast to the well organized mobilizations in greece, Chilean grassroots resistance

was not cultivated to this point in history. As noted by Annie Dandavati, Chair of Political

Science and Director of International Studies at Hope College, this dearth of Grassroots

mobilization, “stemmed in part from the very strong political parties that existed at the time,

because, even if social movements arose, they were mobilized and sustained by the political

parties.” These co-opting factors stifling a genuine people's movement would end when the38

economic crises of 1982 opened the floodgates to Chilean street actions in defiance of the

military regime. National workers unions took to the streets en mass, implementing tactics of

noise protest. “They banged on pots and pans, honked horns, and used other methods to express

solidarity with one another and frustration with the regime.” Heavy handed police response that39

maimed and killed multiple protestors only kindled the flame of rebellion and solidarity. The

Chilean people saw great success in organizing widespread workers strikes that effectively

pulled the struggling economic system to a halt until policies could be addressed.

While mostly men dominated the ranks of the workers unions, Chilean woman were

forming their own bands of resistance. Throughout the Chilean military dictatorship, “women

were encouraged to embrace traditional gender roles and focus on being wives and mothers

rather than being politically active,” the regime perceived women as being, “politically passive40

and uninvolved.” 41

After the coup, all-woman groups began forming Arpillera workshops, in which

members would produce quilts with resonant imagery displaying fervent opposition to the

38 Dandavati, Annie G. Engendering Democracy in Chile. New York : Peter Lang, 2005. 5.39 Constable, Pamela, and Arturo Valenzuela. A Nation of Enemies: Chile under Pinochet . New York: Norton, 1991.Print . 40 Chilean Women's Resistance in the Arpillera Movement." COHA . 2008. Web41 IBID.


16/40

15

military regime. When the Chilean woman banded together, their initial domestically oriented

forms resistance blossomed into incredible works of art and a natural cohesion that expanded

their tactics of resistance. Many aspects of the Arpillera meetings embodied inherent rebellion to

state control. Often operated on communal principles of collective encumbrance, equitous wage

distribution, and cooperative decision making, Arpilleristas began to construct the infrastructure

of the societies they were deprived of. The workshops became mobilization headquarters and42

fertile grounds for free thought. One Apillerista contended, “The fact that we meet here in the

[arpillera] workshop is very important because we give each other courage to go out in the street

together.” These structures served to foster the radicalization of Chilean woman, setting them43

on the course to street marches, hunger strikes, and other profound tactics of resistance.

A major voice of the Chilean people reverberating through the stone corridors of the

secret police dungeons was Victor Jara. Jara, an eternal hero of Chile, embodied the heart of

protest music. The son of farmers, Jara grew from humble roots to become student of theatre,

renowned stage director, and celebrated songwriter. After a brief stint in the military, Jara44

returned to his muses of melody. His deep rooted love for writing and directing cutting po litical

theatre became overshadowed by his calling to acoustic folk music . Known for is infectious

character and ability to make up songs on the spot, his words crystallized into chants and mantras

of the Chilean people. His songs were the chorus of defiance resounding through the chilean

streets and into the countryside. Jara’s legacy of resistance through music lived on even after he

was killed by Pinochet’s secret police in 1973. Before his death, legacy holds that authorities

42 IBID.43 Constable, Pamela, and Arturo Valenzuela. A Nation of Enemies: Chile under Pinochet . New York: Norton, 1991.Print . 44 IBID


17/40

16

broke Jara’s fingers and passed him a guitar to play for his fellow prisoners. Jaras’ spirit of45

resistance would not be broken and after a final defiant acapela, he was killed and entombed in

the National Stadium which has since been renamed to bear his namesake. The Spirit of Jara’s46

rebellious music has had a lasting influence on the heart of chilean resistance. The elements of

patchwork, song, and creativity solidified a colorful and expressive spirit of resistance present on

Chilean streets today.

Modern Tactics

Today, street level resistance in Chile is frontlined primarily by student led organizations.

One solar revolution after the Arab Spring Uprising, 2011 saw the birth of what became known

as the “Chilean Winter.” The disruptive student response to market oriented educational system

was encouraged by mass support from the surviving generations of the Pinochet Era. Bold and

daring street actions saw large turnouts that were nearly impossible to suppress. Giorgio

Jackson, spokesman of the Student Confederation of Chile, points to sociological factors behind

the brazen actions and massive turnouts suggesting, “This is the first generation without fear.

They[student protesters] were young enough to not have had any personal experience with

Pinochet’s authoritarian regime, having been born around the time of the democratic transition.”

47

Within initial flares of the uprising, sit-ins and street marches were effective tactics due

to large numbers of protesters mobilizing in the thousands. Further developments in tactics of

barricading and occupying classes also saw widespread implementation within the student

45 Chile: Ex-army Officers Implicated in Victor Jara Death." BBC News . Web. 46 Ibid.47 Campo, Alicia Del. "Theatricalities of Dissent." Radical History Review 2016.124 (2016): 177-91. Web.


18/40

17

organizations. Modern chilean tactics of street protest rely heavily on emphasis of imagery

through art and color, swiftness of setup and enactment, and the cooperation of professors and

other dignified supporters. Emerging through billowing clouds of red smoke, Chilean protesters

boast flagrant signs and banners, concealing paint grenades as performative weapons for the

inevitable confrontations with police.

In contrast to Greek resistance, street protests in Chile generally do not seek to confront

riot police. Though street fighting with authoritative forces can often erupt, in general the

confrontations are not specified objectives and are usually defensive in nature. Evocative of a

more creative and free forming approach, the rigid formations of Bloc bloc never became a

staple tactic of Chilean resistance. Elements of sought conflict predominantly appear in the

cathartic motions of rocks hurled against armoured vehicles. Officers on foot are rarely engaged,

though the tanks remain steady targets for projectiles, which threaten little to no damage to the

state forces. Here again we see hints of a violence that is performative in nature, in the dramatic

irony of rocks being used against armored vehicles, the belting of chants, the crescendos of paint

grenades arched upon riot shields, and even the comic theatre of having an entire protest punt

soccer balls at police during the Copa America action. Implementing paint projectiles may offer48

the emotional and physiological utility of aesthetically debasing systems or uniforms of

intimidation. This tactic could also present the practical application of temporarily immobilizing

an armoured vehicle by covering windshield and obstructing the vision of the driver. Police

response to street actions in Chile are most commonly met with batons, manually propelled

smoke canisters, and high powered mounted water-cannons.

48 Chile's Emboldened Students Back on Streets to Defy Government." Reuters . Thomson Reuters, 2015. Web.


19/40

18

One of chile’s most prolific tactics of resistance is portrayed in the culture of street art.

Since the fall of the regime, street art has been seen as viable weapon of resistance. The walls

Santiago and Valparaiso that had once been plastered with nationalist propaganda, now stand

splattered in fits of color. During the Pinochet regime, art collectives such as Brigada Ramona49

Parra (BRP) famous for their sprawling, vivid murals depicting opposition to state violence,

endured suffocating repression. The treasonous illegality of street art under the military

dictatorship reduced guerilla artists to make use of simple consonants, a hasty letter R having to

suffice for the call to resistance. As the regime withdrew its ranks, muralists and clandestine50

artist began creeping back into the streets. Stencils, murals, and street slogans illustrate the

various manifestations of this form of communicative rebellion. Street slogans and stencils were

often implemented under modes of guerilla tactics; mobilizing in small groups, operating under

cover of nightfall, and deploying at strategic junctions. Deployment of stencil art and street

slogans are also a common occurrences during mass marches, often effectively serving as

captions to accompany the photographs of property destruction that will inevitably smatter the

morning paper.

Through the implementation of this tactic, we see the streets used as a viable conduit for

communication that invokes aspects of interactional discourse. Imploring merit from a youthful

distrust of corporate media, the tactic of street art offers an opportunity to reach audiences

directly in targeted demographics. Thus, specific areas such as University squares and bourgeois

neighborhoods, became prone to such elements of vandalism. Under a lens of performative51

violence and street theatre, the tactic of street art can be seen as an aesthetic overture,

49 Saúl, Ernesto. Pintura social en Chile . Vol. 13. Empresa Editora Nacional Quimantu Limitada, 1972. 50 IBID.51 Foust, Elisha. Word on the Street . Institute of Germanic & Romance Studies, 2011. Print.


20/40

19

constructing the emmotive setting or backdrop and exteriorizing the “action’. Often undertaken

during the blackouts between circadian scene changes, street art etches struggle into the walls of

the public debate.

The artistic spewings of these communal transmissions can be studied in both their

capacity for social engagement as well as their contributions to artistic innovation. In the essay

“Word on the Street, The subversive poetics of a marginalized discourse and Culture ,” Elisha

Foust explores the depth of rebellious street art. In relation to the linguistic manifestations of

graffiti Word on the Street notes,“Street slogans function to pervert our shared frames of

knowledge and expel a rally cry that threatens to to disrupt and destabilize the realm of

‘standard’ language.” Chilean street slogans often feature short, witty, statements playing with52

the syntax and logic of referential discourse that is easily recognizable to the average person. In

effect, “They disrupt predictable meanings by replacing expected collocations with incongruent

co-occurrences, thus subverting our beliefs and our commonsense understanding of the world.” 53

Emerging through the narrows of illegal and subversive practices, and despite its deep roots of

political rebellion, street art has become an embraced and even celebrated part of Chilean

culture.

Another prominent tactic of modern chilean resistance is the art of protest song. During

street actions, percussion and chant are integral parts of the protest repertoire. This form of

resistance serves in communicating grievances and demands to the public while emboldening

group camaraderie through the unified expression of familiar anthems. One of Chile's most vocal

contemporary rebels and global champion of protest music is Ana Tijoux. A daughter of exile,

52 IBID.53 IBID.


21/40

20

the french-chilean songwriter uses music to highlight indigenous issues, feminist ideals, and

issues of economic inequality. In a recent interview, Ana spoke about the influences of her54

music video for “ Somos Sur,” which features a high energy gladiatorial drumbeat and powerful

displays of indigenous dancing. The video features Tinkus dancers native to the areas of Bolivia,

Peru, and Northern Chile. In the interview, Tijoux explains that the Tinkus perform almost

exclusively in protest, displaying highly choreographed ritualistic ceremonies brought to the

streets in march/parades. Tijoux’s music has become the anthem to the student protests of55

Chile.

Over the last decade, splinters of blackclad insurrectionary anarchists have taken to the

chilean streets with increasing frequency and intensity. Dispersed within the ranks of the student

movement and also operating through clandestine offshoots, this form of resistance contains

many similarities to insurrectionary anarchism seen in the Hellenic territories and often operates

in congruent actions solidarity. The techniques of these militant anarchist groups will often

involve targeted attacks on buildings and vehicles, followed by an expositional press releases

from the division claiming the attack. Many recent attacks have called for the release of

anarchist prisoners and the confrontation of capitalist systems. Although BBC Statistics record

over 200 bomb attacks in the Chilean capital of Santiago (not all attacks attributed to anarchist

groups) in the last decade, no serious injuries have affected anyone but two of the attackers

themselves. Most attacks have been, “timed to go off at night when the streets are largely56

empty” and are accompanied by calls warning to emergency networks before the detonation for

54 Sayo, Charlene. "Chaos Theory: Rapper Ana Tjoux on Art, Feminism, 'garbage Culture' and Chaotic Resistance." Rabble.ca . Web. 55 IBID.56 Long, Gideon. "Chileans Baffled by Persistent Bomb Attacks." BBC News . Web.


22/40

21

evacuation purposes. BBC notes “About a third of the bombs have been placed outside banks57

but other targets have included police stations, army barracks, churches, embassies, the

headquarters of political parties, company offices, courthouses and government buildings.” The 58

devices used are handmade, requiring rudimentary materials and assembly.

The attacks, often characterized under headlines of violence and terrorism, burn to be

examined under the lense of performative violence. The devices used, consistently crude and

homemade, lack the capability of destroying their targets, thus any effectiveness of the tactic is

derived from symbolic sociocultural results, not through the carnage of perceived enemies or the

obliteration strongholds. The incendiary attacks and accompanying press releases are blatant

invocations of spectacle. A comparison to tactics of indigenous Chilean resistance can offer a

useful reference point to highlight the juxtaposition between the use of fire as a symbol and as a

weapon.

The Mapuche tribe is a longstanding pillar to Chilean resistance and a persistent

influence on Chilean street art and protest music. Native to the pristine glacial lands of

Patagonia, the Mapuche remains in constant conflict with authorities. The tribe stands against59

forced displacements from their native lands. These displacements have been imposed in efforts

to harness and exploit natural resources of the Patagonia for capital gain through the construction

of a massive hydroelectric dam. The rupture through which this wound of indigenous struggle60

persists comes compliments of the Pinochet Regime, who afforded foreign businesses the

opportunity to plunder indigenous lands through the privatization and trade of the country's water

57 IBID.58 IBID.59 Reinao, Rosamel Millaman. "Mapuche resistance to transnational corporations: reformulating strategies ofstruggle." Anthropology of work review 21.2 (2000): 8-11. 60 Nordbo, I. "The Destiny of the Biobío River. Hydro Development at Any Cost." Centro 2020 (2000): 02-01.


23/40

22

rights. In defence of their sacred water, the Mapuche fight back with fire, attacking and61

torching the farm equipment that uproots their land. Attacks with fire are also used to disable62

police and security vehicles from entering and occupying Mapuche land. This tactical use of fire

seeks to actively and practically destroy the devices which are destroying them. As a traditional

self-sustaining tribe isolated to the far south, Mapuche resistance does not use flame as a tool for

visibility in attracting media or swaying public opinion. Rather it is employed directly to the

defence of their land, culture, and race, invoking methods they have used against state powers for

hundreds of years.

III.Black Liberation Movement


Unlike the regions previously investigated, the United States did not experience the

blunt violence of a political coup, nor did they witness the obtrusive control of a military

dictatorship during the 1970’s. Military aggression and violence infiltrated American

society more insidiously, manifesting through capitalist conquests of foreign policy. Within

the progressions of the civil rights movement, African American organization in the US can

be divided into tactics of nonviolence and tactics of self-defense. Response to the subtleties

of American military dominion resulted in a notable departure from the contemporaneous

struggles of Greece and Chile. The lack of pronounced aggression as seen in the military

takeovers in Chile and Greece, may have impacted adherence towards non-violent tactics in the

61 Constable, Pamela, and Arturo Valenzuela. A Nation of Enemies: Chile under Pinochet . New York: Norton, 1991.Print. 62 Weinberg, Bill. "MAPUCHE FIGHT TIMBER AND HYDRO DEVELOPERS." Native Americas 16.2 (1999): 6.


24/40

23

early stages of the US Civil rights movement. The tactic of sit-ins, coined by the Congress of

Racial Equality as early as the forties, relied on mass turn outs and appeal to human decency of63

white southerners. Sit-in protesters endured physical violence and psychological degradation in

unflinching displays of courage in efforts to humanize the victims and destabilize the moral of

their aggressors. As noted by acclaimed Activist/Author/Rabbi Arthur Waskow, tactics of

creative disorder further developed into stages of marches, rent strikes, and job blockades. 64

The white southern segrationalits who opposed the sit-ins often operated with heinous

disregard for human dignity in animalistic bouts of violence. Though many protesters left

actions thoroughly beaten down, tactics of nonviolence were effective in a variety of manners.

Morgan and Davies notes “Many [white southern students] responded to the inspirational

courage of African American protesters in putting themselves in physical danger to make

intersectional ideals a reality.” 65

Culminating from the swelling moral of black pride born in the cohesion of such

momentous actions, African American protesters saw clearly the significance of preserving their

own leadership within the anti-racist movement. This was a world where there existed “no

separation between [direct] action and voter registration because both provoked the same violent

response from diehard segre gationists.” In a society built on enslavement, resistance66

became a way of life for Black Americans. Though debate could arise to the effectiveness of

nonviolence as a tactic, the momentum gathered during nonviolent actions barrel on

63 Waskow, Arthur Ocean. From Race Riot to Sit-in, 1919 and the 1960s; a Study in the Connections betweenConflict and Violence . Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1966. Print. 64 IBID. 65 Morgan, Iwan W., and Philip Davies. From Sit-ins to SNCC: The Student Civil Rights Movement in the 1960s .Gainesville: U of Florida, 2012. Print. 66 IBID.


25/40

24

uncontested. The solidary bonds formed in communities of black youth around nonviolent

actions fostered the pride, hope, and power that blossomed into a reinvigorating self-love

for African and African American culture. To put it plainly, these street actions brought

negotiation s to the table that were never on the menu.

However, the intellectual, moral, and religious arguments to the legitimacy of tactical

nonviolence, proposed through movement leaders such as Martin Luther King and Bayard

Rustin, did not appeal to the lion’s share of black youth. These attitudes began to steer the67

civil rights movement in vain in what some saw futilely as “The tactics of nonviolence without

the spirit of nonviolence.” As noted in Pure Fire: Self Defense and Activism in the Civil68

Rights Era, “Nonviolence probably could not have, become a permanent plateau of the civil

rights movement.” Harsh retaliations ground down at African American moral, many feeling that

the safety of the protestors and their families were not to be met with passivity. Civil rights

leader Robert Williams argued, “Nonviolence is a very potent weapon when the opponent is

civilized, but nonviolence is no repellent for a sadist.” The strategy of nonviolence presented a69

moral dilemma to many in the movement. Violence was discouraged by the state as a means of

change for Black Americans yet, contradictorally, it was the method used to oppress them.

Williams argues, “I was taught by my government to fight. Nowhere in the annals of history does

the record show a people delivered from bondage by patience alone.” 70

Out of the shortcomings of tactical reliance on nonviolent action came a call to arms

in the self-defence movement. The shift encapsulated in the famous sentiment, “Out of

67 Strain, Christopher B. Pure Fire: Self-defense as Activism in the Civil Rights Era . Athens: U of Georgia, 2005.Print. 68 IBID .69 IBID.70 IBID.


26/40

25

cheeks to turn,” nonviolence is noted as an effective way to engage some forms of conflict

but cannot sustain a movement on its own. Facing extreme violence from both white

supremacist organizations and law enforcement organizations, the interests Black

Americans to protect the lives of their families could not be ignored. Organizations such as

the Black Panthers encouraged the armed self defence and tactical preparedness of African

Americans, sparking a rise to the black militant movement.

The black militant movement stressed adherence to principles of self-defence because it

was understood that armed aggression against the state would not be tactically favourable. 71

Therefore, in approaching conflict with state forces, organizations like the Black Panthers rarely

engaged in offensive attacks but would not hesitate to fire if fired upon. Black Nationalism was

championed by leaders like Malcolm X who brought compelling arguments of the moral,

religious, and tactical offerings of self-defence resistance that rivaled the orations of King on

nonviolence. The militant movement, which often recruited returning war veterans, ex convicts,

and black intellectual youth, frequently made street actions showcasing the firepower and

discipline of their organizations.

These actions were seen as an imminent threat to the structures of white supremacy and

were met with violent retaliation. The authoritative forces of American law enforcement and

intelligence agencies brought a unique and precise form of suppression upon black militant

movement using deceptive tactics of infiltration, instigation, entrapment, and all out siege. 72

Thus, the armed self-defence factions of African American resistance were effectively detained

or forced underground. At the same time, the less organized and more violent white supremacist

71 IBID .72 Churchill, Ward, and Jim Vander Wall. The COINTELPRO papers: Documents from the FBI's secret warsagainst dissent in the United States . Vol. 8. Cambridge, MA: South End Press, 2002.


27/40

26

organizations were protected by the same structures involved in the downfall of the black

militant movement. 73

Towards the end of the 20th century, important political developments would cement the

foundations of American militarized repression to organized resistance factions and street

actions. A cooperational pact established between the Department of Defence and the

Department of Justice in 1994, was intended to address “growing convergence between the

technology required for military operations and the technology required for law enforcement.” 74

The agreement meant to enhance operations, “through a sharing and joint development, to the

extent permitted by law, of technology and systems applicable to both,” created a trickle down of

high grade weapons and munitions transferred from the US military to local law enforcement

agencies. Here we saw the surplus products of the American Military industrial complex be75

absorbed into systems of domestic law enforcement, approving the use of military grade

materials and technologies for use on American citizens. These conditions combined with the

“War on Crime” and the “War on Drugs” perpetuated a militarized police state that would rival

the suppressive power of the dictatorships in Chile and greece. These circumstances have major

implications on the development of modern tactics of resistance in the US.

73 IBID .74 938. Department of Defense Memorandum of Understanding." U.S. Department of Justice . Web 75 IBID.


28/40

27

Modern Tactics

In August of 2014, the United States saw an urban rebellion that sparked a dynamic

movement of unrivaled impact in recent decades. Stemming from the police killing of

unarmed African American teenager Michael Brown, the flagrant intensity of large scale

uprising would bring the National Guard and a State of Emergency to geographical heart of

the nation. The ensuing destruction of property and clashes with police brought massive76

media attention to the region, making it difficult to ignore civil rights abuses committed by

a fully militarized police against the citizens they were employed to protect.

The events that followed would crystallize into a national movement demanding the

end to police violence and eradication of systemic racism. The groups that formed as a

direct result of these events have since employed some most tactically expansive and

thoroughly organized anti-racist resistance since the civil rights era. These events have

motivated a sustained street presence led by African American youth that is still in its early

stages of development.

The initial gatherings of citizens in the days immediately following Brown’s death

could only be described as raw; they were unsystematic, impulsive, emotional, and were

met with with extreme brutality by local law enforcement. Harsh repression left a

struggling city to no choice but to brace inward, strengthening their community bonds and

relying on each other to heal from shared injuries, abuses, and frustrations.

Previous uprisings in response to police shootings of unarmed black americans

were not uncommon over the last decade, and in fact, showed many congruencies to the

76 Crimethinc, ed. "Rolling Thunder: A Journal of Dangerous Living." Ferguson and Beyond: Confronting the Police and White Supremacy 1.12 (2015)


29/40


30/40

29

disrupt, “business as usual,” more colloquially known as “shutting shit down.” Each action80

became more organized and more emboldened through a strong sense of community

solidarity. The sense of urgency and desperation of marginalized communities in St. Louis

brought out people of all ages and backgrounds to street actions. Children, community

leaders, clergy, gang members, and students are a small sampling of the demographic that

made up the actions. It has been noted in civil rights abuse allegations that police

escalation and use of teargas in the presence of children instigated many of the conflicts

that escalated in violence against police officers. 81

On November 24th, after a lengthy period of sustained resistance that saw an

exponential growth of organizing and community cohesion, officials passed down the

decision to not indict the officer who shot and killed Brown. The announcement brought

immediate reaction from protesters assembled outside the Ferguson police department.

The decision to drop charges against the officer who killed an unarmed black youth incited

a series of intense riots that ravaged sections of St. louis. Police cars and stores were

torched and looted, projectiles launched at police and even reports of running gun battles

with police forces in local neighborhoods. These events would unfold on news networks82

across the country inflaming a national conversation on the underlying causes of these

emergencies.

80Interview: Playwright Morgan Stevenson on "If We Don't Get It, Shut It Down - A Play About the BaltimoreUprising"" A Play About the Baltimore Uprising . N.p., 2016. Web. 81 "ON THE STREETS OF AMERICA: HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN FERGUSON." Amnesty International (2015): n. pag. Web. 82 Crimethinc, ed. "Rolling Thunder: A Journal of Dangerous Living." Ferguson and Beyond: Confronting the

Police and White Supremacy 1.12 (2015)


31/40

30

As American trends police violence persisted unhindered, antiracist and anti police

organization continued to form and develop exponentially in virtually every major US City.

The ceaseless longevity of resistance in St louis, in combination with the physical display

rebellion through fire and stone against seemingly impossible odds, inspired sweeping

mobilizations across the country.

Unlike the other areas studied, where police predominantly relied on rudimentary

tools of combat such as water cannons, smoke canisters, and batons, authoritative forces in

the US possessed and implemented state of the art lethal and nonlethal weaponry against

protesters. In ferguson and other areas, the use of chemical weapons as a police tactic of

dispersion became a mainstay of suppression. The abuse of these weapons would be

challenged by organizations such as the ACLU and Amnesty International, applying the

pressure to create injunctions limiting the use of tear gas and the admission of civil rights

abuses on the behalf of the Department of justice. Other non lethal weapons used against83

protesters included, pepperspray, Long Range Acoustic Devices(LRAD), wood and rubber

bullet projectiles, pepper balls, stun, smoke. and teargas grenades. The parade of force84

was also accompanied by military snipers, helicopters, and stingray communication

scanners used to monitor street actions across the country. This response to African

American resistance elements made public the capacity and readiness of law enforcement

artillery and the extent of violence state authorities were willing to bring upon their own

citizens.

83 "ON THE STREETS OF AMERICA: HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES IN FERGUSON." Amnesty International (2015): n. pag. Web. 84 IBID.


32/40

31

These factors of militarization of police forces directly affected the conduits through

which the system could be engaged. Many modern tactics sprang off the actions of the Civil

rights movement, black elders who had experienced this era of resistance came to offer

advice to the restless youth on the organization of marches and occupations. Tactics like

the sit in evolved to “Die ins,” were marching protesters would lay down in intersections to

block traffic for specified symbolic time juncturess. Interestingly, protesters primarily used

their bodies as barricades for these disruptions, opting to put themselves in danger of

easily excitable American motorists rather than utilizing readily available materials like

benches, dumpsters, and garbage cans. Protesters utilizing the die-in tactic within marches

of solidarity for Mike Brown would stage 4.5 minute die-ins at each intersection as an

allusion to “the four hours and thirty minutes that Mike Brown laid dead in the streets of

Ferguson.” Actions in solidarity with Eric Garner would enact 11 minute die-ins to85

symbolize the number of times garner voiced “I can’t breathe” while being choked to death

by members of the NYPD.

Tactics like the die-in further evolved to the “storm-in,” common practice in the city

of Denver, where relatives and loved ones of victims slain by police enter public meetings

to confront their policy makers and appeal directly to the preassembled citizens. In this

tactic of creative disruption, protesters effectively hijack the time of politicians, the ears of

the community members, and the cameras of locally assembled media, to transmit the

unheard voices of the community. These tactics of disruptive practice saw great success in

agitating discussion and media attention.

85 "Protesters Stage "Die-In" Outside Eagles Game." NBC 10 Philadelphia . N.p., n.d. Web.


33/40

32

Community police groups became a viable tactic of resistance in marginalized

neighborhoods where distrust for police was high and department accountability was low.

Ideally, community police groups would reach the scene of a disturbance before police to

de escalate situations without lethal weaponry and see if the problem could be dealt with

communally out of the grasp of state powers. Community police groups are also

responsible for deterring the sale and use of drugs and intervening in violent activities.

“Live streaming” actions became an essential tactic under the torrent of civil rights

abuses that befell protesters in Ferguson. Under the implementation of this tactic,

designated protest members would use encrypted programs to record conditions on the

ground. Transmissions would be broadcasted online and saved to an offsite device so it

could not be corrupted by officers. This practice was showed effects in deescalating

intense conflicts by restraining the aggressions of officers who feared the legal

consequences of brutalizing citizens on camera.

Operating on similar principles, Cop Watch organizations began sprouting up

nationally. Cop Watch groups would employ the tactic of Live Streaming outside of realm of

organized street actions, applying the strategy to everyday interactions between citizens

and police. Cop Watch groups would monitor and record officers in the process of

investigating crimes on the street to ensure officers operated in accordance to the

constitutional rights of the citizens they were detaining.

Alongside these tactics of monitoring and disruption, the United States experienced

a widespread resurgence of African American armed self-defence groups. Throughout the

last few years many new black militant groups have formed, such as the Black Souljahs of


34/40

33

NY, the 2nd Liberty Gun Club of Maryland, Black Riders Liberation Party of Oakland, B.A.R.C

of Denver, and the Huey P Newton Gun Club of Texas. In the south, armed defence groups were

jolted into action by a series of violent attacks on historical African American church by

white supremacists. Within the modern divisions of armed self defense groups training86

is a capstone, offering community courses in firearm education and encouraging and

assisting in the legal armament of Black Americans. These groups usually incorporate

strict militant formations. In states like texas, militant back resistance factions staged legal

marches openly carrying loaded rifles.

866 St. Louis Area Churches Are Arson Targets." CNN . Cable News Network, n.d. Web


35/40

34

Reflections

The studies of tactical resistance in the regions of Greece, Chile, and the United

States present some insightful conclusions. In relation to elements of causality, it is

evident that the radicalization of resistance cells shows strong correlation to the tyranny

exuded by military rule. Furthermore, we see that when the powers of state authority who

are entrusted to protect the interest of its citizens instead enact violence on the people, the

citizens bonds of community and resistance to a shared enemy is inevitably strengthened.

Radicalized resistance is also catalyzed by the perceived inaction or inadequacy in the political;

sphere. When the processes of diplomacy fail to recognize the urgency of issues, when

bureaucratic mechanisms stall and subvert the demands of the people, protesters will seek visible

indication of their efficacy through confrontation with the authorities that impede them.

It would also appear that the firepower and tactical advantages of authoritative forces

have effect in guiding the projection of street actions into either combative or creative

manifestations of resistance. Within dynamics of resistance studied in the US, it is apparent that

while the tactics and tools of police suppression have expanded vastly over the last quarter

century, the corresponding aspects of the people’s protest and resistance have not adapted

accordingly in eithe r the militant nor nonviolent sectors of resistance.

The dynamics of the combative forms of resistance studied are systematically

defined by mainstream media sources as acts of violence. It is imperative to note that

consumers of mainstream media are presented no insight to the connotations of this

precarious term other than the visual accompaniment of scenes of chaos and destruction.

The scripted depictions utilize highly stylized rhetoric , often classifying participants


36/40

35

engaged riotous property destruction as “thugs” in the US and “hooded ones”

(koukouloforoi/encapuchados) in Chile and Greece. Through loaded narratives reminiscent of

neurolinguistic programming, popular criticism of combat tactics has manifested a widespread

dismissal and condemnation of these efforts of resistance.

In modern civil society, the term violence has become synonymous with acts of murder,

rape, and war and is primarily invocative of damage exerted on living bodies. However more

recently, the tactic of property destruction common to many street demonstrations has also come

to fall under the broad term of violence. These factors are shamelessly depicted in the case of 19

year old protester Joshua Williams, who received harsher penalties for property destruction

during the Ferguson Uprising than officers Peter Lang convicted of murdering unarmed civilian.

To engage a critical understanding of the diverse tactics of resistance, it is essential to

distinguish the actions of protest violence from the forces which they confront.

Clear lines can be drawn to cast the divisions of protest v.s state violence, the

preceding relying the symbolism and theatrics of violence and the latter on practical

efficiency. Violence of the state, characterized by military takeovers , aerial bombings,

invasions, and torture, uses violence under practical implementation, seeking to annihilate

the ranks and compounds of a perceived enemy. To achieve these objectives, state violence

utilizes sophisticated modern weaponry in the acquisition of social change.

While connotations of state violence are primarily related to violence of the body,

protest violence is most often associated with attacks on property. Protest violence is

waged with rudimentary materials, lacking the resources and funding possessed by the

state. Facing far superior firepower and organization, protest violence cannot feasibly seek


37/40

36

to engage in conflict designed to annihilate its perceived enemies by force, and thus seeks

other modes to provoke social change. In examining the elements of tactical property

destruction, if a blac bloc protester decides to smash a starbucks window, this action is

not intended to reduce the structure to rubble nor is it expected that the blow dealt will

topple the corporation's control. The attacks negligibly affect the capital of these large

corporations and the superficial damage posed by these attacks is strategic in the scope of

avoiding obstruction to the earnings of workers of said establishment. Thus, these tactics

serve chiefly as gestures of expression and visual demarcations of oppressive institutions.. l

The symbolic and emotive properties of protest violence speak to the emphasis on

the performative aspects of their application rather than their practical uses. Performative

violence is defined by sociologist Matt Hinds-Aldrich as “a speci c mode of communication

through which activists seek to produce social transformation by staging symbolic rituals

of confrontation.” These actions aim to capture audiences both in the streets and at home.87

“Against the carnivalesque backdrop of often highly choreographed protest space

performative violence is designed to generate considerable public attention and, it is

hoped, public deliberation.” As Martin Luther King once said “A riot is the voice of the88

unheard.” In many ways, protest violence is about striving for communication and

visibility, and resorting to the language authoritative forces can comprehend, the language

of violence and terror. We come to see protest violence waged by fist and flame as spectacle

meant to draw attention to the struggle.

87Hinds-Aldrich, Matt. "The Seductions of Arson: Ritualized Political Violence and the Revelry of Arson." Journalof Criminal Justice and Popular Culture 16 (2009): 1. 88 IBID.


38/40

37

A an insistent seam in the crude patchwork of this study of resistance reveals the

glaring theme of fire. Under the lense of performative violence, tactics of protest arson beg

the consideration of the utility of fire as a symbol rather than a weapon. The imagery of

flame stirs the smoldering embers of both its destructive and renewing properties. Fire

flickers to life as the natural incarnation of passion and intensity, lighting beacons of

illumination that pierce through darkness. A pillar of human ingenuity, fire has ignited the

spirit of rebellion for thousands of years. Flame is evoked variably throughout the various

regions of of this study. For the Greeks, property arson and attacks of fire were inherited

rites of passage and sacred tributes to the commitment of resistance. The ancient89

symbolism of flame and conflict is immortalized in the scripts of Greek epic and tragedy.

The Greeks knew fire to be an ominous sign, one of warning and invocative of urgency.

The structural attacks of protest arson operated similarly in both Chile and Greece,

where targeted attacks on banks, atm’s, and institutions of capitalism were often

conducted. In the context of street battle, the molotov cocktails set assail on waves of

heavily armoured police forces served as heated warnings that encapsulated resistance in a

“message in a bottle.” Protest arson in these regions, in concoction with non

confrontational street presence, put pressure on public opinion and catalyze political

action. In these regions, elements of incendiary resistance anchored most significantly in

properties of visual imagery and specific demarcation.

The employment of fire in the United states rose in somewhat different fashion than

that of Greece or Chile. For starters, protest arson in the areas of Ferguson and Baltimore

89 IBID .


39/40

38

was noticeably less organized and precise in its targeting. The spontaneous and

passionate natures of the American uprisings saw protest arson limited almost exclusively

to rioting. Within the riots there was less emphasis on the visual demarcation of

oppressive structures, rather protest arson was more effective in its broader

communicational properties in creating smoke signals as signs of distress.

The inflammatory uprisings seen in Ferguson and Baltimore created a media

spectacle drawing the attention of the American public. The smoke signals that rose over

major US cities were seen from afar as a call to action for the American people.

Substantiated by an American lust for violence, media outlets dispatched journalists in the

thousands to capture the images of destruction for public consumption, and they did not

miss the Armed American soldiers standing ready kill to protect that property.

The high flames of riot brought vividly compelling attention to the issues affecting

marginalized communities of the US. Many of these injustices had been voiced previously

but were largely ignored until this point of this destructive behavior. The discourse

produced through the rupture of flame affected the plausibility of bringing criminal cases

against murderous officers, lubricated the channel's of civil rights defenders in turning

proposal into law regarding the protection of citizens from abusive police, and catalyzed

the push for independent monitoring committees for police accountability. While

established social structures continue to demonize the tactics of radical resistance

movements, they fail to recognize the effectiveness, depth, and righteous fury of oppressed

peoples in the pursuit of justice.


40/40

39