Wording Ideas For Memorial Plaques

A Brief History of the Black Panther Party and its place in the Movement Black Liberation - By Sundiata Acoli

The Black Panther Party for Self-Defense was founded in October 1966 in Oakland, California by Huey P. Newton and Bobby Seale. The name was shortened to the Black Panther Party (BPP) and began to spread eastward through colonies of black urban ghettos from one extreme to another country.

In the summer of 1968, David Brothers established a BPP branch in Brooklyn, New York, and a few months later Lumumba Shakur founded a branch in Harlem, New York. I joined the Harlem BPP in the fall of 1968 and served as finance officer to be arrested on April 2, 1969 in the case of the Panther 21 conspiracy, which was the starting signal for the attack on national government against the BPP. Moving westward, Police Departments in each city conducted military raids on BPP offices and houses in Philadelphia, Chicago, Newark, Omaha, Denver, New Haven, San Diego, Los Angeles and other cities, murdering some Panthers and arresting others.

After I and others of the 21 Panthers we were imprisoned for two years awaiting trial, were acquitted of all charges and released. Most of us went back to the community and the BPP but by then COINTELPRO had taken its toll. In the BPP spread dissension, both internal and external. Internal conflicts, divisions, intrigue, and paranoia had become so ingrained that eventually most members drifted apart or were expelled. Some continued to fight on other fronts and other fundamentally completely quieted. The BPP continued limping several more years, then died of what appeared to be a natural death.

History will be the final judge of the place of the BPP in the Black Liberation Movement (BLM). But in these troubled times, Africans in America needs to investigate both the positive and negative aspects of the history of the BPP in order to learn from those lessons that have been paid in blood. In particular, we need to learn the reasons for the BPP's rapid rise to prominence, the reason for his ability to move as many Africans and people of other nationalities, and the reason for his disappearance during his brief stay with the American scene. It is not possible in this brief article, in this small daily, provide much of what is needed and which will simply outline some of the highlights of the positive and negative contributions of the BPP to the Black Liberation Movement.

positive aspects of the contributions of the Black Panther Party

1. Defense: This is one of the key areas with which the BPP contributed to the Black Liberation Movement. It is also one of the key issues that distinguishes the BPP of most black organizations that preceded it and which attracted members (particularly youth), mass support and a multitude of followers. The concept is not only sound but also meaning common. But it must be implemented correctly, otherwise it may cause more harm than good. The BPP self-defense policies need to be analyzed in this light by African organizations today. All history shows that this government will bring its police and military power to put pressure on any group which truly seeks to free the Africans. Any black organization "freedom" that ignores self-defense does so at their own risk.

2. Revolutionary Nationalist Ideology: The BPP was a nationalist organization. Its main objective was the national liberation of Africans in the United States, and restricted their membership only blacks. It was also revolutionary. The BPP theories and practices were based on socialist principles. It was anti-capitalist and struggled for a revolution in American society. Nationally, widely disseminate the basic socialist programs for the African masses. Internationally, Africa provided the United States a broad understanding of our relationship with Africa, the independent African nations in distress, Third World nations, socialist nations, and all national liberation movements associated with these nations . The idea was to give a more concrete view of ideology that provided the Africans here and the analysis of the world. Until then, most black analysis of world and society in which we live, was based on ourselves acceptable to White society, proving to Whites that we were human, proving to Whites that we were ready for equality , proving that we were equal to Whites, disproving racist ideas held by Whites, struggling for integration or for equal status with whites, theories of "love your enemy", "hating the enemy," spectrum, and other blurred images of how the real world.

3. Mass organization techniques: Another key issue BPP attracted to both members and popular support was his policy of "serving the people." It was a policy closer to the masses, live with them, sharing their problems and organize to implement their own solutions to everyday problems that concerned them significantly. Organizing and implementing the wishes of the masses, the BPP organized community programs ranging from free breakfasts for children, free health clinics, to rent strikes looking hiciesen tenants to own their buildings, Liberation Schools graduate school , free clothing campaigns, campaigns for community control of schools, community control police, and campaigns to stop drugs, crime and murder and police brutality in a number of black colonies in the Americas. For these reasons and others, the influence of the BPP made its membership, at that time, be extended considerably. Not only are educated about self-sufficiency through programs of the BPP, but years later the government established similar programs such as free breakfasts in schools, expand health care coverage for over 65 years and provide daily care and liberalize the legal procedures for eviction of tenants of houses for poor, in part, but mainly to extinguish the memory of the earlier programs of the BPP and the principle of self-sufficiency.

4. The practice of equality for women: Another positive contribution of the BPP was its defense and practice of equality for women at all levels of the organization and in society itself. This occurred at a time when most Black Nationalist organizations were demanding that a woman's place was at home and / or a step behind the black man, and a time when the entire country maintained a high debate on the issue of women's liberation.

5. Techniques of propaganda: The BPP made significant contributions to the art of propaganda. He was skilled enough to expand their message and ideas through its newspaper The Black Panther, mass rallies, tours, lectures, slogans, posters, pamphlets, drawings, badges, symbols (for example, a clenched fist), graffiti, political trials and even funerals. The BPP also spread its ideas through very skillful use of television of the ruling class, the radio, and print media. One singular indication, although there are others, of the effectiveness of BPP propaganda techniques is that even today, more than a decade later, many of the programs broadcast on television are "police stories" and many of the roles available to black actors are limited to police roles. Much of this has to do with the overall process to continue trying to rehabilitate the image of the police after his devastating exposure during the era of the BPP, and to prevent the true role of the police in this society to be rediscovered.

negative aspects of the contributions of the Black Panther Party

1. Corrupt leaders: COINTELPRO eventually intimidated and corrupted all three top leaders of the BPP, Huey P. Newton, Bobby Seale and Eldridge Cleaver. Each in its own way gave in to pressure and began to act in a manner was deliberately designed to destroy the BPP, and disappointed not only party members but also to Africans in America for years. COINTELPRO's hopes were that the Africans in America were so disillusioned that never again trust or follow any leader or organization to defend African real solutions to black oppression.

2. Combining legal and illegal: This was one of the most serious structural errors BPP. Party members who functioned openly in the BPP offices, or organized openly in the community during the day, could surely be the same people who carried out operations armed during the night. This provided the police with a convenient excuse to make raids on any or all BPP offices, or in the homes of its members, under the pretext that they were looking for suspects, fugitives, weapons, and / or explosives. BPP also dragged the unwinnable position to take to make a stationary defense offices. It must have been a clear separation between the party in the legal and illegal armed unit. In addition, small military forces should never adopt, as a general tactic, the position of making stationary defenses of offices, houses, buildings, etc.

3. Excessive rhetorical skills: Although the BPP was skilled in the art of propaganda and made very good use of both their media as the ruling class, too many Panthers were falling into the habit of making boisterous claims in the public media, or "Bluffing" without considering the consequences . Finally, never to be taken seriously. The press, some of whom were policemen, often only had to stick a microphone under the nose of a Pantera for he or she would begin to drop their rhetoric. This often, fell into the hands of those who were only looking for slanderous material to issue or possible intelligence information to the police.

4. Lumpen tendencies: It can be said sure that the largest segment of members of the BPP in New York (and probably nationwide) were workers employed in everyday life. Other segments of the membership were semi-proletariat, students, youth and lumpen-proletariat. The lumpen tendencies of some members was the media that the ruling class (and some party members) mainly emitted. The lumpen tendencies are associated with lack of discipline, extensive use of alcohol, marijuana, and curses of questionable sexual morality, criminal-minded and reckless actions. These tendencies in some Party members gave the best media opportunities slander of which would have had otherwise, which diverted public attention from most of the positive work done by the BPP.

5. Dogmatism: The early success caused some Panthers would feel as if they were the sole possessors of absolute truth. Some became arrogant and dogmatic in their dealings with other Party members, other organizations and even the community. This upset people.

6. Failure in the Organization of Economic Foundations in the Community: The BPP preached socialist politics. Anticapitalist and this distorts the concept of building economic foundations in the community. They used to give the impression that engage in any business enterprise was introduced in capitalism and often looked down upon people who had small businesses in the community. Accordingly, the BPP built a few businesses that generated other income of the Black Panther newspaper, or they could provide self-employment for its members and the people of the community. The BPP was wrong to not encourage the black community to build their own business by building an independent economic foundation which could break the control of "intruders" in the economy of the black community, and move it made economic self-sufficiency.

7. Mentality: The Sixties were a time of great change. An important sector of the U.S. population turned to the mass struggle. Black Liberation, Native American, Puerto Rican, Asian, Chicano, anti-war, white revolutionaries, and the liberation of women, were movements that were taking place more or less simultaneously during this time. It seemed that these considerable changes caused some Panthers to think that a government takeover was imminent or that a revolutionary struggle was the rapid pace of a television program. That is, is put into operation at 9 pm, reaches its climax at 9:45 pm and 9:55 pm near the victory! All in time for the news of the 10. When nothing happened that after a few years, namely that Africans were still not free in the U.S., there was no revolution, and even worse, the BPP was everywhere on the defensive, bearing losses and riddled with dissension, many members were demoralized, disillusioned, and away or returning to their old ways of life. They were not prepared psychologically for a long struggle. In retrospect, it seems that the BPP did not do enough to root out this TV mentality that had some of its members, but did it with others, which is an aspect to consider.

Although the BPP made serious errors, also received a considerable amount of success and made several important contributions to the Black Liberation Movement. The final trial of history can show clearly that the way the BPP added to the Black Agenda final ingredient needed to achieve true freedom: armed struggle and that was the turning point that ultimately would put the Black Liberation Movement in the final path to victory.

Sundiata Acoli Sundiata Acoli

was born on January 14, 1937 in Decatur (Texas). Study mathematics in Vernon (Texas) and work for 15 years in information technology-oriented companies. In 1964 he participated in voter registration in Mississippi. In 1968 he joined the Black Panther Party in Harlem and served as finance officer until he was arrested for "conspiracy against the Panther 21" by what happened two years in prison until his release. After the end of the BPP was part of the Black Liberation Army (Black Liberation Army, BLA). In 1973 police officers ambushed the car he was with other members of the BLA. A companion, Zayd Shakur, was killed and another companion, Assata Shakur, was injured and arrested. A police officer was wounded and another was killed. Sundiata Acoli was sentenced to life imprisonment and, currently, is still imprisoned in a maximum security prison in the United States.

* last revision: 19/09/09
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Silverado Ss 427 Forsale

SDS / WUO (Students for a Democratic Society and the Weather Underground Organization) - By David Gilbert

Introduction We study the past to draw lessons to help us liberate the future. The young activists of today are to be commended for showing more interest in learning from earlier movements that my generation of the 60's. Even so, I want to alert you of two typical errors that occur in such studies.

1 - When looking closely at victorious revolutions in other countries, mechanically apply lessons from advanced levels of our own embryonic state.

2 - In reviewing the past struggles of the United States, we see the errors, especially as the result of misconceptions in the minds of the leaders of the time. Implicitly, so we welcome it because outstanding people who, naturally, would have had more early and would have been smarter. This approach to underestimate the material forces-like the deep white supremacy or the repressive powers of the state - which would cause the same mistakes.

This brief tale of two parties is not exhaustive or final. It is written by a participant from the same and a guerrilla, with the aim of contributing to the struggles of today.

Students for a Democratic Society

During the 1960 United States were being rough with long and tumultuous protests. SDS was an organization in the heart of the radical movement among which were predominantly white college students. Dragged a special vitality of its close relationship with the Coordinating Committee Student Non-Violent (SNCC, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee), the main militant group human rights of black youth who was doing most of the fieldwork in the South. SDS also became one of the most visible of what would become a mass movement against the Vietnam War organizing the first national demonstration on April 17, 1965. At that time, it was unusual to question the "foreign policy" of "our" government, so only by making a call on this occasion and it was a radical protest, attended by 20,000 people and was quite impressive. The work for this event also led to a split defined by a SDS's parent organization, the League for Democracy Industrial (LID, League for Industrial Democracy), when they disobeyed his orders to exclude the Communists.

SDS, founded in 1960, received its first definition by the Port Huron Statement of 1962. The fundamental concept was that of participatory democracy: Beyond elect leaders, people had to participate directly in discussions and decisions affecting their lives, even in the economic sphere. The issues that were imposed were the civil rights movement and peace (as opposed to the cold war and nuclear bombs). The first set of SDS work, together with its alliance with SNCC, was the Research and Action Project Economic (ERAP). Students went to live in poor communities to "build an interracial movement of the poor." Despite the success of the organization was limited, the experience was profound.

SDS boiling with youthful vitality. Most of us would reject both the harassment of the Communists and the Soviet model of "socialism." In our conventions waving red flags (communist) and black (anarchist). We tried to apply a participatory democracy to our organization, with varying results. Question the hierarchy was liberating, even though it was often chaotic and inefficient. But there was a real problem with "the tyranny of structuralism" when decisions were made informally and irresponsibly.

The intensification of the Vietnam War and the dramatic progress of SNCC, in the summer of 1966, from civil rights black power had brought new challenges and led to some tension between the old guard, absorbed by ERAT, and newly arrived young militants. SDS was not prepared for the rapidly expanding anti-war movement, but made a radical and militant presence in a much broader coalition. Naively, SDS still defining the system as a "corporate liberalism" while we were fighting to unite our anti-racist and anti-war momentum to an economic critique.

When the Black Panther Party (Black Panther Party) made its debut on the national scene, the impact was electrifying. They armed themselves in self-defense to protect communities from police brutality and community self-help programs (free breakfasts for schoolchildren, free clinics, free schools) providing a living example of revolutionary nationalism and self-determination for the oppressed. Many other revolutionary nationalist groups, all applying the lessons of Malcolm X, emerged during this period. At the same time, were published the first photos Vietnamese children being bombarded with U.S. napalm bombs - which drove us crazy for stopping the war. SDS's slogan became "from protest to resistance", focused on militant resistance.

Meanwhile, the inspiration of the civil rights movement, energetic and key work of women within it, and the problems of sexism within the left, led to a revival of women's liberation. One such example was the first workshop of SDS devoted entirely to women in our sixth national convention. The air crackled with energy and creativity generated by women. But his report to the plenary had a raucous welcome - including catcalls and paper airplanes - by many men of SDS. Since there had been little tradition of struggle, it is not surprising that men remained fairly sexist, but outright hostility that was embarrassing for an organization that was proud of being always on the side of the oppressed. That debacle was an example of the problems that pushed many women to abandon the "left" and contributed to an unfortunate tension between anti-imperialism and feminism, which weakened both. Many women with early-strengthened by the example and leadership, often unrecognized, women of color - continued to fight on both fronts, but it cost them an effort to Amazon.

A highlight of the fight was spotted in 1968, with the powerful Vietnamese Tet Offensive and the nearly one hundred uprisings in the ghettos of the United States after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. These events inspired to SDS student strikes would bring forward that closed dozens of universities. We started naming and analyzing the system as "imperialism." Che Guevara's slogan of "2, 3, many Vietnams" indicated as a giant may finally be exhausted and defeated. The black rebellion was accompanied by the increased number of militants of the Native Americans, Chicanos, Puerto Ricans and Asians in the United States.

The government's response was a fierce campaign of disruption and violence, called COINTELPRO, a program counter (see Agents of Repression by Ward Churchill and Jim Vander Wall). Over thirty Panthers were killed between 1968 and 1971, and over a thousand were imprisoned. Many other groups and activists were also attacked. Although this level of repression is not generally used against whites, suffer harassment, arrests and the threat of conscription in wartime. More importantly, we identified ourselves with the Panthers and had promised to stand by his side. Despite how quickly the movement had grown, were still being a tiny minority of white America. We began to think that everything that was needed was to "shake the moral conscience of America." Now we were facing the most powerful government in world history.

Under this tremendous pressure, SDS suffered a rupture along the fault line that builds white supremacy in America: between the desire to base a possible majority among white Americans and the demanding need for militant solidarity with Blacks and other struggles in the Third World. One side (appealing to a Eurocentric Marxism) said that the revolution could only be the work of the working class, and used that as an excuse the left to avoid having to fight on the side of Vietnam and the Panthers, claiming that "all nationalism is reactionary." The other side (inspired by the Marxist leadership of the struggles of third world), right, was in solidarity with national liberation a priority for any revolutionary movement that wanted to be recognized as such. However, mistakenly abandon any attempt to organize large quantities of white people, which also limited our base for anti-racist activism.

While breaking the siren sounded a real dilemma, there was a chance - although, of course, would have been difficult to achieve - to build a broad movement and workers had a greater base without having to play into the racist traditions of the unions. This strategy would have involved bringing together the growing rebellion of youth to the imperialist policies, as an alliance with the emerging women's movement.

We were too overwhelmed with stark challenges of life and death, mixed with our own inexperience and weaknesses, to implement this strategy in practice. SDS split in the year 1969/70. One result was the emergence of a number of organizations that more or less reproduced the traditional left-wing opportunism towards the white working class. Another result was the Weather Underground Organization (WUO), a group without precedent, though seriously flawed, who served six years of armed actions in solidarity with national liberation struggles.

Weather Underground Organization

In a society where each and every one of the movies and television programs show that the FBI "always manages to arrest the guilty," the Weather Underground Organization avoided being captured and held, taking action military for six years. In the white supremacist Amerika, where historically most promising radical movements that emerged among whites (populism, vote women, trade unionism) were affected with racism, WUO was better, at least, known for their solidarity with national liberation. In a world where governments "legitimate" bombing villages and murdering activists and he ruined any armed resistance as "terrorist" WUO conducted more than twenty attacks against government and corporate violence without killing anyone or having done much some scratches to a civilian.

The springboard for these developments was the historical context. The decades of 60 and 70 had no precedent in world history by the number of revolutions that occurred in a short period of time, as national liberation movements in Asia, Africa and Latin America to end colonialism and neocolonialism, it was also the height of the struggle of blacks and other Third World struggles inside the United States. These events prompted the growth of radicalism within the white people. WUO no conspiracy was formed as a small but quite the opposite, was the central point in the growing wave of antiwar activism, as the fires of thousands of military buildings and branches of Bank of America or the thousands of people engaged in demonstrations which broke windows of government, big fish derailed meetings and refused to arrests.

The exciting developments of the Weather Underground Organization coexisted with costly mistakes. The first and most obvious was during the first six months (late 69 to early 70), while still stayed in the law: our chilling and inexcusable glorification of violence, which seriously contradict the basis of our political and humanist militancy. Thereby effectively deliver a munition for those who wanted to discredit our priority with the struggles of third world and our step towards armed struggle. So far, almost all the "history" has been written about WUO has been in the habit of passing a those first six months as if it were the whole story, without looking at our correction of that error and the following six years of strong anti-imperialist action and human.

In my opinion, the basis for our first aberration was life or death crisis that divided SDS. We were middle class white kids who - witnessing the extensive bombing in Vietnam and the assassination of Black Panthers who admired - we felt compelled to make the leap to armed struggle. Instead of admitting our fear and inexperience and develop appropriate transitional strategy, we prepared mentally glorifying violence and macho challenges of courage personnel each. The frenzy was accompanied by two basic errors that were related: 1) Sectarianism - a scathing contempt for anyone not directly assist the armed struggle (Sectarianism was mutual for most of the white left vehemently sought to discredit the armed struggle .) 2) Militarism - make military prowess and daring of the group are more important than the political principles and the need to build a movement at all levels.

The sins of commission of the premature death of WUO were quite obvious. The terrible passivity of most of the white left before the first attacks on the Black Panthers gave the government signal would not have to face a large political costs to begin to fully develop the COINTELPRO campaign, which would kill and imprison scores of thousands of black activists, Native Americans and Latinos.

The WUO militarism culminated on 03/06/1970 when a desperate effort to make a bomb, weapons including mines, ended in an accidental explosion at a safe house (known as the Townhouse explosion) that ended the life of three of our young people and great comrades. This tragedy sparked an intense internal struggle that led to a qualitative shift towards use of more integrated the armed struggle in helping to mobilize and radicalize a strong mass base among white youth. Only two months later, young people are made to the street with the force of more than one million people in an angry response to the murder of four anti-war protesters from the State University Kent State, and carried out strikes thousand student campus in about an end to the other of the United States. At the same time, the critical need for antiracist direction revealed a painful unable to respond in a similar way when the police killed two black students at Jackson State.

militarism Overcoming WUO did not magically everything in perfect balance. While it was correct to see a potential base in youth culture, quickly repeat the typical mistakes based on white supremacy. For example: 1) Our little material assistance to armed groups, blacks, Latinos and Native (even in hiding, whites had much better access to resources and were less exposed to random police harassment), 2) To address youth white, we passed the "soft drugs (hashish and LSD), with a minimum assessment of drugs as a form of chemical warfare against the ghettos and barrios, 3) We fail to respond to very constructive criticism on our initial slip close of drugs and militancy that made us the Panther 21; 4) There were moments of tremendous passivity after and during the Native American occupation of Wounded Knee in 1973 and the subsequent siege of the town government.

is not surprising that more of our internal weaknesses were based on sexism, heterosexuality and class. The participation of women and their percentage of leadership were very high, but in practice, a woman should be part of a heterosexual couple to be an important leader. We had a short program about the liberation of women, and err by not being able to make a serious effort to form a necessary alliance between anti-imperialism and feminism. Infighting on sexism were very inadequate, which fits with the fact that we were part of a homophobic culture. While many gay and lesbian comrades had the strength to declare gay while we were in hiding, there was no real space for a culture L / G stated; not declared homosexuals to take over leadership positions, and we had a political agenda about issues L / G. Similarly, our middle-class home meant we did a little work to access sections of the youth belonging to the working class.

relationship problems existed in our internal life. We adopt the theory of democratic centralism, but in practice the organization was very hierarchical. The leaders tended to become manipulative and tax, as the pictures tend to ingratiate himself with them. Criticism and self-criticism is used to complete maneuvers to gain power rather than be used for construction personnel. Although key for survival was a strong organization (and the lonely fugitive must go through much more difficult situations), that actually made social ostracism a blow to political dissidents. To my knowledge, there is still no clear model and fruitful enough for the two critical needs that give rise to internal democratic process in full and narrow discipline to fight relentlessly against a State can be combined.

For me a crucial lesson is that activists must confront consciously against the powerful attraction of ego that cause us to put our leadership position and above the interests and power of the oppressed. Organizationally, we need to strive to live my politics - anti-racism, feminism, democracy, humanism - in our personal relationships.

Despite these significant shortcomings, six years of stunning success was the result obtained to implement what was right, anti-imperialism. Contrary to the deceptions of spy movies are only based on sophisticated techniques and technology, our survival in the underground was based on popular support from the radical youth anti-war movement. That was the key to solving needs such as obtaining identification documents, money and safe houses. There were times when we feel the breath of the FBI in our necks, but popular support meant that the information flowing to keep the guerrillas away from the state.

Our fight scene was the "armed propaganda", with no hope of confronting the military power yet. Instead, the purposes of the actions were: 1) Remove repressive of the heat concentrated on the black movement, Native and Latin, 2) Create an example of political leadership of white solidarity with national liberation, 3) To educate about important political issues, 4) Identify the responsible institutions oppression, 5) Encourage other people to step up their activism despite state repression. Also we provided examples of non-armed struggle (for example, spray-painted), seeking dialogue with the movement in legal writing and reading the answers in radical newspapers, and even developing our own print shop in the underground. Wrote and published the book Prairie Fire, well-developed a manifesto on the politics of revolutionary anti-imperialism.
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The WUO bombings included the Capitol building after the U.S. expand the war in Indochina by invading Laos in February 1971, the headquarters of the New York prison after the slaughter of Attica in September 1971, and Kennecott Copper Company on the anniversary of the bloody coup against democracy in Chile, 1973. Each share was accompanied by a very reasoned statement expressing political issues. While there were no 100% guarantee, we set the highest priority to avoid civilian casualties, and fortunately we got it.

The FBI never ended WUO, but between 1976 and 1977 imploding due to our own weaknesses. The collapse occurred when reverting to traditional errors white left, with the policies of the "international working class, and plan to come out of hiding in order to focus on" lead "the" American Revolution attached to the full. " These positions denied independence and the leadership role of people of color within the United States and at the same time weakened the autonomous women's formations. When these forces harshly criticized us, we - with our vitality undermined by the lack of democracy domestic - we could not take it and instead we broke up in heavy reproach.

WUO was born in the stunning birth of national liberation, as opposed to the founding of the United States based on white supremacy and behind the exciting victories of the movement that met with fierce repression. Our loss also was rooted in a strong historical realities: 1) COINTELPRO (along with our internal weaknesses) had decimated the black leadership, Native and Latin which had inspired the progressive movement among whites, 2) our sturdy base, the movement against war, was reduced dramatically after the withdrawal by the United States from Vietnam in 1973, 3) No, we realized that we had not done enough to turn awareness into a deep anti-war anti-racism and anti-imperialism.

Being studying history, we need to break with the dominant culture defines people simply as "good guys" or "bad guys", which can lead to self-deception that we are providing basic guarantees certain that all we do is right. WUO made huge mistakes as both pioneering advances. Hopefully, both are rich in lessons for a new generation of activists.

David Gilbert

This essay was originally written for the newspaper ONSWARD (spring and summer of 2001), an anarchist publication of news, opinion, theory and strategy for the present.

In 1965, David Gilbert was the founding president of the Vietnam Committee and one of the founding members of the organization SDS at Columbia University (New York). In 1967, he wrote the first national SDS pamphlet on "U.S. imperialism." Participated in the strike at Columbia in 1968 and later went underground as a member of the Weather Underground Organization (WUO) in 1970. Is serving a sentence life imprisonment after being arrested for his supporting role in an expropriation of the Black Liberation Army (Black Liberation Army, BLA) in 1981 during the "Brinks case."

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The Vancouver Five: Armed Struggle in Canada

Relate to anarchist deliberate acts of violence may be seen as something very natural for most people if they think about anarchism as a whole. But for most young anarchists, it must be hard to imagine that in the early 80's, the armed struggle in Canada not only seemed possible, but a small group from the Vancouver anarchist community is committed to it. In addition, there was a small but significant support for these three actions.

In the name of Direct Action and Wimmer's Fire Brigade, claimed they never explicitly as anarchists. For that reason, neither did his supporters. Though never denying that we were. Our anarchism developed more in political practice than in theory and history. In this debate, the word "we" should be referred to the small environment where they left the five of Vancouver. Only those five decided to follow their ideas through a logical conclusion and go underground. Others also were influenced by similar developments in different places, and shared the desire to shake Canadian politics.

The political context for Direct Action was international. Between mid, late 70's and early 80's Red Army Faction (Rotte Arme Fraktion, RAF) in Germany and the Red Brigades in Italy were the largest guerrilla groups within the whole range of groups in Europe. The insurrection in Europe seemed possible despite the huge level of repression directed against militants're killed and kidnapped politicians and executives. Canadian anarchist newspapers such as the Open Road, Bulldozer and Resistance in North America echoed these struggles.

copaba The armed struggle is also often the agenda in the United States. The popular idea is that the political struggle ended in the early 70's after the end of the Vietnam War. But even if the anti-war groups and other movements had been removed, remnants of the militant groups had gone underground to continue the fight against the system. On the East Coast, the Black Liberation Army (Black Liberation Army), formed at the time that the Black Panthers (Panthers) are passed into hiding after having learned the lesson of the intense and deadly repression that went in against, was active until 1981. The United Freedom Front (United Liberation Front) and the Armed Resistance Movement (Armed Resistance Movement) was active until early 1980, attack on government buildings to protest American military involvement in Central America and attacking corporate objectives to protest its involvement in South Africa.

On the West Coast, groups like the Symbionese Liberation Army (Symbionese Liberation Army) and the New World Liberation Front (Front de Liberation of the New World) robbed banks, planted bombs and kidnapped Patty Hearst, a wealthy heiress. These groups were politically suspect and were certainly not anti-authoritarian. Many radicals felt that were significantly infiltrated by the police. Despite all contributed to the trial argued that armed action could be effective as they had their impact.

were also many small autonomous groups, some of which were explicitly anti-authoritarian anarchists, who were active until the end of the decade. Dune and Larry Bill Giddins, for example, are two anarchists who remain incarcerated in the United States today for actions that took place at that time. Bill and Larry were arrested in October 1979 after a shootout in the streets of Seattle when they tried to pull a friend out of jail.

The best known of these West Coast group was the George Jackson Brigade (George Jackson Brigade) was formed by anarchists and Marxists. Committed a series of actions in the Seattle area in the late 70's, often in support of the movement of prisoners which was quite strong in those years. The GJB was anti-authoritarian, pro-women, pro-gay and lesbian people and defended the collective, as opposed to political parties. Even though all groups were finally're crushed, they came to offer an alternative policy to organize demonstrations and publish newspapers.

Open Road in Vancouver, Toronto Bulldozer, and Resistance, which started in Toronto and then moved to Vancouver, and covered the armed resistance in United States and the subsequent repression. This coverage played a bigger role when his supporters in the United States were dissolved, and left the majority tried to distance himself from them as much as he could. We publish statements explaining actions. We provide support coverage in their judgments and we offered outlets for the writings of the combatants who had been captured. The revolution, or at least a protracted struggle, it seemed entirely possible. Five were for the most part the product of the wave of armed struggle in North America, and part of the political machinery of the growing anti-war anti-NATO movement. Our perspective was quite internationalist even but we understood that we work within our local and national situations.

In the spring of 1982 a bomb destroyed the almost complete substation Cheekeye hydraulic-Dunsmuir. This construction had a strong opposition from local residents in the environmental field. It was thought that lead to the industrialization of Vancouver Island and the construction of nuclear power plants for export earnings to the United States. Hundreds of kilos of dynamite put an end to that plan in the midst of his trial.

There was considerable local support for action. It was unclear whether Direct Action, which had claimed the action was an anarchist group or no, but would not have made any difference in the meaning of it.

The stock had increased the political stakes in Canada. But as the attack had taken place in a natural park, it was easy to ignore. The next action would not be.

Late in the afternoon of October 14, 1982, a truck exploded outside the Litton Industries plant in Rexdale, in the northwest area of \u200b\u200bToronto, with the result of millions of dollars in damage. Seven workers were injured, one lifetime. After a few days, Direct Action issued a statement claiming responsibility. As a political piece, the statement is as relevant today as it was in 1982, the only difference being that the Cold War is over. The most important thing of it is self-criticism that is made by seeing the police and security guards as superheroes. They were not. The Direct Action mistakes that were aggravated by the inadequate response of both the guards and the police.

The attack was quite simple: drive a stolen truck loaded with dynamite through the gates and park Litton front in front of the building, leave in 35 minutes the truck would explode. To ensure that the bomb threat was taken seriously, drove the truck correctly in front of the glass cockpit of the security guards. But the guards did not notice the presence of the van but even from the position of conductor of the same could clearly see the guards. Then the warning call was not understood. But at least caught the attention of the guards toward the van. Unfortunately, Direct Action were a little smarter. They had placed a box painted fluorescent orange on the outside of the truck, easily visible from the cockpit of the guards. Placed over the box a sheet of paper with information and instructions. They hoped that the guards moved towards the box once they had received the call. To emphasize the seriousness of the situation put a stick of dynamite on the box disassembled. Another error. Security guards stayed away from the box, because they did not know that the dynamite was unarmed. Despite the obvious threat, the security guards began to evacuate the plant up to twenty minutes after receiving the warning call. Then the bomb went off earlier than expected, probably activated by radio signals from police cars that were coming to the area.

The attack took place at a time when the Cold War between the U.S. and the USSR was quite intense. Ronald Reegan, representing the sector of the American ruling class was determined in making the U.S. the so-called evil empire, had been elected president. Both sides were trying to realize the first steps of nuclear capacity through the production of new weapons such as cruise missiles, the Pershing missiles, submarines with nuclear capability and the neutron bomb. The possibility of nuclear war was real enough then.

In response, we developed a peace movement in Europe, North America and elsewhere. The consent of Canada to the United States to test cruise missiles over northern Alberta and the Northwest Territories was seen as an affront to the peace activists. Litton had become the focus of broad protests from peace groups who dedicated himself to producing guidance system for missiles. They had carried out a series of peaceful protests in Litton that resulted in the arrest of dozens of protesters for civil disobedience. But as in the case of Cheekeye-Dunsmuir, protests were not getting anywhere.

The initial reaction of many radicals and activists to read the headlines was joy. But this changed after a sober reflection when we consider carefully the implications. The attack was not only a challenge to the warfare state, but also to peaceful coexistence that many activists had with the system. It is clear that even with the wounded, there was not much reaction from the average citizen. For most people, the attack was just another spectacular event but in a world that was going crazy.

Naturally, anarchists and pacifists was an important event. The anarcho-communist newspaper Strike! Toronto initially condemned the action because that would discredit the movement. He repeated the usual criticism that such actions could not do anything for themselves. Direct Action was never claimed so. To quote the statement "As we have no illusion that such direct actions such as this, can by themselves lead to view of Canada's role as an economic and military imperialism of the West, if we believe that the militant direct action can have a constructive role as a springboard to the kind of consciousness and organization that must be developed if we are to defeat the nuclear masters. "

A more sophisticated critique was published anonymously by anarchists who came from the environment Kick It Over. They complained that "the bombing of Litton can not say it has increased its activity or the community or workers in the plant." Okay, but you can use the same argument about publishing newspapers and most of the activities that we usually do. These anarchists did not condemn violent Direct Action to be rather placed the violence in the context of state violence. Although erroneously labeled the attack as "avant-garde Terror" were correct in saying that "clandestine organizations tend to isolate the people" and see their own existence to become an end in itself. Again, this problem does not have only the clandestine groups.

In early November, less than a month after the attack, the Toronto Globe and Mail published a major front-page article linking the Litton bombing anarchist community of Vancouver. It quoted unidentified anarchists that drew the similarities between the policies of Direct Action and the Vancouver anarchist scene. In a later, more compression, other anarchists article provided some background information such as what could be the purpose of the attack, not to explicitly claim that it was an anarchist action. This article was condemned by many anarchists in Toronto but it helped to get the ideas to the whole society.

mid-December, the main local peace groups in Toronto were raided as well as the homes of its senior members. Activists from Toronto and Peterborough were searched, harassed and threatened by the police. Has never been clear to a large extent if the police thought that these pacifists were really suspicious or if the raids were used simply to discontinue their work against Litton. Some pacifists tried to put as much distance as they could between them and the people who committed the attacks. But there was enough support from other peace activists to demonstrate that it was necessary to carry out a complete break between militants, so its position simply turn around the use of violence. The largest demonstration took place against Litton never occurred on November 11, 1982, less than a month after the attack. As we said at the time, military action can do more visible forms of protest, rather than less credible. Litton

lost a major contract shortly after the bombing. As stated by its president, Ronald Keating, "They (the protesters) are a nuisance, had enough publicity, and the Americans read every damn piece of it. The pressure of these people have done that Americans will think twice "He added sadly that" nobody has suffered more attacks. "

In Vancouver, there was a small response to Cheekeye-Dunsmuir. But in early November, the situation had become more intense by the firebombing of three tents Red Hot Video, seriously damaging two of them. The Wimmer's Fire Brigade had decided to make literal the name of the chain specializing in violent pornography. The attack came just as the video industry was being launched. Red Hot Video, an American chain built an inventory of video tapes that had been pirated hardcore porn movies. According OpenROSA "many of the films had not only explicit sex scenes, but also women being gagged, beaten, raped, tortured, forced enemas provoked by armed intruders and other forms of degradation."

Women's groups had fought against Red Hot Video for six months, but did not get any response from the State. For a few weeks, dozens of women's groups of all kinds issued statements of sympathy and understanding for the action, demonstrations were held in a dozen centers across the province, and six porn shops were closed, moved or removed much of the material for fear of being the next target. For two months the first indictments were produced by combining explicit sex and violence.

The reason that the action of Wimmer's Fire Brigade was so successful was not simply because tactics, but that was fairly well integrated, being complementary, within the public campaign. As expressed BC Blackout, an independent biweekly newsletter, "WFB action could only have its impact due to the months of hard work carried out numerous groups and individuals through the self, researching, networking, pressuring authorities, documented their cases - after all, building the infrastructure for a move honest, effective and basic. This explains why women's groups were able to move so quickly and consistently in dealing with the interest of the media and the public by the facts and the comments after the attacks. "

January 20 1983 near Squamish (British Columbia, Canada) the five returned to Vancouver after target practice in the mountains. The police, disguised as employees of the Department of Circulation, stopped his truck and took them out a violent attack of it and arrested them at gunpoint. They were accused of 12 to 15 charges, including Red Hot Video, Cheekeye-Dunsmuir, conspiracy to rob a Brink's van, as well as conspiracy to commit more attacks. Immediately after the arrests, police held a press conference in which exposed the huge weapons they claimed had been seized from the Five. This was the beginning what is known as the "Trial of the media", by the way the police and the prosecution used the media to try to pollute public opinion not only against the Five, but also against the motion Anarchist in general. The headlines shouted about "the police catching terrorists" and "national connections anarchist cell." The police carried out raids on four homes in Vancouver the next morning at the conclusion of the first support group meeting. Not made any arrests, but were confiscated typewriters were verbal abuse.

The official history of the police claimed that developments in the case came when a reporter from the Globe and Mail newspaper showed anarchists Toronto police, which, looking at the statement in Resistance Cheekeye-Dunsmuir, mailing address Vancouver post office box. The police, in theory, put the address under surveillance and were eventually able to locate the Five through a series of contacts. The story was so convincing that she received a substantive reward before discussing it with friends and more conscious principles.

This story was a cover for the police and was unaware of the existence of the five. They were under police surveillance for one reason or another long before the first action. Brent Taylor and Ann Hansen, in particular, were well known in Vancouver. A police officer need not be too smart to be considered as possible suspects. Many activists knew that even suspected that probably had something to do with Direct Action. They were the only ones who were masked to the demonstrations regularly, looking more prepared for a protest in Germany than in Vancouver.

is quite likely that the police had been carrying out actions against Red Hot Video. This very important win at trial. Vancouver police obtained a warrant to tap their phones and bugging their homes in order to investigate the case of Red Hot Video. The warrants are supposed to can only be issued as a last resort when all other means of investigation have not worked, but in this case were issued shortly after the attack. Moreover, they were unnecessary if the police already knew who had participated in the attacks. The security service of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) had observed committing other crimes and was under observation at the time of the attack on Red Hot Video, but there was no surveillance covering note the period of the current attack.

really was assumed that the police needed to tap the phones to connect to the five with Litton, for which would be much harder to ask for a legal injunction. Evidence obtained through this listening provided most of the case against the Five, which explains why the first part of the trial was confronted with its own legality.

On June 13, 1983 there was a raid by the local brigade headquarters Litton in Bulldozer. The court order - which included charges of sabotage in Litton, slander insurgent and an abortion - specifically allowed the police to confiscate anything related to the publication bulldozer. They took planes, letters, articles, magazines and the list of subscribers. We finally got all this stuff back after a year of legal struggle.

The slander by insurgent apparently made reference to a pamphlet entitled "Peace, paranoia and politics" that drew the policies around the Litton bombing, the peace movement and the arrest of the Five. Insurgent slander theoretically means to call for an armed uprising against the state, The last time the charge had been used was during the year 1950 against trade unionists in Quebec. Our lawyers are eagerly anticipating defending this position, and in the end turned to talk about it.

The charge of performing an abortion came as a midwife, Colleen Crosby, allegedly carried out a menstrual extraction a person from the group Bulldozer. The fact caught the attention of the police through wiretaps. Crosby Police arrested a week later and took her car for several hours, threatening to accuse her of performing an abortion unless spoken to them about any connection between Bulldozer and the Litton bombing. Crosby in any way refuse to cooperate, but neither had any information to give. It took two years and thousands of dollars in legal fees to get withdraw the charges.

The weakness of our politics - the Five and their supporters - it became clear during the trial and did support work around it. The Five assumed that would end up falling under a hail of bullets, but rather the relative glory of a spectacular death were faced with a more prosaic reality of having to sit and await trial in prison. The lack of preparation, both political and personal, to the almost inevitable consequences of their actions was exacerbated by the lack of preparation of their supporters. It's easy to reprint statements from colleagues in the underground, but it is much harder and lawyers deal with raids, harassment, and look away to friends and colleagues just as the support and work are more necessary than ever. One must be able to withstand the high political stress over what could be a couple of years, while developing policies that may not be supported by any of your friends or political associates, let alone society as a whole. Still, a competent and principled support is crucial if the actions in secrecy will have any lasting impact. The community in Vancouver was able to maintain a presence inside and outside the courtroom during the trial despite the differences that arose about the strategy used to support them. In Toronto, we were able to keep the ideas in circulation, but had little social impact.

During the initial confusion, the right to a fair trial became the principal claim. Since it seemed possible that the listeners who provided the bulk of the evidence could be rejected, the strictly legal route was difficult to endure without a prior political clarity that arise as the trials were to lead. Either way, the right to a fair trial should not be ignored if the battle will be waged in the legal field, but the battleground state, and its first weapon will be criminalization. Prosecutors charge separated state in four trials, The first one would deal with less important political positions, gun crime and conspiracy to rob a Brink van. While for some people with some understanding of the policy might be obvious because the guerrillas need weapons and money, the television images of a desk full of weapons, and reports of plans to rob a Brink's van, were shown to remove the claim thoroughly that the Five were mainly political activists. The struggle for a fair trial attracted the support of activists, progressive journalists, lawyers and human rights activists. But it could create real problems if the case is legally shew as "fair." Or when, as finally, the five pleaded guilty. Some people gave us their support felt manipulated to have given his support to people guilty, even though we try to be clear by stating that there is a difference to plead not guilty and innocent.

The strategy of "Trial of the media" collapsed when the court ruled that evidence obtained by tapping admissible. The first trial on weapons and conspiracy to rob a Brink van began in January 1984. The evidence of the first four months were based mainly on the surveillance period prior to the arrests. In March, Julie Gerry Hannah Belmas and presented their guilty pleas, including Red Hot Video, and Julie, the bombing of Litton. In April, Doug Stewart was acquitted of charges of Brink but was convicted of a crime at gunpoint. In June, he pleaded guilty to Cheekeye-Dunsmuir. The jury convicted Brent Ann and all charges in the first trial. In June, by a surprise move, pleaded guilty Ann Cheekeye-Dunsmuir and Litton.

Brent brought to Toronto for a trial on Litton and eventually pleaded guilty. Recognizing our own weakness, he said that little could be achieved politically in Toronto if the trial went ahead. In our relative isolation was difficult imagine what would have been assumed to be a major effort to introduce policies that were behind the attack by a hostile media. But not doing so meant that there was never a long-term nor a sense of direction for those who can who were willing to come forward with more active support. It was not our greatest moment of glory.

To summarize this part, let me quote the statement of Ann Case, "When I was arrested at the beginning, I was intimidated and surrounded by the court and prison. This fear gave me the basis for believing that if he participated in legal gambling, I could get my absolution or a reduced sentence. This fear obscured my vision and I am mistaken in thinking that the judiciary could give me a chance. But those six months in the courts sharpened my perceptions and strengthened my political beliefs to see that the legal game is rigged and political prisoners marked cards dealt them. "

Doug Stewart was sentenced to six years, and served a maximum of four. Gerry Hannah to ten years, but I am free at five years. Julie, with only twenty years at the time of sentencing, to twenty years. He appealed and the reduced five years when he turned against Ann and Brent, effectively sabotaging their appeals. Many people got angry enough at this betrayal of Julie, but his testimony was not the reason why Ann and Brent were convicted. If Julie really wanted to make a deal could have involved other people lying. But he did this.

Brent was sentenced to twenty years to life imprisonment Ann. The sentences, especially those of Ann and Brent, were considered too harsh. But the state wanted to quell any incipient guerrilla activity. The prison system, however, is that really determines how long will it take people convicted. Ann and Brent took to the streets within eight years. Compared to what happened with other American guerrillas, was something almost indulgent.

Doug Stewart wrote in Open Road following his conviction that the size of the bombs was problematic. Suggested that mid-level attacks such as fire and mechanical sabotage were easier to carry out the attacks, noting that demand large-scale actions go into hiding. Direct Action to be understood by breaking contact with other people about politics, that to act in a city, should live elsewhere. But this required enormous personal sacrifices and emotional. Completely cut ties with friends and lovers was the mistake that left a trail for the local police. Small actions are technically simpler and allow, as Stewart said "a group together easily and quickly around a particular issue. " Mid-level activities also "have a less intense impact on one's personal life. If you're not in hiding, these less emotionally isolated, and the overall stress level is much lower. Being stopped by a middle-level action would be much less devastating in every way. A conviction of two or three years is no joke, but it is substantially easier to deal with it than a ten or twenty years. "

To summarize, let me quote an article that appeared in the News Prison Service ten years after the Litton:

"It becomes clear that policy actions such as're attacks, propaganda by deed, as they are known, are not covered by a non-political. Even though few people understand the motivations that lie behind the attack, the positive side is that you should not have to be necessarily a major backlash. It's a mistake to think that something like the Litton bombing could be a wake up call to people and encourage them to do something about the critical situation they face. But properly explained can make a difference for people who are already aware of the situation and who are frustrated with other methods of struggle. "

"guerrilla actions are not an end in themselves; That is, a singular action, or even a coordinated series of actions, are unlikely to get more than an immediate goal. Such actions are problematic assuming they can get to replace the non-clandestine political work. But if they could be located within the wider political work, one tactic among many, then movement could provide more space with which to maneuver, making them both more visible and credible. At the same time, activists give a psychological boost, a feeling of victory, despite the ephemeral, so that they could take their own political work with renewed enthusiasm ... "

" For most American activists, armed struggle is reduced to a moral question: 'Should or should not use violent means to advance the fight? " Although this is relevant on a personal level, only creates confusion about what really is a political issue. Most of the radicals, this time in history, will not be directly involved in armed attacks. But as they develop resistance movements in North America is inevitable that some may come to take armed action. The question would focus on whether these actions would be armed accepted as part of the spectrum of activities required. Much would depend on whether people were suffering attacks or threats. Far from being a "terrorist," the story of armed struggle in North America shows that the guerrilla was careful enough in selecting their targets. There is a difference between attacking military targets or corporations, or even kill police officers in response to his use of violence, and placing bombs in crowded streets. The left in America has never carried out random acts of terror against the population as a whole. Report anyone who had chosen to act outside of the restrictive and defined limits of "peaceful protest" to simulate a higher morality, or to theoretically avoid alienating people is to give the State the right to determine what the allowable limits of protest. "

repression is most effective when it is able to prevent radical ideas are transmitted to a new generation of activists. If ideas can be transmitted, then the new wave of activists develop their policies from the base that had been created. Fortunately, an otherwise relatively small but very active young activists adopted many policies around Direct Action and developed through projects such as Reality Now, Anarchist Black Cross and Ecomedia. His work as the pacifist movement, punk or indigenous support helped ensure that those policies do not die when the five came in prison.

Jim Campbell

This text transcript of a talk by Jim Campbell in Toronto, was published as a pamphlet in English several times since 2000.

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Interview with David Gilbert (SDS-WUO)


The October 6, 1983 you were sentenced to a sentence of 75 years to life. How do you feel about the fact spend your life in prison?

course I do not like being in prison, but would have been worse if I had lost my commitment to the fight against a system so incredibly destructive of human life and dignity. At age 75, good imperialism will not last long. Nor think I'll spend my whole life in prison. A revolutionary can be killed, inside or outside, but if we're talking about 30 or 40 years to the round - many important changes, even revolutionary changes are meant to happen in that time.


Those accused of participating in the "Assault Brinks "on October 20, 1981 were labeled in the media as" terrorists "and" cold-blooded murderers. " Do you how you define yourself?

makes sense that law enforcement agencies and the media labeled us power in this way: any tyrannical system has to discredit those who try to build resistance against it, and must try to separate these revolutionaries People who suffer under their system. Indeed, accusations of the media become a reality within your mind: spreading the big lie. This government and economic interests are served by major cold-blooded murderers and terrorists of the world. When you understand the reality of all the people dying of hunger, disease, abuse and systematic terror against the movement of people from around the world, then the human response is to find ways to fight against U.S. imperialism as more effective possible.

On what was, according to your point of view, the action of October 20?

was an attempt to expropriation. That means taking the money of those who accumulate wealth by exploiting people and using it to finance the resistance. Every revolution has had to use expropriation as a method of financing. You will not get exactly grants from the Ford Foundation or Rockefeller. This particular expropriation was under the leadership of the Black Liberation Army participated in alliance with white revolutionaries. The BLA communiqué after the action said that the funds would be used to build the army, and national programs, especially for you in the black community.

How was it for you the day of the arrest? Were you abused?

The police were furious. Were used to cede people without trying to defend. They tried to talk me and beat me for about three hours. Then I placed the barrel of a gun to his neck saying to speak. Later the "bad cop" came to say to each one of us that we would get to go to the electric chair. I followed the "good cop" - in this case an FBI agent - who said that the first talk was to have a great opportunity.

How was that for you?

really helps to know that you're fighting for a good cause and there is no way to ever go to speak, That takes a lot of internal tension to the situation. While they were beating me and Judy Clark had been shot down, were using torture in Two New African (black). There is a difference comes to brutality and torture: The latter implies a more or less systematic and scientific application of pain. Sam Brown broke his neck in two places and then denied him the necessary surgery for eleven weeks - until it became an informant. All this can be documented in medical records. Sekou Odinga, who was arrested in Queens on October 23, 1981 went to the police station without a scratch. He was admitted for three months in a hospital with intravenous feeding. The police systematically worked her pancreas, extinguished cigarettes on his body, and other things of course. Sekou never wavered.

Many people say they can sympathize with your goals but hate your tactics.

Well, I really wish there was a way to defeat imperialism without pain and bloodshed. Our generation tried to "shake the moral conscience of America" \u200b\u200bin the 60's. I think a clear lesson of Vietnam, the bloody overthrow of Allende in Chile, COINTELPRO campaigns against the black movement here or criminal attacks in Nicaragua today is that you must be willing to fight and ultimately to defeat the forces of imperialism and violence to achieve real change.

But what what about the deaths of that day? Two policemen and a Brinks guard were killed. Some social activists feel that no objective justification for the loss of human lives.

First, to be clear, the purpose of expropriation is not to harm or punish police officers or guards. The goal is to escape as quickly and cleanly as possible with the funds for the revolt. The history of delighting fighters to be shooting at Brinks guard creation is pure propaganda. Privately, FBI analysts know and even claim that the practice of the BLA is not out shooting but to try to disarm the guards. The only shots fired that day revolutionaries were in response to a clear death threat. People have been conditioned to be sensitive to certain types of death and not to others. When a policeman is killed we are bombarded with images of a human tragedy. But the police shooting people in the Third World (occasionally poor whites) are everyday events, almost always treated as routine and acceptable. Today the New York police were outraged that even has come out a charge of second-degree murder of his shots against Eleanor Bumpers, 66. The police never serving sentences for violence against the people.

The biggest murderer of all is the violence of social conditions. But that's something almost completely hidden from view. Many people barely conscious, to give just one example, the black infant mortality is twice higher than that of whites why these babies have to die? The conditions of oppression and colonization of black people will never be canceled without the ability to break the power and violence of the police. According

, social violence far exceeds the costs of any revolution that wants to end it. But does that mean you can end up spending anything? Is not there a danger of ending up as the oppressor?

any differences exist between the world of reactionary violence and revolutionary violence. Imperialist violence terrorist by the fact that normally is directed to large numbers of people, especially civilians, torture is a typical weapon, a main objective is to terrorize those who might otherwise resist; The ultimate purpose is to maintain operating conditions and intolerable social suffering. Revolutionary violence is the opposite, should be strategic and focused on mobilizing the oppressed and break the repressive apparatus of state, we must establish clear criteria that express the humanistic character of the struggle.

What was the specific political stance you took during the trial?

Kuwasi Balagoon and Sekou Odinga took the position of prisoners of war as combatants in the struggle for black liberation. They argued that the United States had settled the people of New Africa. Colonial Courts of the United States had no legal legitimacy on the New African. There is an accepted international law to fight against colonial and racist regimes.

Judy Clark and I took the anti-imperialist stance, fighting in solidarity with the struggle for black liberation. We recognized that United States imperialism was a criminal and anti-human, and not accept the legitimacy of their courts.

Tell me about the people who were arrested with you.

We are all people who have fought for human rights and against the tyranny of this system throughout our adult lives. Sekou Odinga and Kuwasi Balagoon took part in the case of the 21 Panthers (In April 1969, police arrested 21 New York Black Panthers in a giant conspiracy to commit an attack. After a long trial, the jury acquitted them of all charges. But the arrests and the depletion of resources, along with other attacks by the government, had decimated the New York chapter of the Black Panthers.) Judith Clark, Kathy Boudin and I were involved in the Civil Rights movement in the early 60's and in the antiwar movement of the mid- 60. We have been anti-imperialist activists since.

Many of the people with whom I have spoken widely sympathetic to the movement of the 60, but that people find your refusal to recognize the legitimacy of the courts as too extravagant posture and individual sacrifice unnecessary.

I think it's a sign of the repressive power of the courts, you know, that makes it seem too extravagant for us to declare openly and honestly as we see them. If you study who goes to prison and who does not, it becomes crystal clear that the courts are definitely not the work of justice and equality. For example, in North Carolina, the Ku Klux Klan shot dead five demonstrators anti-klan in front of TV cameras, never played a day're cold-blooded murder. On the other side of the scale, Geronimo Pratt, a Black Panther leader, has served 13 years of a life sentence even though there is evidence in FBI files to prove his innocence. Kathy Boudin

prepared a legal defense and finally reached an agreement for a sentence of 20 years to life. How do you evaluate this?

Of course, his conviction, under conditions that normally acts legal system was incredibly severe. It's a sign, like the sentences we had the rest of us, how the cuts were politically motivated in this case. Even through the legal process and agreement, as the first statement she was sentenced to life imprisonment and then a manslaughter (indirect ownership). Meanwhile, a gang of white teenagers kicked to death Willie Turks, a black worker, who was unarmed. One of these thugs was convicted of murder, two other minor offenses, that was all. O, 8 of the 11 policemen who beat to death Michael Stewart while he was handcuffed. DA Morgenthau gave them immunity from possible charges of murder because of who testified before a grand jury. Later, the same DA would not give immunity to some young black to Bernard Goetz shot in the back, and Goetz was declared free of charges of assault and attempted murder.

"You were you, Judy and Kathy from Weather Underground Organization? Historically we

Weather Underground. At the beginning of the 70 militant WUO represented a very positive trend against the alliance with imperialism and national liberation struggles - particularly Vietnam and Black Liberation. A large number of young white men identified with the militants, the spirit and direction. WUO but also had serious problems and eventually represented the common story across the white left in general: abandonment of solidarity with the struggles for national liberation and a fold of militancy.

The FBI was never able to dismantle them in hiding. But WUO eventually foundered on their own internal political problems. Those of us linked to 20 October we are trying to learn and apply the lessons of the history of WUO. Although undoubtedly made mistakes, express, and continue to do so, the heart of what is needed for a historic breakthrough: the national liberation alliance and willingness to fight against imperialism.

WUO Some critics looked like the policies of white guilt. These people saw on 20 October as a terrible extension of these policies.

Calling her "guilt" comes from a vision of upper class. There is no guilt in identifying and love to the oppressed - especially when they open a path to human social change. Part of the vindication of our fundamental humanity which has been distorted by white supremacy. Never stop the exploitation of white workers and end the oppression of women without a partner with national liberation struggles. That is why we have to eradicate the disease in our own society at a time to unite with those who are fighting hard against imperialism.

Were involved these errors on 20 October?

Definitely. In response to criticisms and struggles, Judy and I tried to analyze some of the problems from the vantage point of white anti-imperialist fighters. I do not think this is the place to go into any detail, many questions are still trying to solve. But overall, this error of interventionism, a type of claim to be a special white individuality or "exceptional" when acting within the Independence Movement of the New Africans, without taking real responsibility to build our own movement. There was also too a belief that the military actions of small groups could prompt a political movement. This is a sensitive issue because some leftists so unscrupulous used to attack all the existing armed struggles. In a first scenario it is necessary to start very small, with the goal of building something larger. But all armed revolutionary struggle must, from the beginning, be guided by clear political terms in order to build the massive participation in the struggle against imperialism. Another issue is that we fail, I think, in not putting enough attention on issues of the revolutionary character. Those who engage in armed struggle can be reached under intense pressure State. Can not be in this for some kind of experience egomaniac. You have to be deeply committed to the oppressed.

And what about the demand for land and independence for a Black Nation? Many people find it as difficult to imagine.

Well, that may be at that point, but certainly not that hard to imagine that the European settlers came here and wrested a whole continent to the Native Americans, importing millions of Africans as slaves, conquering half of Mexico . Radical changes have occurred before in history. Can, and will, there are radical changes in the side of justice. I advocate

the position of national liberation. This position maintains that the New Black or African have been systematically oppressed as a people and that white supremacy is deeply embedded in America as the only path to total freedom is through independence through a struggle of national liberation. Every struggle has involved a territorial base.

showed "on October 20 that armed struggle can not work in the U.S.?

at all, you have to understand that revolution is not like the name of a pancake mix - you know, three easy steps, just follow the instructions on the back of the package. The revolution is a complex and difficult. Setbacks occur. It is no excuse mistakes - must be analyzed and overcome. But if the general direction is honored, the collective movement can learn from setbacks and move forward.

There is a story and an important continuation of armed struggle and black liberation Puerto Rican independence. Here, in the past two years has also been a very positive development of anti-imperialist actions in relation to Central America or South Africa. The armed struggle is not a substitute for the activism of the masses, but can play an important role showing the nature and vulnerability of the enemy. It is important to seek the ability to make the struggle extends beyond us.

What is the worst part of prison?

The separation of loved ones, the difficulty of being politically productive, level of control and restraint in every detail of your life, the constant presence of the force and the threat of violence, isolation from nature.

Is there any redeeming feature?

Keep your dignity and principles, striving to find ways to be politically productive, love of family, friends and comrades that shines through the walls, examples of humanity and creativity among prisoners.

you ever got to see your wife or your child?

As you know, Kathy is in Bedford Kills with a sentence of 20 years to life. We can write and do it regularly. We do not have permission to visit. Let us talk by phone once every six months. Chese I visit from time to time, as the distance permits. His views are phenomenal. He is very energetic and affectionate. As I said, I've been very fortunate in that the love of my family and friends shine through the walls. It is a source of strength for me, and, well, I hope and feel that I am also giving them something to them in these relationships. These

in a maximum security prison. Do you get any special treatment?

Yes, there are special restrictions for me and a handful of prisoners. I have no permission to go to the shops or school. It is a total restriction from here these are the only comprehensive programs available. The constraints are policies, they apply to me because the comrades of the BLA and also a couple of people they see as potential organizers.

What about the physical harassment?

So far there has been no problem for me. Actually I have far fewer problems than some guys who do not have support abroad. Support abroad is very important for the safety and welfare of prisoners.

What are the conditions of prison now?

Basically, the trends are bad now. You know the political climate, have won public support for state version of "law and order." So basically the prison authorities feel they have the green light to be retreating, step by step, the modest gains that were obtained in 70. In addition, the unit of prisoners and conscience are at a low level, reflecting the decline of social movements in general.

Who is in prison and what are the causes of crime?

is a large and complex issue. There are a few generalizations I can do. The greatest common denominator who ends up in prison is the people from poor backgrounds. The prison is a repressive tool against those rebels and uncontrolled elements that are among the colonized people (blacks, Puerto Ricans, Native Americans, Mexicans) and those who are among the poorest whites. Here, the population seems to be between 40-45% of blacks and 35% of Latinos. And it is rare, very rare for someone with money end up in prison. Another major generalizations is the worst thing you can say about the prisoners is that they tend to apply the values \u200b\u200bthat predominate in capitalist society to its own socio-economic situation. Capitalism is based primarily on the individual goal to make money in spite of who gets hurt - and be willing to use force and violence to back it up. People who do this on a large scale are the most powerful and "respected" in our society. But when someone from a poor community does the same thing, on a small scale, is a terrible criminal.

So the criminal can not see what you did wrong - except to be captured. Then he or she has the experience of all the illegal actions carried out by the police, DA, judges and jailers in their efforts condemn and punish people. The guardians of "law and order" are the most systematic violators of the existing law - not to mention the serious violations of international law as the invasion of Grenada and the attacks on Nicaragua.

So the right program can only make the problem worse over time. The criminal nature of the system means that there is no basis for rehabilitation, but instead the prison system produces criminals resentful. Strengthen the state's repressive means strengthening the colonial and class relations on the basis of the problem. Which is not exactly a program would be left to the crime. The left can not respond idealizing prisoners. There are many people who play a negative role in the poor and oppressed communities, as there are some very good and decent people. A real program to end the crime should be linked to a struggle against the social and economic structure, should start with throw the biggest criminals of the pinnacle of society (my "trickle") and should also involve a struggle for social values \u200b\u200band human collectives.

In the months of October and November 1984 there were three different series of sensational arrests of revolutionaries. In a pre-planned assault, 8 New African activists were surrounded by 100 police the NYPD and the FBI. On November 4, five activists with alleged connections to the unit Melville-Jackson United Liberation Front (United Freedom Front) were arrested in Cleveland. Then, on November 30, Susan Rosenberg and Tim Blunk was arrested in New Jersey. What are your feelings and your evaluation of this series of arrests?

First, all my love and solidarity goes to anyone who is attacked by the state in this way. It can be intense and that people with firmly held principles. I certainly hope that all the revolutionaries who are wanted by the police remain at large and that resistance grow and prosper. Not exactly as defined politically all these people, and in no way want to speak for them. In fact, it is important that resources are available to those comrades that his voice becomes stronger and broader dialogue. Beyond the hardships involved, the situation shows that not only are we facing a handful of individuals "crazy" as the media would have us believe. We're talking about real movements, committed to fight against imperialism, with real roots in history, and most importantly, a potential key to the future.

How would you define movement of people in prison now? What should you do with your situation?

currently in prison are an assortment of people for political reasons: the prisoners of war for national liberation struggles, anti-imperialist fighters, grand jury resistant, resistant to recruitment, workers at refugee shelters. Real justice means to release all those imprisoned for fighting against oppression. Until this is achieved, there must be a recognition of our political status and commensurate treatment under the UN guidelines.

I would encourage people who are reading this to manufacture of the support that demand political status and to ultimately achieve the release of all revolutionary prisoners. This is not only to assist the individualized involved, it is even more important to build awareness of the need for a movement to fight against this cruel imperialism and soaked in blood.

One last question. Sometimes when you talk sounds like you think the revolution is imminent. Many people consider the idea of \u200b\u200ba revolution in the U.S. as something far minimally. Some might argue that, despite the validity of your goals, you're on a quixotic quest.

I am sure that for those who lived in ancient Rome, or in Pharaonic Egypt, or the reign of Ming Dynasty, these empires also seem eternal. The U.S. empire will fall as did their predecessors. The most important is our ability to prevent WMD and to replace this system by an egalitarian society - a socialist - more humane and cooperative. This is part of why it is important to building a vital revolutionary movement, with clear principles, at the moment. The revolution here is not coming from the perspective of an individual life, there is a long fight ahead of us.

But from the perspective of history Globally, things are moving quite fast since the end of World War II with the emergence of struggles for national liberation.

see, U.S. imperialism appears invincible power, but the sources of its great strength is also the basis for its ultimate weakness. The U.S. swept the fabulous wealth of the Third World countries around the globe. But in an era of national liberation, the U.S. found its growing military power finish - Extended and drained around the globe, and economic power is undermined. Internally, the U.S. forged his empire and his great wealth to absorb the land and labor of entire peoples, Native Americans, Blacks, Mexicans. These internally colonized peoples, especially in the context of the expansion of U.S. military power abroad, develop a strong fight for national liberation within our borders.

Inside the oppressor nation (ie, among white Americans) there is also a major contradiction of class oppression as women. The leaders have been able to immerse the class conflict with the power and wealth extracted from the oppressed nations. This database will be torn down, and we will be faced with severe economic relocation and unjust wars.

Well, this may be too schematic. We're not trying to write an essay. The point is that this powerful empire has been built under a social contradictions are starting to crack.

Well, what do you think they should be doing (Columbia students or Bernard) (or youth) to today?

I think right now the driving force would be the government mobilization for the war in Central America and the need to stop it. To actually stop these imperialist wars, we will also have to deal with the fundamental structures within the U.S.: internal colonialism and racism, class domination, male supremacy. At a broader level wide, I would like to appeal to students so they could return to come into contact with a basic humanism. Reagan's kingdom is a call to the connection between the terrible cruelty and cynicism. But you know, we can not feel well or very integrity with our self-esteem and humanity if we denied it to other people. Our prospects and our commitment should be identified with the conditions and aspirations of the vast majority of mankind - the oppressed. If you look honestly in the systematic violence of the social conditions and analyze the structures and powers that make them comply with ... because I think the only conclusion is the revolutionary fully human.

Interview with David Gilbert, April 2, 1985.

Dirt Bike Themed Birthday Cakes

The Dutch Provos - Teun Voeten

is no secret that the Netherlands has the most liberal drug laws, especially when it comes to cannabis. From what people may not realize, however, is that these laws were enacted through the efforts of the Dutch Provos. Provo established the framework for the creation of the Merry Pranksters, Diggers and Yippies. Were the first to combine non-violence and absurd humor to create social change. Created the first "Happenings" and "Be-Ins." They were also the first on to actively campaign against marijuana prohibition. Even so, remain relatively unknown outside Holland. Now for the first time, has its true history.

all started with Nozems. Emerging from the postwar economic boom, the disaffected Dutch teens Nozems were armed with a consumer purchasing power. In part Mods, partly young offenders 50, spent most of the time walking the streets with their motorcycles, pretty boring and not knowing what to do. Is your favorite pastime? Asking for trouble and provoke the police.

The term "Provo" was actually first coined time by the Dutch sociologist Buikhuizen in a condescending description of Nozems. Roel Van Duyn, a philosophy student at the University of Amsterdam, was the first to recognize the potential sleeper Nozems. "It is our task to turn their aggression into revolutionary consciousness," he wrote in 1965.

Inspired by anarchism, Dadaism, German philosopher (and future counterculture guru) Herbert Marcuse and the Marquis de Sade. Van Duyn, a timid, introverted intellectual, soon became the major force behind Provo magazine. But while Van Duyn dominated the theoretical branch of the Provos, another important element was provided, even earlier by its other co-founder, Robert Jasper Grootveld, a former window cleaner and the first prince of clowns in popular culture.

more interested in magic than Marx, was an artist Grootveld outgoing with a flair for theatrics. At the beginning of the 60's, attracted huge crowds in Amsterdam "Happenings" exhibitionists. In the center of the Grootveld philosophy was the belief that the masses had been brainwashed them into becoming a herd of addicted consumers, the "despicable plastic people." According Grootveld, new rituals were needed to awaken to these complacent consumers. While Van Duyn's writings were a call to public worship, Grootveld found his followers among street thugs. Provo

The phenomenon was the result of alienation and absurdity of life in the early 60's. It was something irresistibly attractive to the Dutch youth and seemed to have spread around the world. However, in just a few years disappeared, smothered by its own success.

"Every weekend in 1962, he was visiting a police officer called Houweling," explains Grootveld "During these visits I dress like an American Indian. We always had some good talks marijuana friendly. Houweling had no idea about it, so I could tell him anything he wanted. "

Thus began the "Marihuettegame" disinformation game playing Grootveld and friends. The idea was to show complete ignorance of the ruling class on cannabis. The players had to have fun, ridicule the police and, of course, smoking grass. But beyond that, there were no rules. Everything remotely resembling marijuana was called "marihua": tea, hay, cat food, spices or herbs. Bonus points are accumulated when a smoker getting positioned to consume a substance legal. Players usually called the police themselves. A raid by soldiers addicted to nicotine, looking for something that does not exist, was considered the jackpot.

"One day the whole group, we went to Belgium in Bus" said Grootveld. "Of course, my friend Houweling report that some elements might take some grass on top. In the border police and customs agents were waiting. Followed by the press led us to carefully recorded. The poor police ... everything they could find it was cat food and some legal herbs. "Marijuana is food for dogs," joked the papers the next day. After that, the cops decided to refrain from hassling us in the future, for fear of committing more blunders. "

The following year, Grootveld and artist Fred Wessell opened the store "Afrikaanse Druk Stoor," where they sold real and fake marijuana.

marihuette The game became the model for future tactics of the Provos. Surprisingly, the game proved to be an effective way to shatter the smug personality and righteousness of authoritarians.
The police usually act in an exaggerated way, making themselves look ridiculous in the process. There were also an underlying seriousness in the method. The ultimate goal was to change society for the better.

the late 50's, Grootveld was known as a kind of performance artist. His inspiration, as he claimed, stemmed from a pilgrimage to Africa, where he acquired a mysterious medicine cabinet that once belonged to a shaman. Somehow, the kit Grootveld helped to formulate a critique of Western society, which, I think he was dominated by unhealthy addictions. A short stay in hospital was soon convinced that Grootveld one of the worst was the consumption of cigarettes "All adult patients, begging and praying for a cigarette was a sickening sight" recalls. (Even after you understand it, Grootveld remained a heavy smoker.)

smoking, according Grootveld was an irrational cult, a meaningless ritual that the tobacco industry forced the company with the sole purpose of making profits. The heads of the Nico-Mafia priests were the biggest "cult of the cigarette", The commercials were their totems. Advertising agencies were powerful sorcerers, conjuring magic spells on the audience spellbound. At the bottom of the stack remained the addicted consumers, giving their lives through cancer of the large "Nico" sir. "

Grootveld began a individual offensive against the tobacco industry. The first thing he did was scribbling the word "cancer" in tight black tar in each city. For this he was arrested and sent to prison.

After his release, Grootveld started going to snuff shops armed with a rag soaked in chloroform. "It spread that awful stench of hospital around me," he says. "He asked if I could make a call and I spent hours on the phone, crying, coughing and gasping, talking about hospitals and cancer, scaring all the customers," Klass

Kroese, a wealthy and eccentric owner of a restaurant, decided to support Grootveld in his crusade anti-snuff. Provided a study, which Grootveld dubbed "anti-snuff Temple." Declaring himself as "the first anti-snuff sorcerer, summoned each week Grootveld black masses with features guests such as Johnny The Selfkicker poet, writer Simon Vinkenoog and other local underground artists.
Grootveld
But soon became disillusioned by the lack of coverage that the functions given in the media, blaming it all on the Nico-Mafia ", who controlled the press. Decided to do something really sensational. After an impassioned speech and sing the "Ugge Ugge," the official song of anti-snuff, Grootveld Temple set fire to the anti-snuff, in front of a bewildered group of bohemians, artists and journalists. At first everyone thought it was a joke, but when Grootveld started spraying gasoline around the room, the audience fled to safety. Grootveld came perilously close to having fried, saved only by the care she took the police to rescue him. Although the crusade had only begun, the fire cost him the support of Kroese, his first sponsor.

In 1964, Grootveld moved his black masses, now known as "happenings", to the nearby Spui Square. In the center of the square was a small statue of a child, "Het Lievertje." By coincidence, the statue had been commissioned by a major tobacco company. To Grootveld, this little evidence proved the insidious infiltration of unions in the nico-drug. Every Saturday, at exactly midnight, Grootveld began appearing in the square, wearing a strange set and acting for a regular and growing audience Nozems, intellectual, curious bystanders and police.

Harry Mulisch writer described it this way: "While their parents sat in their refrigerators and dishwashers, was watching television with his left eye with your car parked right in front of home in a hand blender the kitchen and the other from Telegraaf, their kids went on Saturday night to Spui Square ... and when the clock struck twelve, the high priest had appeared, disguised, from an alley and started walking in circles around the evil magic nicotine, while his followers were providing, clapping and sang the song "Ugge Ugge". "

One night in May 1965, Van Duyn appeared in one of the Happenings and began distributing leaflets announcing the birth of the Provo movement. "The choice Provo is among the desperate resistance and the deterioration apathetic" wrote Van Duyn. "Provo realizes that will ultimately be the loser, but not pass up this last chance to annoy and provoke deep in this society ... "

Grootveld Provo read the first manifesto and decided to collaborate with their editors. "When I read the word anarchism in that first booklet, I realized that the old ideology of the nineteenth century was to become the most ardent of the sixties" he recalls.
brochures
A more elaborate pamphlets were followed by announcing plans to create white. Constant Nieuwenhuis, another artist, played an important role in the development of white philosophy, which considered the work (especially to routine factory work) as obsolete. The waiver Provo's work appealed to Nozems - and marked a major break with capitalism, communism and socialism, they appreciated the work as something valuable in itself. Provo, however, sympathized more with the anarchist son of Marx, Paul Lafargue, author of "The right to be lazy."

The most famous white plans was the White Bike Plan, envisioned as the ultimate solution to the "traffic terrorism of a minority power." Invented by industrial designer Luud Schimmelpenninck, this proposed plan to drive the car, harmful to the environment inside the city, to be replaced by bicycles. Of course, bicycles would be provided free. Would be painted white and would remain permanently accessible to ensure their availability to the public. Schimmelpenninck calculated that, even from a strictly economic standpoint, the plan would provide great benefits to Amsterdam.

Provo decided to put the plan into action by providing the first fifty bikes. But the police just confiscated immediately, claiming they had made an invitation to theft. The Provos took revenge by stealing a few police bikes.

White Plan of the victims stated that anyone who would cause a fatal car accident should be forced to paint the body profile of the victim on the sidewalk where the accident had occurred. In this way, no one could ignore the deaths caused cars.

Other plans Plan targets included the White fireplaces (put a heavy tax on the most polluting and paint them white), White Plan of the kids (free childcare), White Plan housing (to end to speculation property) and women White Plan (free medical care for women).
white
Some plans were concocted and others arising from moments of inspiration. "It seemed to propose a White Plan was almost a test necessary to become a Provo, "says Grootveld. The funniest of all was the chicken's White Plan, proposed by a subcommittee called Friends of Police. After the police began to react by increasing manifestations of violence against the Provos, they attempted to alter the image of the police, who were known as "blue chickens." The new white chickens were to be unarmed, round white bikes, providing first aid, fried chicken and free contraceptives.

police failure to appreciate this proposal. At a rally confiscated a dozen white chickens that had been placed to create a symbolic effect.

Van Duyn theories about modern life are quite similar to Grootveld: Workers and the ruling class had merged into one big gray middle class. This boring bourgeoisie was living in a catatonic state, his creativity was gutted by television. "It is impossible to have the slightest confidence in that office, the fawning group of cockroaches and lice," concludes Van Duyn.

The only solution to this problem was in the Nozems, artists, outcasts, street kids and the beatniks, who shared his non-participation in capitalist society. Provo was the task of awakening the latent instinct for subversion to turn it into anarchist action.

As explained later, the Provos are not really lit up the crowds on the street, but provide the opportunity, both intellectuals and vandals, to express their feelings of frustration and anger.

Van Duyn's writings combined an equal mixture of pessimism and idealism. Too realistic to expect a total revolution, tended to follow a more pragmatic and reformist. Finally defended participate in municipal elections in Amsterdam. Other Provo denounced this as a shameful betrayal of anarchist ideals.

A pamphlet Provo fold impact on newsstands between the pages of "De Telegraaf, the largest newspaper in Amsterdam. The perpetrator of this action, Olaf Stop, was immediately dismissed from the airport kiosk where she worked. No problem for a Provo. It was important to show disdain for the profession in general.

When the next booklet, Provokaatsie # 3, was published sparked outrage throughout the Netherlands by alluding to the Nazi past of some members of the royal family, a sacred institution in Dutch society. The Provos threw the leaflet to the royal barge as he toured the canals of Amsterdam. Provokaatsie # 3 was the first in a series of publications that were immediately confiscated by the police. The official excuse was that the Provos had used some illustrations without permission. It was followed by a trial and Van Duyn was identified as the culprit. But instead of appearing in court, Van Duyn sent a note saying it was "... simply impossible to keep a single individual responsibility. Provo is the product of an ever-changing, anonymous gang of subversives ... Provo does not recognize copyright as it is just another form of private property to give up ... We suspect that this is an indirect form of censorship because the State is too cowardly to denounce in clear for "high treason" (crime of violating the dignity of sovereign) ... By the way, our hearts are filled with general contempt for the authorities and to anyone who submits to them .... "

In July 1965 the first issue of the journal "Provo." "It was pretty shocking for the ruling class," recalls Grootveld. "They realized we were not mere dross totally stupid, but we were able to establish a kind of organization."

The first issue contained outdated nineteenth-century recipes for bombs, explosives and booby traps. The fireworks that were included in the journal which gave the police an excuse to confiscate magazine. Arrested on charges of incitement to violence, publishers Van Duyn, Stoop, Hans Jaap Metz and Berk were released a few days later.

Actually Provo had an ambivalent attitude towards the police, seeing them as essential, non-creative, for a Happening be successful. Grootveld called them the "Co-Happeners." "Of course, it is obvious that the police were our best buddies," wrote Van Duyn. "The best was his number, the more rude and fascist their performance was better for us. The police, as we do, is dedicated to provoke the masses ... Cause resentment. We try to make that stirred resentment. "

During July 1965, Provo became the lead story across the nation, mostly due to the overreaction of the city administration, which tried to move as a serious crisis. Although only a handful of Provos actually existed, due to the manipulation of the media seemed as if thousands of them roaming the streets. "We were like Atlas holding up a picture that had been inflated to enormous proportions," recalls Van Duyn.

In the early Happenings, the police often detain Grootveld answer, which was not a big problem. Grootveld was considered a harmless eccentric and always treated him with respect. In private, he managed quite well with the police. "They gave me coffee and showed me pictures of their children," she says. And Grootveld still felt gratitude to the police for rescuing him from the burning temple.

However, the problems began in late July. A few days earlier, the White Bike Plan had been circulated to the press. Police were present but did not intervene. The following Saturday, in an anti-car happening, however, the police came in large numbers. As soon as it resulted in a skirmish the police tried to disperse the crowd.

The following week, after a sensational press coverage, a huge crowd gathered at Spui Square. Again the police tried to disperse the masses, but this time some serious fighting broke out, resulting in seven arrests. The next day the headlines of "De Telegraaf" screaming "The Provos are attacking!". Suddenly, the Provos were the national calamity.

In August 1965, some Provos met with police to address violent interventions in the happenings. "Since Amsterdam is the Magic Center, is of great cultural importance

happenings are not interrupted! "declared the Provos in a letter to the commander of the police. Unfortunately, the talks produced no results. "We stared at each other incredulously as if we were exotic animals," says Van Duyn.

That same night, the police surrounded the small statue of Spui Square, recalls Rob Stolk "as if made of diamonds and the James Bond Dr. No, or they wanted to steal it."

About two thousand spectators were present, all waiting for something to happen. Exactly at twelve o'clock appearance did not Grootveld, but if two Provos. When they started to throw flowers at the statue of Het Lievertje, the audience began to cheer. The police arrested the moment, after which riots broke out. There were thirteen detainees, four of them had nothing to do with the Provos, but it happened that they were hanging around the square at that time. All of them spent between one and two months in prison.

In September 1965, Provo focused their actions on another statue, a monument to Van Heutz. Although Van Heutsz was considered by most Dutch people as a great hero of their colonial past, Provo branded as scavenger and imperialist war criminal. The following week was the first organized rallies against the war of Vietnam by leftist students who were slowly uniting the Provos. "Our protests against the war in Vietnam were from a humanistic point of view," says Stolk. "We criticized the cruel massacres but did not identify with the Vietcong as Jane Fonda. That explains why we then not just doing aerobics videos. " Although

Spy Square happenings continued to hold, the Vietnam demonstrations became the most important event of 1965. Each week hundreds of arrests occurred. Meanwhile, Provo virus spread throughout the Netherlands. Every respectable country town boasted its local brand of Provo, each with its own magazine and statues about where to stage happenings.

At the end of the year the government changed its tactics. Instead of violent police interventions, attempted to drive to Provo. Brought to light their outdated laws and put them against him. But when, on that basis rejected a permit for a demonstration, the Provos were presented with a white banner and distributing leaflets with nothing written. The arrest followed. The Provo Koosje Koster was arrested for handing out raisins in a happening of Spui Square. "The official reason? Seriously endanger security and public order.

Public opinion began to polarize Provo more and more. Although many were in favor of even tougher measures against the agitators, a growing segment of the public sympathized with the Provos and began to have serious doubts about the police overreaction.

The monarchy became for the Provos, the ultimate symbol of the ruling class to attack. Royal ceremonies offered a wide range of opportunities for satire. During the "Princess Day", when the Queen was giving his annual address, Provo made a false address where the queen declared that it had become an anarchist and was negotiating a transition of power with them. The Provo invited Hans Tuynman Queen to maintain an intimate conversation in front of the palace, where he and some other Provos had gathered some comfortable chairs. Although the Queen did not appear, the police if he did and quickly dissolved happening.

The climax of these activities anti monarchist came in March 1966, when Princess Beatrix married a German, Claus von Amsberg, a former member of the Hitler Youth (Hitler Youth). By coincidence, Grootveld was doing performances based on "The arrival of Klaas", a mythical messiah. Sinterklaas, the Dutch version of Santa Claus, and Klaas Kroese, the former sponsor of Grootveld inspired him, but close March, Provo identified with the arrival of Klaas van Amsberg.

"Grootveld protest at the corruption of its symbolic mythology Klaas" recalls Jef Lambrecht. "I wanted to keep Klaas as pure and undefined, but the link was established soon."

Provo spent months preparing for the Wedding March. He had opened a bank account to collect donations for anti-wedding gift. The White Plan had been rumors in action. Wild and ridiculous rumors had spread from one place to another in Amsterdam. It is widely believed that the Provos were preparing to take LSD in the water supply of the city, which were building a giant paintball gun to attack the wedding parade, which were accumulated manure to spread through the parade route, and real horses were to be drugged. While the Provos were not really prepared anything more than a few smoke bombs, the police expected the worst and unimaginable acts of terrorism. Foreign magazines offered large amounts of money to the Provos if they revealed their secret plans before the wedding, plans that did not exist.

few days before the wedding, all mysteriously disappeared Provos. They did this simply to avoid being arrested before the big day. Meanwhile, the authorities asked for 25,000 troops help monitor the parade route.

On the day of the wedding, Amsterdam - the city's anti-German and anti-monarchist throughout the country - was in no mood for great celebration. Half of the city council ignored the official wedding reception. A foreign journalist put it this way: "The absence of any windows decorated for any holiday ornament is just another expression of public indifference."

Miraculously, to be dressed as respectable citizens, Provo they managed to sneak their smoke bombs in front of the guard of police and soldiers. "Last night, the police committed a terrible blunder leg violently registering an innocent elderly man carrying a suspicious bag in leather. So the idiots were instructed not to record any more leather backpack, fearing a trick of the Provos! "Says Appie Pruis, a photographer. The first bombs were dropped just outside the palace when the procession started. Although the bombs were not really dangerous (they were made of sugar and nitrate), it caused a tremendous clouds of smoke which were seen by television stations worldwide. "It was a crazy mindless accumulation of errors. Most of the policemen had been brought from the field, so they were completely unable to identify the Provos. " There was then a violent police reaction, which saw foreign journalists, many of whom were clubbed and beaten during the confusion. The wedding became a public relations disaster. "The Provos are manifestations of resentment responses Amsterdam monarchical folklore," said a English newspaper.

week after the wedding, a photo exhibition documenting the police violence. Guests at the exhibition were attacked by police and severely beaten. Public outrage against the police reached new heights. Many known writers and intellectuals called for an independent investigation into the conduct of the police.

In June, after a man was killed during a labor dispute, it seemed as if a civil war was about to explode. According to De Telegraaf, the victim was not killed by the police but by a coworker, a blatant lie. An angry mob stormed the newspaper's offices. For the first time, the proletariat and the Provos were fighting on the same side.

middle of 1966, repression was out of control. Hundreds of people were being arrested every week in happenings and rallies against the Vietnam War. The ban on demonstrations was that they be made even larger. Hans Tuynman had become a martyr, having been sentenced to three months in prison for murmuring the word "image" a happening. Around that time, a Dutch Nazi collaborator, a war criminal responsible for the deportation of Jews, had been released and a member of a sorority received only a small fine for murder.

Finally, in August 1966 a committee was set belonging to the Congress to investigate the crisis. The committee's findings resulted in the dismissal the police commissioner. In May 1967, the mayor of Amsterdam, Van Hall, was "honorably" ceased, after the committee had condemned its policies. In a way strange enough, the Provos, who had demanded the resignation of the mayor since over a year would, settled in a week his dismissal.

The reason for the disappearance of Provo, which was totally unexpected by outsiders, was due to the growing acceptance of moderate elements, and the growing turmoil within its ranks. As soon as the Provos began to participate in municipal elections saw a transformation. Emerged a politburo Provo, which was that the Provos VIP engaged to give everything of themselves by their political careers: Provo touring the country doing readings and giving interviews. When VIP Provos were out of town attending a conference in Provo, Stolk staged a fake coup at the palace announced that a new terrorist Revolutionary Council took power. Van Duyn reacted furiously, not realizing it was a provocation was the same Provos. When the monument was damaged Van Heutsz bomb, Provo stated that "Although they felt sympathy for the cause, they deeply deplored the use of violence." The division between the Provos from the street and the VIP reformers began to grow. Some Provo returned to their studies, others became hippies and withdrew the motion.

Provo was a great success as long as was considered as something outside of society. But as soon as the system began to assimilate, the end was near. Moderate liberals began to publicly defend and sociologists began to study the movement. The former transport minister joined forces with the Provos "As a true supporter, should have proposed the persecution of the Provos," Van Duyn said later.

Provo's proposal to create a playground for the children was receiving at that time with great enthusiasm by the city council. The true sign of the institutionalization of the Provos, however, was the installation of a "speaker's corner" in the park. Van Duyn

encouraged this development, but Stolk saw it as a form of repressive tolerance - the Provos were now free, free to be ignored. "Political understanding, Provologistas good reverend rollista and pampered, they were forming an anti-magic circle around us to take away the magical powers," said Stolk. So they decided to settle Stolk Grootveld and Provo. "The spirit and power had vanished," says Grootveld. "Provo had become a dogmatic group. Had degenerated into a legal stamp of approval. " The meeting

settlement, Stolk said "Provo has to disappear because all great men who created us are gone," referring to the two arch-enemies of the Provos, the mayor and police commissioner.

The Provos were saved one last trick up his sleeve. Spread a rumor that said white American universities wanted to buy the records and documents of the Provos, had never really existed. The University of Amsterdam, lest those sociological treasures could disappear abroad, they made an offer that the Provos could not refuse.

Written by Teun Voeten

High Times, January 1990.