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This doesn't mean there's no chance to get at them or shut the event down. First, try to find out where the fascists are meeting up beforehand. This may be a local's house, the fast food joint next to the cop station, or a gas station off the highway. If you gather enough people, you may be able to surprise them there. Second, fascist supporters may show up without the benefit of a police escort. Have teams of scouts ready to ferret out these fascists, so you can confront them and give them a reason to leave. Third, encourage the crowd to mobilize to prevent the cop-escorted fascists from getting in or out. If ihe fascists plan to march, try to block the route. You can also send infiltrators into the supporters' area, or rain projectiles on the fascists' parade. If aU else fails, you can still try to drown the fascists out with your own noise, and have some rousing good fian in the process.
Remember, fascist rallies are recruitment and publicity opportunities. Take advantage of the situation and make it publicity for antifascist action!
Meetings Some meetings will draw fascists in from out of town. Check out the parking lots of local hotels, looking for fascist bumper stickers or other telltale signs. If you know the names of any attendees, call around to hotels and see if they've checked in. Consider paying them a surprise visit.
Since they're not public events, fascist meetings usually lack the poHce presence that accompanies most rallies. This gives you a lot more leeway for confronting the fascists?especially if they don't know you're coming. If possible, march your group right into their event for maximum disruption. A few noisemakers and kicked-over tables vidll
add to the chaos. The police might eventually force you out, but you can still be rowdy Antifascist Action i i i i i
4g from outside, and make the Nazis run when they leave.
After having many shows shut down, fascists have learned their lessons. Most white Concerts
power concerts are held in venues that are sympathetic. This includes fascist-owned
bars, Outlaw motorcycle gang halls, and private property in rural areas. These places
won't cave in to public pressure to shut the show down?but they are vulnerable to
nighttime activities (see Utilities, pg. 585). Occasionally, fascists will misrepresent the
show and book it at a regular club, in which case you have a chance of getting the owner
to cancel. Some owners are just greedy, however, in which case you'll have to turn up
the heat. Even if you do force a venue to cancel, they'll scramble to find another on short
notice, so keep the pressure on.
Fascists often keep the show location secret, requiring attendees to visit a check-in point (or series of such points) where fascists will meet them in person, check them out, and give them directions. If you know of a check-in point, get a large number of people together and occupy it in advance. If it's in a park, for example, organize an antifascist softball game and bring plenty of extra bats. If you scare off the organizers, you'll be able to meet and greet the fascists who show up and send them on their way back out of town. The organizers are likely to have publicized a backup cell phone number, so have some friends keep that number busy all night?heck, program a computer modem to repeat-dial it, using Caller ID-blocking of course. If you have a fake fascist persona crafted, or you want to pose as a reporter, you can also use that number to gather intelligence.
If the show goes on, try to organize an action at the show itself. In some areas, this may simply be too dangerous, especially as you can expect dozens or even hundreds of Nazis to show up. In other areas, you might have more success and support. And remember?all those fascists have to park their cars somewhere.
Antifascist Action 49
Other Applications
Many of these tactics are also useful for investigating and confronting other odious organizations, such as corporations that abuse animals or engage in genetic engineering.
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Antifascist Action 50