by Crimethinc. Workers' Collective
Available in 284 free installments
Owner:
longest, since repair crews are less readily available. You can also add to the notoriety of your work by seeking media attention.
A) Photographs. Color slides are best for magazine and newspaper submissions, but online publishers prefer high-resolution JPEG files. Be sure to get a good "before" picture of the board to be altered, ideally taken from the same camera position and at the same time of day {or night) as the "after" photograph. An "after" picture should be taken as soon as possible after the action is completed; if you want a daytime shot as well, come back for it later.
B) Press Releases. These can be serious or surreal, according to your motives and whim. They are essentially cover letters for your photographs, which comprise the essence of the story (see Mainstream Media, pg. 358).
Movie theaters, bus stops, and similar locations often display poster advertisements behind plexiglass frames. Some such frames can be opened by universal keys. If you can reverse-engineer such a key, you can remove these advertisements and alter, replace, or at least destroy them, just as you would the more easily accessible advertisements in subway cars, buses, and student union buildings. If you also paint a message on the surface behind the posters, when they replace the posters you can simply walk around opening the frames and removing the posters, revealing your message. The companies renting these advertising sites will have to paint over your work and ultimately change their locking systems to secure their precious private property against free expression. Then you can come back with a roller and cover the plexiglass itself in black paint. No peace for the pushers of corporate propaganda!
Other Applications
Billboard Improvement 125
Account c^ Ingredients
Digital camera Imagination
Ruler
String
Weight
Computer Printer Scissors Black crayon Flour
Water Bucket Paintbrush Black spray paint Ladder
I took a picture of the words close up next to a ruler strung up next to the sign with string and a weight. On my computer, I put that picture in Photoshop and used the ruler as a reference point to make the letter life size on the screen. Then I stretched the word "Addicted?" over the picture and made it the right font, etc. Next I printed out an outline of each letter, coloring the blank spaces and outer spaces with the black crayon. I cut out the letters so there were no sharp comers or hanging dots.
I made wheatpaste. About 2:30 a.m. the lights on the billboard were out. I put the ladder up next to the sign and spray painted over the word "Ready?" in black to hide it. The paint dried. I went back with the wheatpaste and the letters, slapped on the wheatpaste, slapped on the letters, slapped on more wheatpaste?and voila, my own billboard, free of charge.
Billboard Improvement 126
As one middk-aged mother observed while members of the Quebec black bloc hu^ed each other before going off to battle the cops, "I always thought this was going to be sinister, hut these are just brave kids!"
Matching clothing
that conceals the wearers' identities''
a mission
Trust and communication
Provisions: water (plenty, especially if you'll be dressed in hot gear or expea chemical weapons attacks), food (don't rely on shops or shopkeepers in contested zones)
Camouflage: different layers of clothing for different purposes or stages of the action
Defensive gear: banners, shields (possibly disguised as puppets or placards), steel-toed shoes (should still he comfortable for running!), body armor or padding, gas masks or goggles and bandannas soaked in lime juice (store in zip-lock bags until necessary), rain coats or chemical protection gear (if there is a risk of chemical attack), whatever relevant medical supplies you know how to apply
Offensive gear: spray paint, projectiles, slingshots, signs or flags on thick poles (orjust plain poles), molotov cocktails, bright lights (to obscure police or camera vision dunng night aaions), ladders and/or bolt cutters for scaling or breaching barriers
Communications equipment: hand radios, cell phones, police scanners, flags, drums, shared codes for making internal announcements
Transportation: bicycles, enough change for the subway keys to your SUV (easy there, killer, it's just a joke!)
Ingredients
Optional Ingredients
