Recipes for Disaster: an anarchist cookbook

new element you can throw in to give yourself a better chance. History tends to repeat itself?at least when we don't use our ingenuity to derail it! Get familiar with the history of bloc actions over the past few years; whenever you're considering joining in one, pick out and consider the previous example that best indicates what you can expect from this one?^keeping in mind, of course, that your adversaries have been doing the same, so counting on a particular stratagem to work twice is a risky proposition. It is at least as important to know when not to do a bloc action as it is to know when to try one: unsuccessful attempts to act in bloc, when there are not enough participants available or the conditions are not favorable, can sap energy better applied elsewhere. When you strike in bloc, strike hard and impressively, then wait for the next realistic chance to do so again.

Naturally, the affinity group is the basic building block of any bloc. It is impossible to overstate the importance of engaging in bloc activity as part of a small group capable of fending for itself and making decisions; to do otherwise is to abdicate responsibility for yourself to the mass, and to deny that mass the benefit of your participation as an equal. Blocs made up of self sufficient affinity groups can make democratic decisions quickly, can split up into equally effective smaller groups, and can handle stressful situations without the added stress of herding a flock of confused followers. Within your affinity group, you should establish common expectations about what goals are, what level of risk is acceptable, what kind of security is appropriate. Security is especially important in bloc activities, because of the sketchy mix of public and unlawfid activity that may be involved; be sure everyone has an understanding of security culture (see Security Culture, pg. 451). Regardless of the total size of the bloc, each affinity group should be totally self-sustaining, at least with regard to the goals it intends to achieve. Escape routes, legal resources, emergency backup plans, knowledge of the area?every affinity group should have all of these. A buddy system inside a group is useful: if the group itself is dispersed.

individuals can take responsibility for the safety and whereabouts of their partners. Internal roles can be assigned: for example, scouts who keep track of activity and police presence (these can be equipped with hand radios or cell phones for communicating with the main group, and can ride bicycles for extra speed and mobility; it usually makes sense to position them at least a block or so away from the group, so they can provide early warnings and broader perspective on the area), communications people (also with radios or cell phones, and perhaps a police scanner) to exchange information with the scouts and other groups, runners to communicate new information to nearby groups, experienced folks to correlate and consider information and take responsibility for making split-second decisions, persons to carry out the actions planned, lookouts to cover them, perhaps a flag-bearer or marching band to maintain morale and keep the group visible from a distance, and so on. It might be wise to have one person in non-bloc clothing to attend the bloc, to handle such tasks as explaining to spectators that they should not take photographs, since the police can seize their cameras and use the pictures in court. The role the affinity group plays in a larger group can also be speciaHzed: an affinity group could serve as scouts for a larger bloc, or set out to blockade a particular intersection, or concentrate on maintaining a banner at the front of a large group.

An affinity group can form a small, ad-hoc bloc on its own, but a cluster of affinity groups can form a larger, more powerful bloc. In this case, it is critical that efficient and democratic structures be set up within the cluster. It should be possible for news, questions, and answers to be communicated swiftly within and between affinity groups, even in the tensest situations. Some have argued in favor of a more militaristic bloc model, that would presumably operate more like the hierarchical regiments our enemies pit against us, but the very strength of the bloc is its decentralized, unpredictable nature; it seems foolish to try to beat our oppressors at their own game rather ffian capitalizing on our own strengths. Better we improve our coordination than focus on control: we are

Bhcs, Black and Otherwise

conductors setting the stage for improvisation, not military tacticians with underlings and commanding officers.