SHOULD ANYONE HAVE A MONOPOLY ON VIOLENCE?

        Is self defence violence? It is a regular feature of the media to keep referring to “violent demonstrations”, what they fail to see is that a demonstration is in essence an act of self defence against a very powerful force, in most cases it is the state or states. The question is always how far do you go in defending yourself? A lot of the violence on demonstrations is one sided and from the the state apparatus and in others the violence is not violence but no more than being provoked into defending yourself against, kettling etc.. Obviously as the superior force of the state apparatus has the upper hand by means of weaponry and training, this means, those defending themselves have to continually seek new strategies and tactics. There is an obvious conflict between the state which protects wealth, property and corporate power, and the people at the other end being exploited by this cabal, in such a conflict, should one side have the monopoly on “violence”? The following is a short extract from an interesting article from Anarchist News Dot Org:

   "The Black Bloc protesters interviewed did not endorse violence, but did take issue with how violence is portrayed when acts of vandalism do occur during demonstrations. When it comes to the state’s monopoly on violence, they said, there is no comparison.     “What is rarely acknowledged in the mainstream discussion, and even among the left, is the disproportionate nature of violence of the state in acts all around the world,” said “O.” “We are engaged in three wars — Iraq, Afghanistan, Somalia — we have covert wars in Iran, we have structural violence here at home through poverty, budget cuts, police brutality, and when one person throws a rock through a window it is treated as an out-of-context violent act.”

Not all Black Bloc protesters are anarchists. However, Black Bloc tactics are easily embraced by those who prefer to resist the state and foster collective action.

For protester Rick Young, the Black Bloc protesters, who he affectionately called “the anarchy guys,” were the heroes on May Day. He joined the protesters as they surrounded the police on Hill Street. Young’s experience on the “front lines” caused him to see the Black Bloc as soldiers in a battle for social and economic change.

“The anarchy guys were the only guys that showed real solidarity today,” he said while resting in Pershing Square, the final destination of the march. “They were really together. They were the ones that allowed the marchers to come down Hill Street.”

Young speaks of his face-off with police as a “band-of-brothers” moment, where differences quickly dissolve in a group action borne out of the necessity of self-preservation.

“I don’t even know their names … but let it be known that the anarchists today broke the police line at Fourth Street and allowed the marchers to come down here,” he said.

Read the full article HERE:

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