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Vancouver March in Solidarity with the Toronto 900

Demonstrators gathered in Vancouver on July 4, 2010 to denounce police repression, demand freedom for all political prisoners, and celebrate resistance to the G-20.

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Comments

I read a sign saying

I read a sign saying "WE ARE ALL BLACK BLOC"...

...and it couldn't be further from the truth.  I will never allow myself to be linked to such a poorly managed group of children throwing a temper-tantrum.  The actions and "diversity of tactics" espoused by the leaders of this group are deplorable, and do nothing to provide actual benefit to any rally movement.  I prefer to see my actions end in successful accomplishment, and such victories be found if we all choose to act like them.

 blah blah blah...  Here's a

 blah blah blah... 

Here's a great response to your boring ass comment that was posted on another page.

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Direct Hypocrisy

It’s really too bad that so many so called pacifists don’t understand the concept of solidarity, and choose to only support that which they agree with. It is ironic that these same people seem to constantly push inclusively –rejecting the black block and militant action because it alienates people –when they themselves are basically saying “…If I don’t agree with you f-off, I’ll throw you to the dogs.”

In this whole g20 violence/non-violence debate when ‘pacifists’ are speaking about humbleness and peace I hear nothing but arrogance and intolerance.

The mainstream news coverage –what little of it there was anyway —in addition to sensationalizing the black block, and telling overt lies, CTV, CBC repeatedly showed the Warrior/Unity Flag. The Georgia Straight had accurate coverage and used an image of the Canadian Flag Burning as it's title picture. This imagery has been known to strike fear into the hearts of Canadians and rile them to violent attack.

The Warrior/Unity flag represents Indigenous Resistance to de colonization –a movement that is founded on the assertion that Canada, the government and the settler colonizers are living in an illegal occupation of Indigenous Land. Many at the G20 protests in Toronto, and solidarity rallies in cities across the continent were flagrantly Canadian, singing O Canada, brandishing adaptations of the Canadian Flag and bemoaning the betrayal of the ‘good Canadian way of life.’ Many native people are completely offended at this overt patriotism for a nation that has --and still is-- committing genocide against our people.

If Indigenous people can put aside those kinds of intensive conflicts for a few hours to show solidarity with people who clearly were at the brunt of  some nasty abuse by the Canadian State –then I should think any Canadian pacifist could do the same.

There were lots of people in that march who didn’t agree 100% with each other. And there were many people who do not participate in black bloc actions, but that day wore black and black masks as a demonstration of solidarity. There were also people there who had been in Toronto --some were arrested, some not-- who spoke at stopping points along the march. It was a 12 km march, and lots of people stayed to the end –that shows in and of itself, the heartfelt dedication people feel and their willingness to want to do something to stop the kind of repression faced in Toronto, and also by systems of exploitation like the G20. Part of that dedication is finding ways to work with people we may have to stretch to find common ground with.

If  some pacifists were unable to put aside their own narrow mindedness to participate in this march, it doesn’t bode well for their ability to participate in anything resembling ‘direct democracy.’

It’s too bad some people left because they couldn’t stand the site of people dressed in black with masks or a banner that read, “we are all black block.’ Because they also missed some quality time with the strong and diverse communities of resistance in Vancouver.

 You certainly have a lot of

 You certainly have a lot of negative things to say about those who believe in the power of peaceful resistance. How do you feel about the accomplishments (I guess who you would classify a pacifist) Mahatma Gandhi?

re: your ghandi question.

re: your ghandi question. this book is worth reading, it's at the library.

http://www.wsm.ie/story/3399

"In the first part of the

"In the first part of the book the author quickly dismisses some of the myths that pacifism rests on from Gandhi to the civil rights movement in America claiming that “there is a pattern to the historical manipulation and white washing in every single victory claimed by non-violent activists”. Although most class struggle anarchists are familiar with pacifists attempting “to erase the history that disagrees with them” it is important to briefly touch on some of these examples. The most classic prophecy being the notion that Gandhi’s brand of ‘non-violence’ led the Indian people to freedom in the process ignoring ‘violent’ strands in the struggle for independence including bombings and assassinations which were just as influential and prominent but just not given the same level of historical coverage and therefore whitewashed from history. The fact that the British Government were still recovering militarily from the devastating fallout from WW1 and was faced with a insurgency in Palestine from Jewish and Arab militants meant that giving some form of formal independence to India was a favoured option. As Gelderloos puts it, “The British were not forced to quit India. Rather, they chose to transfer the territory from direct colonial rule to neo-colonial rule.” Not far wrong if you look at India today where multi-national companies with the help of the state continue to bleed the countries natural resources dry."

http://www.wsm.ie/story/3399

sophistaced thug "SAYS":.if

sophistaced thug "SAYS":.if you had stayed till the DTES ("MY" HOOD) it woulda all came together homie...........go do some yoga in granview or something right?no just kiddnig..but : when you respond to 900+ words with one measly gandhi referance you are in deed passive aggresively, back-handedly,turn-a -blind eyedly contributiing to the collective universal violence in the form of appropriation and poor communication s/killz.i do apologise if you are gandhi's personal disciple and are typing to us from "south asia" but i happened to do some meditating with one of his peers.Someone  who trained with him and continues 'his' work world wide.and she honestly told me i was on the path and that i should literally walk away from her and get back on the road.i am not black block,ive smashed windows of sexual offenders that are drowning comfortably drowning in their systemic alibis,and other well deserving individuals i am one complicated american indian on a very simple path here.all through my life independantly i have smashed windows of pedophiles and other colonized war machines and i am releived to experience solidarity within anarchists that are working together i may never join it but am in full support and am right behind them literally.

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