When thinking about a protest environment, there will be people running around at some point making it harder to decipher who is who. Lastly, and interestingly, black also blends in with black police uniforms. Many clothing styles come in black, so they can easily integrate into anyone’s wardrobe in or outside of a picket line. Black clothing is accessible and affordable regardless of class, age, or location. Although all of these options are viable, there are several reasons why black is the color of choice. Or, like the 2018 yellow vest protests in France, marchers could don remnants of a non-descript everyday uniform. Wiki Commonsīut why the color black? Activists could wear grey or camouflage clothing if the aim was to blend in. Yellow Vest protesters in France created a different form of collective identity. Why Black? Manifestation du mouvement des gilets jaunes, à Belfort, le 01 décembre 2018. They cover their face and body to conceal their identity and to protect themselves from pepper spray, brute force, or other crowd-dispersing methods employed by police or opposing parties. Today protesters will typically wear a hoodie, t-shirt, goggles, face mask or ski mask, black pants, sneakers, and maybe a backpack. BLM protestors in 2020 used the tactic of wearing black clothing and face masks – as a COVID-19 measure and to prevent police from tracking protesters through social media or facial recognition.Īccording to Francis Dupuis Deri, socio-political professor and author of Who’s Afraid of the Black Bloc?, the first protesters to use the tactic in 1980s Berlin wore black leather jackets, motorcycle helmets, and ski masks. Black t-shirts became so synonymous with the movement that according to Uniqlo, sales of black t-shirts increased significantly and couriers were banned from importing black clothing into the country during this time. Fighting against the Chinese government enacting extradition, students and young people in Hong Kong used the black bloc technique to prevent the government from identifying them. Notably, the tactic was utilized in the 2020 protests by the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement in the United States, as well as in the Hong Kong protests in 2018. Within the black bloc, smaller groups have different roles, from protecting others, staying updated with comrades at home, following the news and social media, or detecting undercover cops trying to provoke mob mentality. It creates a diversion and chaos within chaos. It prevents individuals from being singled out or smaller groups from being kettled, separated and surrounded by the police. Coming together transforms protesters into a black homogeneous entity of chaos – like a swarm of bees. The black bloc creates a strong visual effect and is most effective when people stick together. However, my focus is primarily on its sartorial power. It’s important to note that the black bloc refers to violent and non-violent methods for example, desecrating corporate buildings or blocking police from arresting or beating protestors. The History of the Black Bloc WTO Protest in Seattle, WA, 2014, Wiki CommonsĪccording to the History of the Black Bloc, by grassroots media collective Sub.media, the black bloc is not a group or movement, but a global tactic to secure objectives like protecting historic landmarks, forests, or helping protesters to safety. The black bloc reveals how clothing can work very differently to signal one’s values and motives. Looking at images of face-to-face police and black bloc activists is like viewing an inverse mirrored reflection. Groups of people wearing the same black outfit prevent individuals from being identified, arrested, or harmed. This unofficial uniform is worn to confuse police and opposing parties. Invented in the 1980s West Germany during the Autonomist movement, an anti-authoritarian leftist movement from Italy, the black bloc is a tactic where a group of activists or protesters wear nondescript black garb. In the midst of ongoing global protests, I’ll look into a less talked about fashion tactic in a protester’s arsenal: the black bloc. You may think they’re “punks” or “rioters” who came to be violent for violence’s sake, but their sole purpose is to protect protesters and disrupt the system. These vigilantes spray paint onto ATM banks, throw trash cans in front of police squadrons, and punt smoky tear gas bombs into the air like cloudy shooting stars. But then, a swarm of black-clothed activists ascend into the crowd. As chants demanding justice boom among a sea of people and bobbing protests signs, police sirens screech into the streets with thwacks of riot batons cracking against the pavement.
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