Been to one of the weekly #BlackMonday meetings and wondered what the fuck was going on ?
Well, join the club!
But hey, at least we’re trying, right? Consensus can be a long, drawn out process. And everything about Black Monday is special to us.
Originally, the call was made for September 17 to be a day of transformation. A day when #OccupyWallStreet goes from the tried and mundane mass marches, to the more targeted and effective mobilization of small groups, also referred to by anarchists as Affinity Groups.
An Affinity Group, or AG, is a small group of friends and trusted comrades, anywhere from three to sixteen individuals, who are unified through common political or ideological principles.
A great example of several AGs scattered throughout a city, effectively shutting it down, is found in the actions of the Direct Action to Stop the War (DASW), a bay area group that shut down San Francisco’s financial district following the illegal invasion of sovereign Iraq by the US Armed Forces in 2003. Their actions were well coordinated through the use of yet another anarchist organizational tool known as a Spokes Council.
Simply, a Spokes Council is a body where a delegate, or spoke, from each AG comes forward to speak for the AG. Unlike aloof elected officials, the spoke doesn’t present their opinion. Instead, they check with their AG and communicate the AG’s message.
If all goes well, Black Monday will take Occupy into new, uncharted territory. One of effective and highly disruptive autonomous actions, spread out over a large geographical area and hard to kettle. Heard of the phrase Keep It Simple Sexy? Well then go ahead and pick a target, select an intersection, and own it! Broadcast your AG’s message loud and clear. Work on your messaging. Nothing sucks more than shutting down an intersection and not being able to relay a clear narrative to the media. On September 17, there will be those who occupy their cubicles. Will you instead occupy a crosswalk?
Stand up, rise up and tell the state we’re mad, and we’re not going anywhere.
