As follow up to my last post, I'd like to pass along some links to photos of the Republican National Convention protests in St. Paul, MN, USA. Most of the march was quite peaceful, but several groups of anarchist/vandals did incite some violence, which unfortunately overshadowed the nonviolent message that most people carried that day.
The Uptake's RNC photostream: http://flickr.com/photos/theuptake/
Here's a set I took while observing the protests yesterday: http://tinyurl.com/5meodg
In case you're not familiar with the site, flickr is a great, free photosharing sight that makes it easy to upload, edit, and share photos with the world.
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Challenges of maintaining nonviolence during planned actions
Your comment - "Most of the march was quite peaceful, but several groups of anarchist/vandals did incite some violence, which unfortunately overshadowed the nonviolent message that most people carried that day" - is a very important one.
When preparing for non-violent action, it is extremenly important to remember that just a small group that use violence can undermine the message of thousands who are peacefully making their point. Reports from the St. Paul march indicated that over 280 were arrested but the violence was incited by a much smaller group not part of the larger organized peach march. Those who were part of the organized marched numbered between 10,000 and 30,000 people including about 100 Iraq and Afghanistan war veterans (Sources; StarTribune, USA Today, Washington Post).
I want to take this oportunity to bring back to light our New Tactics May On-line Dialogue that featured "Training for Nonviolent Action". This very rich dialogue brought together nonviolent action trainers and New Tactics community members to share their experiences and expertise regarding practical tips but also the foundations of nonviolent action theory to help people understand why violence is counter-productive. Philippe Duhamel in his InterTactica blog posts Nonviolence training, what is it good for?, Nine ways nonviolent action workshops make better activists and So the Whole World Can Watch offer excellent tips and resources when planning for nonviolent action. We know it is a monumental challenge for nonviolent action organizers to ensure that everyone involved in an action adheres to nonviolence so the real message is the one that is seen and heard. We hope these resources will assist you in your efforts.
Nancy Pearson, New Tactics in Human Rights Program Manager