Unarresting
Unless you've been living in a primitivist mud hut your entire life, you know that going
to demonstrations comes with the chance of arrest, especially with the Black Bloc. Unarresting
is the practice of pulling our comrades back into safety from the arms of the officers.
Unarresting is a serious topic that needs to be discussed and practiced. It works best
when we act fearless and the police are outnumbered. Here are some scenarios and possible
solutions when unarresting:
Most Blocs use the tactic of linking arms. This way, when an officer tries to pull one of us
away, it makes it difficult to pull the individual from the arms of another participant.
Example
Often times, a demonstrator will get isolated from the group and suddenly be taken by an
officer. Make sure that you and your affinity are on alert at all times for possible stragglers.
Dont let anyone stray from the group! If someone does happen to stray and be detained,
there are some things you can do if you act quickly. Quickly let everyone know what is happening
and have your affinity run to the area of the situation. If the cop does not back away by the
time you arrive to this situation, your group can fall on top of the person like a dog pile
and more people will gather around the situation. Make sure you do not harm the person you
are attempting to unarrest. You can also get a few people to simply pull him away from the
officer.
Remember! Unarresting someone is a very risky circumstance. In some cases, you can be
given a harsher charge than the person you are unarresting. Be smart. Dont get caught!
These days, police use the plastic zip ties instead of handcuffs for the basic reason
that they are too expensive. When you go to a demonstration, put some fingernail clippers in
your back pocket or an accessible place on your body. When the time is right, simply cut the
ties and run like hell!
Back