NJ Hate Watch: S14, NJEHA, and WLM Member Andrew Takhistov of East Brunswick, NJ

  • July 17, 2024 1:22 am

from Jersey Counter-Info

Takhistov, aka Cossack, upon his arrest. Takhistov is pictured here without glasses, although he typically wears them.

Just a few days ago Andrew Takhistov, an 18 year old from East Brunswick, was arrested in a federal sting operation where he allegedly solicited an undercover federal agent to blow up two different electrical substations in Central NJ (CNJ). Takhistov is now facing one count of soliciting another individual to engage in criminal conduct, which could result in a maximum prison term of 10 years and a $125,000 fine if convicted. Idavox covered Takhistov’s arrest and charges in depth, more about the specifics can be read here.

Since the release of the federal complaint, Takhistov has been positively identified as a very active neo-nazi that has been a part of the Tristate (NYC, PA, NJ) nazi scene for at least the last two years. Takhistov who goes by the Telegram handles “Cossack” and “Taraz”, is highly dedicated, holding membership in WLM NJ/PA, S14, NJEHA, Atlantic Nationalist Club, and Embrace Struggle, among running his own projects dubbed “White Legion” and “Defend Europe” respectively.

Takhistov’s main Telegram handles. Prior to his arrest a few days ago he was primarily using the “Taraz” account, while his “Cossack” account was on the back burner.

Takhistov first became involved with the tristate nazi scene when he was 16 years old, starting off virtually and connecting with group leaders like S14’s Mark Kauffman and NJEHA’s Dan D’ambly. He quickly became immersed and began to get involved in-person during 2023. Throughout 2023 and 2024 Takhistov was a regular presence at actions and became closer with older more senior members and leadership.

Takhistov, circled in red, during a late December 2023 nazi rally. Mark Kauffman is to his right.

 

Takhistov at the December 2023 nazi rally. He is standing and is the second individual from the left. Nazis Mark Kauffman and Dan D’ambly are also pictured on the right hand side.

With Takhistov’s further entrenchment he began to reveal more information about himself in public Telegram chats. Specifically, Takhistov discussed his Ukrainian heritage and nationalism at length, often going on long diatribes.

Takhistov’s rant about Ukrainian nationalism. He also reveals personal details about his family history and status as a Ukrainian.

During this time Takhistov attempted to move his project, White Legion, offline into the real world but had limited success. Largely White Legion functioned as a showy propaganda group claiming to do physical conditioning and supporting nationalists in Ukraine. This is also verified by the press release from the federal government about his arrest.

Takhistov’s now dormant White Legion project.

Other than a few propaganda based photo ops across CNJ White Legion was not involved in or planned any independent actions, nor did it become its own individual group focused on recruiting or centralized goal like S14 or NJEHA.

Takhistov boosting his White Legion project. The pictures depict one of the few in-person activities the group did.

 

Takhistov further bragging about his White Legion project in an S14 chat.

 

A photo from one of the few activities White Legion did in CNJ at a baseball field in the middle of the night. Takhistov is pictured on the left with another taller (unidentified) nazi on the right.

 

Commentary from the federal government about Takhistov’s project White Legion.

In early 2024, Takhistov began to get more involved in nazi accelerationist ideology, reposting pictures from Injekt Division, a nazi accelerationist crew similar to Atomwaffen Division, and other Terrorgram channels. Takhistov also expressed his desire to go and fight in Ukraine and assist fellow nazis in propelling the country towards national socialism. It was at this juncture he created his other project/Telegram channel “Defend Europe”.

Takhistov’s new “Defend Europe” project he started in 2024.

Takhistov used this new Telegram channel to produce Ukrainian nationalist/fascist content. He centered Defend Europe around his supposed journey to Ukraine and claimed he was shipping out soon to help fight against the Russian invasion and push for a national socialist Ukraine. Takhistov’s Defend Europe content read more as a LARP fantasy than something that he was actually doing, given the way he went about posting and bragging.

Takhistov pictured holding a Ukrainian nazi flag “prior to shipping out”.

Throughout 2023 and 2024 as Takhistov was engaging in nazi accelerationist activities, he began to connect more with those on Terrorgram, and ended up connecting with an undercover federal agent. Takhistov was essentially catfished by the federal government in early 2024 when he was trying to organically connect with other NJ-based neo-nazis. Takhistov met up with the federal agent several times, with other currently unidentified NJ neo-nazis.

This massive security blunder led to Takhistov being entrapped by the feds in a plot to blow up two different electrical substations in CNJ. The federal agent that Takhistov was in contact with from Terrorgram pushed for a way to get further involved, joining Takhistov and other nazis for a March 2, 2024 action in New Brunswick, NJ. Takhistov and the federal agent met up a few times after this and discussed different tactics used by national socialists, including electrical substation attacks. Takhistov told the agent that he had a trip booked for July 2024 to visit Ukraine and intended to join up with a pro-Ukraine Russian fascist volunteer group fighting against Russia. The agent asked for more details locally and Takhistov passed them off, noting that the agent could plan on doing an attack when Takhistov was over in Ukraine. For several months after that Takhistov sent the agent guides on industrial sabotage, further information on local electrical substations, and details on how to make homemade weapons. Takhistov, the agent, and another unidentified NJ nazi, then went around and scouted out different electrical substations, with the agent providing in-depth insight on how to access the buildings.

An excerpt from the criminal complaint filed by the federal government against Takhistov.

While the federal briefing detailed that Takhistov was arrested at Newark International Airport on his way to Ukraine, it is unclear if Takhistov was accepted into any kind of formal fascist volunteer force. Despite Takhistov’s bravado that he was set to join a group of pro-Ukrainian Russian fascist separatists fighting against Russia it has not been confirmed that Takhistov had solidified plans prior to his arrest. It is more likely that Takhistov intended to forge concrete connections on the ground once he got to Ukraine and try to meet up in-person with the group in an effort to join.

The federal government is famous for trying to entrap the far right, the far left, religious groups, and everyone in between often trying to convince individuals to engage in illegal activities. In this case, Takhistov was duped by the feds to help plan an attack on CNJ infrastructure to be theoretically executed by the federal agent. By no means is this a defense of Takhistov, he is nazi scum who was dumb enough to contact random accounts on a highly surveilled platform (Terrorgram) and got wrapped up in a would be terrorism plot. It is important however to acknowledge that it was the state who pushed the alleged crime and Takhistov.

S14 members: With addition of Andrew Takhistov, 9 of your people have been identified and doxxed including Alex Chubbuck, Benjamin Ryder, Jackson Bradley, Paul Minton, Daisy McGowan, Mathew Bair, Mark Kauffman, and Sara Sheaffer. If you continue to operate, more of your members will be exposed and the pressure will increase. You will be held responsible for the nazi filth that you are.

Send tips and information: njhatewatch@protonmail.com

Running Down The Walls

  • July 16, 2024 1:49 am

from Philly ABC

rdtw-2024-sugarbombing.jpg

Sunday, September 15, 2024
11 am sharp (Yoga warm-up at 10am)
FDR Park

RDTW 2024

Philadelphia Anarchist Black Cross invites you to our seventh annual Running Down The Walls (RDTW)! This year marks the 25th anniversary of this non-competitive 5K and political education event in support of political prisoners and prisoners of war. Every year we split the proceeds between the ABCF Warchest —which has provided over $240,000 in stipends and other material support to prisoners with little or no other financial means—and a specific political prisoner, organization, or movement we want to uplift. This year we’ll be supporting and amplifying the voices of people struggling for freedom in Gaza, the world’s largest open-air prison.

Resistance is a continuous endeavor.

– Bassel Al-Araj, Palestinian scholar and former political prisoner, martyred

How will proceeds go to support Palestine? If you’ve participated in previous years, you know that we announce the recipient from day one. We have to take a slightly different approach this year due to how rapidly the situation is changing in Palestine. Given the unpredictability, the exact recipient(s) are subject to change. For example, in our initial planning meeting we were in touch with people in Cairo gathering funds for evacuations. With Rafah crossing since closed, other potential beneficiaries include vetted mutual aid groups in the Gaza Strip, and we will coordinate with trusted folks on the ground to distribute resources appropriately after the event. More information will be made available in the reportback.

Running is not required! You can also walk, roll, or cheer. We’ll begin with warm-up stretches at 10am (bring a mat if you can). At 11am, those who want to participate in the 5k will take two loops around the park; at a walking pace, this takes about 45-60 minutes. Afterwards, stay for socializing with speakers, tabling, and light refreshments.

Remote participation is encouraged! Every year we are joined by incarcerated comrades who take part in this by running, walking, or otherwise exercising at the same time as us–from behind bars. If you can’t attend the event at FDR Park for any reason, leave your shipping address in the comment box at registration, and we’ll mail you a t-shirt. If you would like to make an additional contribution beyond your own registration, please sponsor a participant either outside prison, inside prison, or one of each. Contact us for more information on sponsoring.

Due to the abominable conditions that political prisoners and freedom fighters are subjected to, let’s drum up support now more than ever. Join us as we celebrate our successes this last year, including the releases of Veronza Bowers and Eric King, and build momentum for the struggles ahead!

Next on the White Power Chopping Block: Two MORE Members of the Same NJ Group!

  • July 16, 2024 1:36 am

from Idavox

Andrew Takhistov and Steve V. Koshlyak (mugshot from Nov. 2021)

The Atlantic Nationalist Club (we are SO not calling them the ANC!) doesn’t have a lot of members and it seems like they won’t have a lot of members on the outside before long! Also, we have written about one of these guys before!

An 18-year-old member of a New Jersey White Supremacist group was arrested on charges that he solicited others to destroy energy facilities. A few days later, another member of the same group who has had run-ins with law enforcement in the past was also arrested on unknown charges.

On Andrew Takhistov, 18, of East Brunswick, New Jersey was picked up at Newark Airport as he was about to board a flight enroute to fight in Ukraine for the Russian Volunteer Corps, an organization he said was “openly National Socialist,” according to a Department of Justice press release. The release further stated that Takhistov was communicating on a social messaging platform with an individual who he did not know was an undercover law enforcement employee. In those discussions, Takhistov expressed a desire to advance his neo-Nazi ideology through violent means and said another reason why he wanted to join the Russian Volunteer Corps was not just gain paramilitary training but particularly because they specialized in assassinations, attacks on power grids and other infrastructure sabotage.

Takhistov’s arrest came after two visits in June and July to two different electrical substations in North Brunswick and New Brunswick, New Jersey where he instructed the undercover employee on numerous aspects of how to conduct an attack on an electrical substation. It was on July 5, during one of these visits that Takhistov reportedly instructed the undercover employee to take several photographs of the electrical substations so that Takhistov could send them to his Russian friend for additional advice on how to best sabotage the stations.

Takhistov, who was known online as “Cossack,” is a member of the Atlantic Nationalist Club (AnaC, not to be confused with the African National Congress of South Africa), a group with a small handful of members that started in May 2023 as a breakaway from the New Jersey chapter of White Lives Matter (WLM) The group is led by Claudino G. Petruccelli, who in November 2021 was caught by antifa, including members of One People’s Project, attempting to post WLM stickers around Princeton, New Jersey and the following week by police as he tried to do the same thing in Somerville, New Jersey with two others, Zackerji I. Ivanovic, who is reportedly currently with the neo-Nazi group Blood Tribe, and Steve V. Koshlyak, who is currently a AnaC member. The three were arrested.

On Saturday, an online notification indicated that Koshlyak, who celebrated his 37th birthday two days prior, had been arrested that day and online jail records note that he is currently being held at the Burlington County (NJ) Detention Center in Mount Holly, New Jersey with a jail ID of 117724. There is no further information about his arrest including the department that arrested him or when his first appearance will take place. In addition to his November 2021 arrest, Koshlyak also has a DUI arrest going back to 2014.

While AnaC have been attempting to be known for their flash mob rallies and stickering, often associating with Dan D’Ambly’s New Jersey European Heritage Association (NJEHA), they have been particularly displayed a violent over the past two years both as a WLM chapter and its current incarnation. A group of them including Petruccelli and another member Nicholas G. Mucci participated in the fights at Penn State University in October 2022 when Proud Boy founder Gavin McInnes and internet troll Alex Stein attempted to have an event there. It was shut down after those fights, where Mucci and Petruccelli allegedly pepper sprayed those protesting the event, got out of hand. Last month, Mucci pled guilty to attempting to smoke bomb and pepper spray a benefit show for One People’s Project at a church in Asbury Park, New Jersey three months  after Penn State, the smoke bombs purchased in Pennsylvania the day of the event there, and is scheduled to be sentenced on August 16. These latest two arrests will make three members of the small hate group currently imprisoned.

According to the Department of Justice press release, Takhistov is charged with one count of soliciting another individual to engage in criminal conduct that involved destroying a public service enterprise group circuit breaker and substation. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $125,000 fine. Charges are still pending for Koshlyak at the time of this posting.

Khalif Miller Given 1-10 Year State Sentence On Top Of Federal Sentence

  • July 9, 2024 1:22 am

from Mastodon

It’s been a little over a month since the upsetting news that was given a 1-10 year state sentence on top of the 61 month (5 year) Federal sentence that he has been serving since October of 2020.

Khalif is one of the five people indicted along with for his participation in the racial justice uprisings in 2020. He is facing a total of 15 years for attending a protest on May 30th, 2020. This is the new COINTELPRO!

We’re rehashing this 6/1 post from the @FreeAntPHL IG account to bring Khalif back to the top of your feed.

Send him some ♥️ at:

Khalif Miller -066
USP Big Sandy
U.S. Penitentiary
P.O. Box 2068
Inez, KY 41224

Rear perspective image of Khalif in a courtroom. Vertically aligned text displays the hashtag "Free Khalif." Horizontally aligned text reads "Today, Friday May 31, Khalif was given a 1-10 year sentence for a probation violation. Khalif has been in federal prison since October 25,2020, when he was arrested for participating in racial justice protests in Philadelphia. He was given a five year federal sentence, which triggered a probation violation. Now he has to serve another 1-10 years. 15 years for attending a protest."

ALT
Two headshot photos of Khalif over a background of swirling shapes and colors. Left photo shows Khalif smiling in front of a tree, and wearing a Rugrats shirt. Right photo shows him in a car with child sleeping in the back seat. He is wearing glasses in both photos. Text on image reads the hashtag "FreeKhalif."

ALT
Background of swirling shapes and colors, with text that displays Khalif's mailing address.

Neo-Nazi Cop Jason Dare Fired From NJ State Police

  • May 28, 2024 1:35 am

from Jersey Counter-Info

Jason Dare, the NJ State Trooper that went viral in March 2023 for both disappearing from rehab and having highly visible neo-nazi tattoos has been fired from the NJ State Police.

Jason Dare, pictured in both plain clothes and in his NJ State Trooper uniform.

Since 2021, local law enforcement agencies and the NJ State police have been compelled to put together yearly reports, that are accessible to the public, which detail all “major disciplinary” actions against police officers that have resulted in suspension or termination.

The 2024 NJ State Police major disciplinary report. A key is outlined displaying what action was taken against the officer in addition to the investigation’s findings.

After a year long “investigation”, the neo-nazi cop was quietly fired in May 2024, with NJ State Police citing multiple illegal actions and violation of division policies in their major disciplinary report which detailed Dare’s firing. Dare was originally placed on unpaid leave in March 2023.

A breakdown of Dare’s actions and what laws and division policies he violated.

As outlined in the report, prior to his admission into rehab for drug and alcohol addiction, Dare entered into some kind of plea agreement with NJ State Police, presumably for some illegal action he took while on or off-duty. The exact nature of what led Dare into this plea agreement is unknown, however, it should be noted that as the larger major disciplinary report details, as well as what national reports reflect, both on and off-duty cops have a habit of public intoxication and operating motor vehicles while inebriated.

After Dare entered into a plea deal with the NJ State Police he was sent to rehab in Delco (Delaware County PA), the same one he would eventually flee from. After fleeing the Delco rehab facility Dare reportedly broke into an unoccupied home in the area and was presumably on a bender for the next several days. At some point after he was found and returned to NJ, he used a shotgun he owned to shoot out a front window in his Vineland home. It should also be noted, that while not referenced in the description, the NJ State Police categorized one of Dare’s violations as a “uniform and grooming standards” violation. This can be surmised as a back-handed reference to his many visible neo-nazi tattoos.

Some of Dare’s neo-nazi tattoos, including his “blood honor” throat tattoo, iron crosses, and fascist inspired runes. In the picture on the right he is wearing a nazi death head shirt, or “totenkopf”, as he hangs out with friends from the NJ State Police in his free time.

 

Additional neo-nazi inspired tattoos including a pitbull that is identical to the PA neo-nazi gang Keystone United.

At the time in March 2023, the mainstream local media reported on Dare’s disappearance and return as copaganda, not referencing his neo-nazi tattoos or investigating the nature of his disappearance. Dare’s discovery and return to NJ was broadly covered by many local news outlets as a positive event. Since Dare’s firing however, there has been virtually zero local news coverage.

Despite Dare’s documented actions of violating a plea agreement, breaking and entering, trespassing, discharging a firearm in a residential area, putting residents at risk for serious bodily harm, and being a neo-nazi, he was only fired from NJ State Police and is not facing any criminal charges or barred from future employment as a state employee or police officer.

As antifascists we understand why this is, the state protects its agents even if they are compelled to sacrifice them in some manner. Even with this knowledge though it is still baffling to see the stark difference between how average NJ residents are treated in comparison to agents of the state. We all understand that if this was anyone else other than a cop that they would facing decades in prison and character assassination in the media.

At the time of publishing, Dare’s current employment details are unknown, but it has been confirmed that he has relocated from his prior residence in Vineland, NJ to Galloway Twp, NJ.

Drexel Students Set Up Palestine Encampment, Call for Divestment From Israel

  • May 22, 2024 1:05 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA — Students at Drexel University established an encampment in support of divesting from Israel on May 18, following a rainy Nakba Day commemoration march from Center City that started around 4 p.m. Philadelphia and Drexel police officers quickly surrounded the encampment with a ring of metal barricades and largely barred additional people from entering; this was apparently at the orders of Drexel’s campus police chief.

There was a brief struggle over the metal barricade components, and at one point an officer brandished a Taser at the crowd but was pulled back by another, shortly after our reporters got onsite. As of late Monday the encampment was still in place.

Our livestream from inside the barricade ring ran for almost 3 1/2 hours until shortly before midnight Saturday (YouTube). The night before, nearly 20 demonstrators were arrested just blocks away at the UPenn campus which we also streamed live. Students and other observers we interviewed discussed everything from Philly’s protest culture and law enforcement practices to the Samidoun Prisoner’s Solidarity Network. Full livestream:

[Youtube link]

In a tense confrontation at the beginning of the stream, Philly officers in riot gear wearing “Counter-Terrorism Operations” badges briefly assembled inside the perimeter but withdrew.

A protest sign on Saturday night.

In interviews on-site students said that they were pushing to get Drexel to pull its investments from BlackRock, which does business with Israel, as well as other divestments. They also said that Drexel administrators have claimed it is illegal to disclose specific investments, but this is apparently not illegal at all. The Drexel Palestine Coalition has a list of demands posted online.

Tents late Saturday night.

Drexel announced that it would switch to online learning for Monday.

During late Saturday night, police were largely a static presence while dozens of students milled just outside the perimeter discussing politics and playing music. A lengthy know-your-rights training with Up Against the Law and National Lawyers Guild members also took place with most of the camp participants.

Camp supporters regularly handed supplies including stacks of pizza, large tent structures and medic supplies over the barricades without much interest from the police. A Unicorn Riot reporter stuck around until the morning as a police sweep seemed possible (UPenn’s encampment was cleared in an early morning maneuver).

While the encampments might seem like a typical exercise in campus politics it should be noted that these activities are regarded as a strategic threat to Israel because they could shift the intellectual climate in the United States, which is Israel’s main international patron. A series of articles by James Bamford in The Nation has shown that groups like the Israeli-American Council and Canary Mission are closely coordinating with Israeli government agencies to crush student protests in the United States by harassing protesters.

Plethora of Police Forces in West Philly since 1970s

Police from multiple units including Drexel and Philadelphia PD on milled around Saturday night southwest of the encampment.

After the shocking events at Kent State and Jackson State, in September 1970 President Nixon’s Commission on Campus Unrest, chaired by Pennsylvania Governor William Scranton, dropped its report (418 page PDF). One result was the rise of campus police departments.

As the Penn Disorientation Guide outlines, police forces multiplied during the campus crackdowns of the 1970s, until today:

“If you walk west down Market St. from 30th St. Station, in 1.5 miles you pass through the jurisdictions of six police departments: Philadelphia, Amtrak, SEPTA, Penn, Drexel, and Philadelphia Housing Authority (PHA).”

A Brief and Violent History of Campus Policing, 2023

Campus police in this side of the city (Drexel & UPenn) have demarcated “patrol zones” which extend into the city.

Cover sheet for Nixon’s 1970 Campus Unrest report (large PDF)

Related: UPenn Students Arrested at Palestine Demo After Building Occupation Attempt [May 18, 2024]

Philadelphia Police Department in with “Counter-Terrorism” badges and riot gear earlier on Saturday night.

Social media clips and camera operation in latter sections of the livestream by Chris Schiano.

ANARCHISTS AT DREXEL

  • May 20, 2024 1:17 am

Submission

At approximately 7pm on Saturday May 18, and one day before the birthday of Malcolm X, a Nakba Day rally and march ended in protestors and students spontaneously setting up an encampment at Drexel University, at Academic Quadrangle. Immediately, more than a hundred protestors locked arms to defend the students. This was the second pro-Palestine protest in two days, Friday’s action having ended in several violent arrests by the Philly Pig Department (PPD) in a similar attempt to occupy a space.

Shortly after, the resilient encampment defenders began jotting down phone numbers (on their arms) for attorneys, civil rights groups, etc.

Of course, PPD wasted no time calling in reinforcements by the barn-load, a few of them already decked out in riot gear, reminiscent of the genocidal IDF. It should then come as no surprise to learn that Amerikkkan cops receive training from their Zionist buddies in Isntreal.

As the sun went down, the pigs moved in. Several encampment defenders and even legal observers were threatened with a taser by an angry member of Philly’s “finest”; one of his partners yanked him backward before he pulled the trigger. There were several other minor altercations as well.

One can’t help but notice how the violence at protests and encampments begin and end solely with the brownshirt jackboots of the State. From capitalist cops to so-called “proletarian cops,” the role of all law enforcement has been the protection of private property and defense of genocide and colonialist supremacy since the days of Amerikkkan runaway slave patrols.

At the time of writing this, the encampment is ongoing and needs support. Philly Palestine Coalition on Instagram (@phillypalestinecoalition) will be providing updates for mutual aid, jail support, etc.

To fellow anarchists, we urge you more than anyone to show up. Bring food, water, clothes, zines, but more importantly, bring YOURSELVES. Support our comrades in the streets and the encampments. In order to live in a better world, we need to create a better world. No party will save us or bring the revolution. As one protestor continuously remarked, “We protect us.”

Anarchy is forever.
Death to the zionist state.
From the sea to the river, Palestine will live forever.

Drexel encampment report back

  • May 20, 2024 1:15 am

Submission

Last night, students, anarchists, communists, and other community members took up occupation at Drexel University. What was at first perceived as another boring rally/march with WAYYY too many fucking speeches and shit turned into an encampment being sprung up. This particular encampment set up had it ups and down. The down side was that the pigs were surrounding it and at times were pushing, shoving, and threatening people with various weapons and cowardly tactics. Also, in comparison to the encampment at Upenn, this start up was really slow, and there were so many big tents that took time and effort to set up unlike at Penn where most tents were pop up tents and we were all able to set them up in pretty quick succession. Also, at the beginning, food and water were very scarce and to this point, police have barricaded protesters into the encampment and have not been letting people return when they leave, making it hard for people to use the various facilities leaving people unsure of where to use the bathroom. Also to note, a comrade had told me that because the march took so fucking long to get to Drexel that shit got discombobulated and items for tents were scattered due to the lack of sufficient numbers. On the positive side, camp did eventually get established, food and supplies were allowed to be brought in, students for the most part did stand their ground, made small pockets of barricades and harassed the cops. All in all, pretty successful I’d say.
Throughout the long day, there were small escalations here and there from both protesters and cops. At one point the police entered the camp grounds. But eventually were bullied off. Some of the escalating tactics by cops were threats of violence, carrying shields and long wooden batons. At one point, we even saw one fucker threaten a woman with a taser by pointing it at point blank to her upper torso. Ultimately, it was their so called commander piggy that told him to put his weapon away. Another point of tension saw riot cops swarm in like ridiculous and drunken bees. They were quickly dispersed though. Seems these fuckers will always be so fucking horny to fuck up some college kids just taking up space. Probably spend more time jerking off to that then fucking they girls. Though, they probably wouldn’t have much to do that with anyhow.
Over all, we shall see over the weekend if this encampment will last as long, if not longer than the Penn one. Let’s hope the kids keep escalating and don’t let the peace police get in their ears. Solidarity to all encampments domestic and overseas and fuck 12 in any city.

UPenn Students Arrested at Palestine Demo After Building Occupation Attempt

  • May 20, 2024 1:13 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA – Nearly twenty University of Pennsylvania students and supporters were arrested after briefly occupying Fisher-Bennett Hall along 34th Street Friday night. Officers including UPenn’s Emergency Response Teams worked to shove hundreds of pro-Palestine demonstrators away from what they renamed Refaat Alareer Hall. (Alareer was a prominent Gaza professor killed by Israel late last year.) UPenn has also been a site of rallies against Ghost Robotics, an incubator spinoff company that has fast become a key world supplier of military robots including for Israel. We heard that the action was an extension of the UPenn protest encampment organizing that was swept by police action a week earlier, and was aimed at forcing UPenn to divest from companies that do business with Israel.

Philadelphia, UPenn, Drexel and SEPTA Transit Police were all activated during the evening’s events, and the Philly PD “Counter-Terrorism” team which often shows up at demonstrations was also spotted.

According to student reporters UPenn Police were seen with evidence bags at Fisher-Bennett.

Unicorn Riot was live for much of the street demo on 34th Street and after. Full live video stream (YouTube):

Legal observers and other members of the media were shoved away from the scene; approximately 18 people were arrested; at least two people were reportedly tasered, however this is not confirmed.

Team of police lifts a cuffed arrestee into the police van on 34th Street.

UPenn cleared the Palestine solidarity camp a week earlier; a similar action at the University of Chicago on Friday led to the occupation of the Institute of Politics building.

Amid a large number of Philadelphia Police Department officers present, a group of them looked at their cell phones while away from the line.

Law enforcement largely controlled 34th Street most of the time.

The arrival of another set of demonstrators on the west sidewalk after it had already been cleared, brought cheers from the crowd:

An additional group of protesters arrived from the north onto the west side of 34th Street.

The police moved their lines south in a couple steps away from the hall and tried to isolate the crowd onto the east sidewalk. However, the crowd took 34th Street then, moving quickly, turned east onto South Street and down to the Penn Museum alumni weekend event.

Drums crafted from water jugs have been a common element since they were used to bonk police officers at Cal Poly Humboldt in April.
More demonstrators and observers on the west side of 34th Street were eventually dislodged south and off these stairs by police.

The vast majority of officers didn’t seem to tail the demonstrators to the museum — showing the utility of cat-and-mouse moves that are difficult for burdened police units to match. (This is one reason the cavalry-like mobile field force program continues to be America’s leading, standardized anti-protest planning template — it is designed to get ahead of, and split up, quick protest formations.)

Besides the UPenn Emergency Response Teams, SEPTA Transit Police, and Drexel campus police also activated. A Drexel officer was spotted assembling zipties.

Officer Adkins from Drexel University Police assembling zipties.

Unicorn Riot heard from one demonstrator that an international student was barred from their dorm room earlier without reasonable options to retrieve their possessions — similar to other tactics seen recently in other campuses.

As of May 9, six UPenn student organizers were put on mandatory leaves of absence. We also heard that more recent disciplinary messages had just been sent out which might have chilled participation on Friday night.

An alumni event attendee clasped hands with a demonstrator through the fence and compared Israel’s treatment of Palestinians to apartheid-era South Africa.
A Palestine supporter on another’s shoulders holds the Palestinian flag outside the Franklin Fest alumni event.

According to a series of updates by the Daily Pennsylvanian student paper, the alumni event was closed down around 11 p.m. after the protest encounter at the gate. Demonstrators dispersed and dozens headed to jail support to Philly police headquarters at 400 N. Broad Street.

Social media clips and live video camera operation for the second half of the event by Chris Schiano.

For more from Palestine and pro-Palestine protests click on link below.

In New Sweep, Police Ban Observers & Media from Control Zone in Kensington, Philadelphia

  • May 9, 2024 1:14 am

from Unicorn Riot

Philadelphia, PA — Philadelphia police officers under orders from the mayor’s office are conducting anti-homeless encampment sweeps early on a rainy Wednesday morning. New hardline mayor Cherelle Parker’s administration banned the media and legal observers from monitoring their sweeps of unhoused people along a stretch of Kensington Avenue in Northeast Philadelphia.

Unicorn Riot monitored the first stages of the sweeps but was forced to leave the cordoned area by police. Unicorn Riot was told by aid workers that police reportedly used force with bicycle teams to clear out legal observers and community outreach workers from Kensington & Allegheny around 6:30 a.m. The area is under both a “state of emergency“ and a “blended, enhanced outreach“ program.

The sweep was announced for 8 a.m. but actually began earlier, around 6:30. Philly police expanded their sweep perimeter to block the Kensington & Clearfield intersection, and some surrounding streets. Camp residents were told they couldn’t return. Members of a missionary group wearing The Rock Ministries vests were heard off-camera praising the sweep: “It’s the cleanest I’ve ever seen it.” One of them was seen wearing a “Stand with Israel” hat.

Mayor Parker has aimed at using The Rock Ministries to create the appearance of spiritual cohesion on top of this displacement project, with a townhall there on May 7. On May 6, Kensington Voice reported that police intend to “lean on Kensington ‘chaplain squad’ and ‘Christian facilities’ to move people towards addiction treatment.”

Police positioned metal barricades around the Kensington & Allegheny SEPTA stop before 9 a.m. (However access is currently open to that Market-Frankford Line station.)

The retreat of First Amendment newsgathering press freedoms was presaged in a press release from the city:

“NOTE TO MEDIA: We are not encouraging the media to cover the encampment since the outreach workers are trying to protect the privacy of individuals with whom they are engaging. We would also like to minimize distractions and interference as outreach workers support the resolution. If individuals from the media do attend, there is a staging area for the press at 2900 Kensington Avenue by McPherson Square Park. The media will not be permitted to go beyond the posted perimeters.”

Philadelphia city press release

As Unicorn Riot reported last month there are questions about the role of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and District Attorney Larry Krasner’s office. Previous plans to address addiction and social problems in Kensington have fallen flat for years. Kensington Voice reported May 7 that a “five-phase plan” is unfolding, which today’s sweep is just one component of; there is concern that further police crackdowns are likely.

As of 9:35 a.m. barricades were placed along Kensington Avenue, not just at the ends of the control area; they appear to have been placed to obstruct people from continuing to sleep where they have been sleeping. All business on this stretch of Kensington looks shuttered, with all access closed for likely 6 hours or more. Some residents were let in after officers inspected their ID (lack of access to ID and mailing address is a well-known issue for those experiencing homelessness).

As of 1 p.m. the situation has not changed. It appeared the city was angling to keep and hold the space around the Kensington & Allegheny intersection. The city told corporate media that it would continue to force people from the area for the next 72 hours, and that 36 people accepted treatment during this phase of the project.

Outside of the blocked-off police control zone on Kensington Ave. between Allegheny Ave. and F Street for the anti-encampment sweep, a variety of Philly Police, city employees and contractors are working on nearby streets. A modular city streetsweeper called the “Multihog“ was also spotted in the area.

2:20 p.m. update: Kensington Ave. is open to traffic again, with service vehicles, a squad of bike police and a group of police on foot in the area. At Kensington & Allegheny traffic has been reopened while PPD continues patrols and metal barricades remain along the buildings, physically blocking the site of the tent residences destroyed this morning.

Barricades are now removed from the plaza around the SEPTA stop — they are only placed along Kensington Ave. People were seen checking their bags and are now dispersed south along Kensington Ave. and side streets, while the two blocks remain largely cleared of people. The afternoon weather has shifted to clear sun.

This is a developing story.

Videos by Chris Schiano for Unicorn Riot, and an additional contributor. Afternoon video footage by Dan Feidt.

 

Imminent ‘Cleanups’ Scheduled Under Philadelphia ‘State of Emergency’ Kensington Operations

  • April 18, 2024 1:53 am

from Unicorn Riot

A schedule obtained by Unicorn Riot shows an imminent government plan to “cleanup” specific locations in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood — but who benefits from altering a “billion dollar” drug shadow economy?

Philadelphia, PA — Unicorn Riot has obtained a schedule for “cleanup” operations due in the next 72 hours in Philadelphia’s Kensington neighborhood, one element in new Mayor Cherelle Parker’s plan to dramatically change local conditions through state action. Some parts of Kensington have become well-known for open-air drug use and homelessness, which has become a subject of international attention, national political sniping and Internet clickbait. Days after Parker toured the area, “Kensington Cleanup Days” are slated to happen at certain locations. The “clearing” of encampments has been publicized in recent days.

Some local groups are concerned that Mayor Parker’s heavy-handed approach could increase incarceration or lay groundwork for wealthy developers to move in. Other parts of Kensington have seen rapid construction recently, just blocks away from the targeted area.

The Parker administration declared a State of Emergency just after swearing in (PDF of Executive Order 1-24 here). The previous mayor, Jim Kenney, refused to declare a State of Emergency. Now, a “Kensington Community Revival” “five-phase initiative” has been launched as well, but we hear that information on important plan features like specific treatment centers for people facing addiction in the area is hard to come by. (The police department also released a 100-day report (53 page PDF) last week as directed by the emergency order.)

We have learned imminent clearings are scheduled at the following locations under “Scheduled Kensington Cleanup Days” on Wednesday April 17th, 2024, and Friday April 19th, 2024, “at or after 8 AM.”

  • 1800 East Somerset Street (both sides)
  • 2700 Emerald
  • 2000 Silver
  • 1800 Cambria
  • 100 W. Gurney
  • 2900 Ruth Street
  • 3100 Kensington Avenue (both sides)
  • 3108-3114 Kensington Ave
  • 3142 Kensington Avenue (Rainbow storefront)
  • Ruth & Hart Lane
  • 2800 Kensington Avenue
Kensington Avenue and Somerset Street, underneath the Somerset Market-Frankford Line SEPTA stop, faces an imminent “Kensington Cleanup Day” on April 17 and 19, according to documents seen by Unicorn Riot.
“Kensington Community Revival” (KCR) plan area, via City of Philadelphia / Kensington Voice.

For many years, Kensington ‘revitalization’ plans have come and gone. According to local urban anthropologist Bill McKinney, the previous plans included:

  • “All efforts have run through the city’s Managing Director’s Office or the often centralized efforts of the Philadelphia Police Department, which lack the expertise and resources to implement strategies to address poverty, addiction, violence, and helping the unsheltered.
  • No authentic, participatory, community engagement processes that lead to sharing of power and co-creation of solutions with the community.
  • Each effort has treated Kensington and its residents as the problem, thereby ignoring the actual causes of the core issues, vilifying residents, and encouraging additional exploitation of the community.
  • After 20 years of interventions, racial disparities in areas ranging from housing to health outcomes have increased, and while every effort has claimed success at some point, none have had any form of measurable sustainable accomplishment for residents, only for those leading the efforts.”

“History is repeating in Kensington. It doesn’t have to be this way.” Bill McKinney, WHYY, May 2021

McKinney acknowledged the giant scale of the area’s shadow economy, which was a result of decades of disinvestment: “We’re trying to turn off a billion-dollar industry […] There was intentional disinvestment in this community — and so that economy was replaced with another economy. That other economy needs to be addressed. It’s not addressed just by picking up a few people and locking them up.”

From the perspective of people like former Kensington Neighborhood Association President Eduardo Esquivel, the government’s existing strategy has been to “keep a billion-dollar open-air drug market contained in Kensington.”

Not much is going on at the 2700 block of Emerald Street, but it’s named as an imminent cleanup site.
The corner of Kensington Ave., Somerset Street and D Street is named as an imminent cleanup site.
The 2900 block of Ruth Street is named as an imminent cleanup site (right side of image).

Other planning frameworks previously developed include the “North of Lehigh Neighborhood Revitalization Plan” (Dec. 2013 PDF) and the Heart of Kensington plan. KensingtonPlan.org has more information about these plans and the use of opioid settlement funds.

Questions over Krasner & DEA Roles in Kensington

Apart from the Kensington Caucus at Philadelphia City Council, which has been openly hostile to well-known harm reduction programs like needle exchanges, there are other players to consider. (Council member Quetcy Lozada “asked the real estate developer who owns the building where Savage Sisters is located to terminate the organization’s lease,” CBS Philadelphia reported in February. Harm reduction nonprofit Savage Sisters provides services like wound care, caused by ‘tranq’ (xylazine) – a tranquilizer commonly found in the area drug supply.)

With Mayor Parker’s new pressure to remove people, any plan to force people into “treatment or jail” decisions hinges on District Attorney Larry Krasner’s discretion. The de facto policy right now doesn’t push jail time for simple drug possession. Therefore, the DA office would need a policy shift to impose this choice on detained people. (Paraphernalia or public intoxication charges could also be leveled.)

A source with close knowledge told Unicorn Riot that they heard the federal Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) is also taking an interest in the situation. Federal agents have been photographed in the area in recent months. The source relayed that the DEA was concerned about violence around the clearing operations so they may want to reshape the marketplace by coercing dealers into leaving, hoping that would disperse open-air drug consumers to other areas of Philadelphia. (The DEA Philadelphia Field Division office conducts “Operation Engage Philadelphia” in the city.)

Unicorn Riot was also told that the Philadelphia Police Department has intentionally been dropping off intoxicated people at dispersed locations around the city.

This police operations pattern reminded us of multiple instances during the 2011-2012 Occupy Movement where police would drop off intoxicated people at the protest camps, as well as the 2012 Drug Recognition Evaluator (DRE) scandal in Minneapolis, where the Minnesota State Patrol was running a program to give unhoused people drugs at a shed by the MSP International Airport before dropping them off at the protest encampment at Peavey Plaza.

Locations identified for “Scheduled Kensington Cleanup Days” based on documents seen by Unicorn Riot.

Cover image composition and photos by Dan Feidt.

Security Van Tires Slashed

  • March 26, 2024 1:29 am

Submission

“Are people within prisons/jail/detention the only ones who are expected to engage in material disruption? To take risks? Are we just vessels of emotional solidarity?”

“Where are the vulnerabilities to prison management’s morale and how does one remove the will of guards to endure?”

Security guards protect property. They help the police put people in prisons, they are part of the prison industrial complex. As people attack property private security acts as the auxiliary of the prison and police state. With this in mind as well as reading about the conditions at SCI Rockview we slashed the tires of a Securitas van. This was a small, easy, and replicate-able action that you can do with a friend. We agree with the comrade at SCI Rockview that “an assault on both fronts” is necessary, targets are everywhere. In the amerikkkan hellscape our lives are deeply embedded in the infrastructure of confinement. This is why we chose to attack the security van. Small actions like these can build capacity to be able to break down the prison walls.

Destroy PA-DOC
Fuck security guards
Fire to the prisons

-some anarchists

Runaway ram in Mount Laurel, NJ

  • March 10, 2024 1:56 am

from Unravel

A ram that escaped from a property in Mount Laurel was corralled by police Friday morning after having spent several days wandering the South Jersey township.

The male bighorn sheep was captured on a residential property following “a fairly extensive foot pursuit,” police said. The animal since has been reunited with its owner.

In recent days, police had received numerous reports from residents about the ram as it roamed around the area. It was spotted at multiple locations in Mount Laurel.

Authorities didn’t say how the animal got loose. Rams have been described as “amazing escape artists” if they aren’t kept in secured enclosures. In the wild, during the fall mating season, males often “ram” into one another after charging head-on at speeds up to 40 mph, according to the National Park Service.

Photos shared on social media showed officers and township workers posing with the husky-looking ram, who was held still by his curled horns.

It was an odd coincidence in a week that saw a horse escape from a stable in Philadelphia and gallop down the shoulder of I-95. That unusual sight was captured in a viral video that shows the horse in stride with its hooves audibly pounding the roadway. Police used their cars to eventually corner the animal at the bottom of the Allegheny Avenue off-ramp. It was later determined the horse belonged to the Fletcher Street Urban Racing Club, which said the animal may have been intentionally released after closing hours.

There have been quite a few notable animal escapes in the region over the last decade. In 2015, a pair of zebras escaped from a circus in West Philly and were seen running through the streets and in the parking lot of a Planet Fitness before they were captured. On X, formerly Twitter, Philly police wrote, “They are already sporting old-timey prisoner getup ahead of trial and sentencing.”

The next year, a bull got loose from a truck while being transported to a slaughterhouse in West Kensington and briefly wandered onto the shoulder of I-95 near Rivers Casino in Fishtown. The bull eventually was euthanized by a Pennsylvania Game Commission officer near Old City.

When an old barn caught fire at Malvern’s Canter Hill Farms in 2017, an ostrich there escaped from its pen and was seen streaking down the side of Swedesford Road and at other locations. The flightless bird was eventually cornered at a baseball field about five miles away from the farm, whose owner was able to capture it in a trailer and bring it to safety. No people were injured in the fire.

Then in 2018, four peacocks escaped from the Philadelphia Zoo and traveled down the Schuylkill Expressway. At least one of them died and two others were confirmed to have returned to the zoo, which allows them to roam freely on its grounds. Later that year, in the middle of a snowstorm, a camel was spotted in Bucks County on the side of Route 309 in Sellersville. That incident was not an escape. The camel was being taken from a petting zoo to an event in Philadelphia, but never made it due to the storm.

About two years ago in Danville — roughly 135 miles northwest of Philly, in Montour County — a truck carrying 100 monkeys crashed with another vehicle on Route 54 near I-80. Four of them got loose, including three that set off a lengthy search by state police before they were captured and euthanized. The incident drew outrage from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, which condemned the use of monkeys for lab experiments. Kenya Airlines, which had shipped the monkeys to the U.S. from the island nation of Mauritius, said it would stop transporting the animals.

Around the same time, a mysterious dog was found near a home in Fairfield Township, about 70 miles east of Pittsburgh. The dog’s mangey appearance left wildlife experts stumped over whether it was a coyote or some other breed — and it led to a lot of sleuthing online. A wildlife rescue that took the canine in discovered one morning that it had “demolished” its cage and “clambered up on a set of shelves” before chewing through ceiling-high window seals to break out of a hospital room, returning to the wild. The genetic samples that the rescue had sent out for analysis later determined that the canine was 100% coyote, which makes a lot of sense in hindsight.

Finally, last fall, in Gettysburg, the owners of a 200-pound pet pig named Kevin Bacon spent 17 days trying to capture him after he broke out of his pen. The search involved flying drones and concocting various lures until the pig was sedated with veterinary Benadryl that had been hidden in a cinnamon bun. News of the comical saga made its way to the famed “Footloose” actor and Philadelphia native, who wrote on social media, “Bring Kevin Bacon home!”

The ram that escaped in Mount Laurel is now home safe, having experienced a taste of freedom — and he evidently put police through quite the obstacle course before he was captured.

“He was jumping bushes and running all over the place,” Mount Laurel police officer Kyle Gardner told 6ABC. “We were able to, with a handful of officers and the division of public works, we were able to kind of chase him down, tire him out, and grab him by the horns, literally.”

Developing Action Capacity: A Path

  • March 6, 2024 1:50 am

from Scenes from the Atlanta Forest

“We are not special. Our skills are not overly technical or advanced, and our tools are simple to acquire. If you are reading this, you are capable of doing what we do.”

– APD Patrol Car Torched in Lakewood

While I agree with this sentiment, the reader is left with many questions about how to develop such a capacity for action, even if they are motivated. What exactly does it take to not get caught carrying out heavy actions like arson? This is especially important in the long run; not getting caught for a single arson is one thing, but being able to continue carrying out attacks in the face of heightened repressive attention is quite another.

For anyone who wants to carry out actions like this, but isn’t doing so yet, I’ve sketched an outline of the steps I think are necessary to sustain hard-hitting attacks on domination (limited to the topic of “operational” considerations, i.e., acquiring skills). This brief outline is intended to orient you and provide a “learning path” — each step has recommended reading that actually goes into the appropriate amount of depth on the subject. Use the Tails operating system to visit these links, which runs from a USB drive and leaves no trace on your computer. What I’ve written here is by no means definitive, and I hope to spark a dialogue about any operational aspects I may have neglected, as well as anything outside this scope that is important for sustaining and intensifying the capacity for action.

Deepening bonds

For anyone who doesn’t already have an action group, deciding who to act with is the first obstacle to overcome. I prefer to act in groups of two or three; it’s easier to maintain a high level of trust and agility with just a small handful of people. Most actions don’t require more than three participants, and when they do, action groups can collaborate. I prefer not to act alone because some aspects of actions are less risky when there are at least two people (for example, having a lookout).

In deciding who to act with, there is a tension between flexibility and consistency. Acting in several different configurations allows you to develop trust and experience with more people, which makes you more resilient in the face of arrests, burnout, or interpersonal splits. On the other hand, acting in a more consistent configuration can make it easier to develop a higher capacity for action in a shorter period of time.

Action groups only form because someone takes the initiative to propose them to a comrade with whom they want to deepen affinity and trust.

Affinity

Deciding who to approach in your network should be based on a sense of affinity between you, as this will determine what the action group decides to focus on. Affinity means sharing analysis, discovered through getting to know each other, that leads to prospects for action. It means knowing that you share goals and want to act in similar ways to pursue them.

The long-term exploration and deepening of affinity across a network, beyond a specific action group, opens up many more possibilities for the configuration of action groups to adapt over time, as well as for collaboration between them. I’ve chosen to use the term “action group” rather than “affinity group” to emphasize that affinity exists in many different constellations, each with its own potential.

Recommended reading:

Trust

Trust is contextual — you may trust someone to be a good friend, but that is different from trusting them with your freedom. Deciding who to approach in your network should be based on trust that they can live with the possible consequences of their actions without betraying their comrades, even if it means a long prison sentence. Trust is qualitative in a way that can’t be reduced to a simplistic formula. It’s based on an intimate knowledge that can only come from singular experiences within a relationship. However, there are established practices for deepening trust that are still worthwhile.

Recommended reading:

Laying the groundwork

Once there are two or three people who want to experiment with acting together, I recommend starting with actions that do not have particularly serious consequences if you get caught, such as breaking windows. This allows you to assess whether the configuration is a good fit, practice any skills that are new to anyone, establish operational approaches and a good “workflow” for the tasks involved, and develop an interpersonal dynamic that meets everyone’s needs, all in a relatively low-stakes environment. Progressively increasing the intensity of the action also gives you the opportunity to practice moving through fear so that decision-making, communication, and execution in high-stress situations can remain unimpeded.

Operational security

“Operational security” means the practices that allow you to get away with crimes. I recommend that your action group first discuss each of the highlighted resources at the No Trace Project before taking action, in an outdoor and device-free location. Many of these discussions are well suited for larger affinity constellations than your action group. This will take a considerable amount of time, but an in-depth discussion of these topics will provide a necessary foundation. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that everyone is already on the same page. These conversations will also be an opportunity to discuss how you will prepare for any repression that may result from your actions.

Action planning

With this foundation in place, you are now in a strong position to begin action planning. As you gain experience, organizing and executing actions will become much more natural. What was initially a lot to keep track of will eventually become second nature. This is another reason why it’s a good idea to start with actions that aren’t particularly risky.

Recommended reading:

  • How To Have A Fun Night To Forget: This will give you a quick overview of the steps involved in taking action.
  • Threat Library: This will give you a framework for planning the operational security measures for a specific action (for example, what surveillance detection measures you will take before going to a meeting).

Materializing your dreams

Before your action group engages in actions that will be more intensively investigated, it is especially important that you become competent in two operational security practices:

DNA minimization protocols

DNA minimization protocols are necessary to avoid leaving evidence at a crime scene. However, these precautions are not perfect, so the action should be conducted in such a way as to leave nothing behind that could have DNA traces on it. I recommend learning and practicing this skill long before you actually need to use it for high-risk actions.

Recommended reading:

Surveillance detection

If there is no evidence left at crime scenes, and you have established practices that prevent targeted digital surveillance from providing leads, investigators will be forced to use physical surveillance to try to incriminate you. The main goal of physical surveillance is to surveil the suspect during an action (as they did for Jeff Luers), and if that doesn’t work, to surveil the suspect while they are preparing for an action (buying materials, doing reconnaissance, etc.), all the while mapping the suspect’s network to find more suspects.

Detecting physical surveillance is a skill that takes a lot of practice, so I recommend that you start learning it long before you actually need to use it for high-risk actions. If you are ever the target of an investigation, this is the only thing that will prevent the police from following you to an action or preparation for an action.

Recommended reading:

Action techniques

Of course, skills related to action techniques are also important. For example, there are many ways to start a fire. Some are better than others in terms of reliability and effectiveness, but your approach should always be adapted to the specific scenario (target, exit plan, expected response times, etc.). Whatever techniques you end up using, it’s important to stay open to innovation rather than limiting yourself to following a guide.

Action technique is also related to operational security: for example, if you decide that the incendiary device(s) need a delay, it’s critical to be very confident that the delay won’t fail, as this would leave evidence for investigators to take samples from. Thoroughly test its reliability under the same conditions, and build in redundancy by using multiple delays on each device. Depending on the circumstances and terrain, you may even want to make a plan for noticing if any fires don’t start, such as choosing an exit route that provides a line of sight and pausing along it until you see the light of the flames.

Recommended reading:

Connecting constellations

The next step in developing capacity for action requires going beyond one’s own group. This is where things get really interesting: coordination between autonomous groups allows them to accomplish far more than they could on their own, while their autonomy wards off hierarchy and centralization. Of course, conspiring with more people involves risk and must be balanced with the need for compartmentalization — the need-to-know principle can help here.

Affinity is the strongest foundation for a common project among these groups — while affinity within an action group is based on interpersonal experience, affinity between action groups is based more on affinity with the project than with each other. The long-term search for affinity beyond your action group is what makes this foundation possible. Informal organization can then grow between action groups, which is a model that has been experimented with since the ’70s. Informal organization is born and shaped by the pursuit of specific goals, such as preventing the construction of Cop City through diffuse sabotage. “It doesn’t have a name to defend or assert, only a project to bring about”.

This outline touches on what I think are the minimal steps necessary to develop a capacity for hard-hitting action, limited to the topic of acquiring skills. Much more is needed — learning other skills beyond this baseline, experimenting with informal organization while navigating its challenges, developing analyses to understand the changing terrain, studying the vulnerabilities of domination, and focusing on all the other aspects that contribute to sustaining and intensifying action.

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Found On No Trace Project

map of cop cities in the 50 states

  • February 21, 2024 1:59 am

from Scenes

Cop Cities, USA