From September 1 to 4, 2008, Republican vermin from around the nation will overrun the cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota for the Republican National Convention, one of the most noxious media spectacles of the capitalist world. Reciprocally, CrimethInc. groups from across the United States have agreed to endorse a strategy for defending the Twin Cities from this unwanted assault. This strategy came out of a meeting called by the locals of the RNC Welcoming Committee, and is supported nationwide by the Unconventional Action network and countless other groups.

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Starting next week, CrimethInc. Far East will include copies of the free paper just published by Unconventional Action detailing the context of and plans for resistance to the Democratic and Republican National Conventions. A pdf of this paper can be downloaded from the Unconventional Action website; further copies of it can be ordered via distro@unconventionalaction.org.

A follow-up to this announcement will explore the potential opportunities the Democratic and Republican National Conventions offer anarchists, and the merits of the particular strategy CrimethInc. groups are endorsing for the RNC actions. In the meantime, we urge those preparing to resist the Democratic National Convention to concoct a solid strategy proposal as soon as possible; if anarchist activities at the Republican National Convention are significantly better organized than those at the Democratic National Convention, it will be all too easy for our foes to reframe them as part of the electoral spectacle.

The RNC Strategy (as reported on infoshop.org)

On the penultimate day of the “pReNC,” a national planning consulta a year in advance of the Republican National Convention, over a hundred anti-authoritarians from around the country gathered to distill a formal strategy for disrupting the convention. Smaller working groups focused on nationwide communications, food/medical/legal infrastructure, media, coalition building, and action planning. Pouring over maps, timetables, and photographs of the city, the action working group hammered out this plan.

On the first day of the convention, participants will employ a three-tiered direct action strategy to disrupt the RNC. The tiers are organized in order of priority according to the number of participants; if a small number of participants show up, only the first tier will be carried out, but if the numbers are on hand, all three tiers will be in effect.

Tier One: Establish 15-20 blockades, utilizing a diversity of tactics, creating an inner and outer ring around St. Paul’s Excel Center, where the RNC is to take place.

Tier Two: Immobilize the delegates’ transportation infrastructure, including the busses that are to convey them.

Tier Three: Block the five western bridges connecting the Twin Cities.

Those plugging into this strategy will be free to shape their actions as they see fit, using the tactics they consider appropriate. As the specific blockade sites are established, there may be a system of delegating some sites as “red zones” (prepared for self-defense), “yellow zones” (peaceful but assertive), and “green zones” (aiming to avoid any risk of arrest) so as to accommodate a wide variety of creative tactics and involve individuals with differing needs and talents.

Over the coming months, locals will identify the most strategic blockade sites and will be available to answer questions about the terrain. If you want to participate, get your comrades together, discuss your capabilities, look over maps, and start thinking about which sites you might cover. It will soon be time for groups to adopt specific intersections, streets, on-ramps, and bridges as their own.

The nationwide communications working group is calling for local and regional groups to organize their own planning consultas over the next months, so as to be ready to reconvene in Minneapolis in summer 2008. They are also calling for a series of local actions against oppression and electoral politics leading up to and building momentum and experience for the RNC and DNC.