An account from a member of the "black bloc" for the week leading up to, the days of action, and the days after the action

Genoa, Italy

I have had a hard time thinking of how to best write or express what happened in Genoa. I and 2 other comrades arrived in Genoa on the 12th and were some of the first to arrive in the city, so of course there is much to recall, but then again there was also a lot of waiting and rather patience trying moments.

Some side comments:
I find it disgusting how little solidarity with those in the black bloc were shown and the hunting of "anarchists" like the witch hunts in Salem in New England during the 1700s.
The fact is the "black bloc" were thousands of dedicated individual, not all anarchists or foreigners, concentrating on certain targets and practicing self defense not "senseless violence". As a participant in the bloc, the feeling was we were protecting ourselves. The state utilize what ever mean available to it to fight and silence and repress us, hence we utilized any means available to us, to protect ourselves against this brutality and repression, I will not say the bloc was infallible, but all the independent property I saw destroyed was done by police provocateurs and the police were being as confrontational as possible. The truth is, both force and peaceful demonstration is needed. Genoa was not a riot; it was a battle against capitalism and the G8 for being a figurehead of exploitation and repression. No movement is ever successful with out a diversity of tactics or respect and space for everyone's means of expressing and fighting against this corrupt and brutal system. But this tangent could go on for pages with examples, comments, and historical references so I will stop here. But be aware these blocs are not going to disappear, after all there is a revolution to fight.

I was amazed at the diversity of people who came together in age, background, etc. to form this offensive bloc, especially by the amount of women and the respect and equality that was shown to the women. Being from America it was refreshing to see a culture of resistance that did not marginalize women involved and hence there were more comfortable to take on leading rolls. I was happy to find more militant and dedicated women who felt welcome and involved and comfortable to be involved and most of accepted. I was also happy to see the amount of militant labor unions involved (the CNT) in the demonstrations. Another interesting thing I found was the average of the age was late 20s, early 30s, and the faces were not on average middle calls white men.

I was also disappointed by the American response to the events that transpired in Genoa, especially the school raid, granted this information was not mentioned in any United States newspaper or other form of media.


So I will start from the first meeting for the revolutionaries and anarchists who had arrived in Genoa.

The 16th of July-

It was decided after visiting one of the local social centers (squatted warehouse) by the name of Pinelli, that it was time for the internationals wanting to work out side of the GSF (Genoa social Forum) guidelines to come together and start to organize. The Italian Anarchist, during our night at Pinelli, made it seem that they had done very little organizing and planning for the days of action, minus the peaceful worker/union march planned for the afternoon of the 20th. Needless to say most international radicals, "terrorists", "hooligans", whatever is the popular corporate media term of the week, were anxious to make sure that on the days of action we were as productive and effective as possible.
At 9pm at Carlini Stadium the first meeting took place.
A comrade and I moderated, but we and the other 150 or so people found that a better system was needed to discuss an agenda when our numbers would be increasing drastically as the 20th and 21st approached. We decided on a delegate structure of sorts, where everyone would be present in a general assembly where an agenda would be made, then we'd break off into affinity groups to discuss the agenda, then a delegate from each affinity group would be sent to a delegates meeting, where some sort of consensus would be made and then finally be brought back to the larger group for some sort of final consensus. Granted this was not the most perfect structure in the world…but as we found later the more people the harder it is to get thing done and move forward.

In this first delegates meeting we discussed if it would be best to move from Carlini because it was the center that was designated for the civil disobedient bloc aka the white over alls/yabasta and there were and are serious political and tactical differences and between us the more revolutionary leftists and anarchists and the white overalls. The Europeans present at this delegate meeting impressed on me that they found that the white overalls played to the media, were becoming rather reformist and did not follow through with their "attacks" and often times interfered with the Black/Blue Bloc tactics, which after the days of action I have come to agree with most whole heartedly. So we decided to leave Carlini stadium and push for all the revolutionary type arriving to stay at Sciorba Stadium, a block up from Pinelli, where it was decided our daily meetings would take place at 8pm, o hence Sciorba seemed a good place to stay being in walking distance of Pinelli. We then proceed to draft a call for the anarchists who would be arriving in the next 5 days would know where to go to plug in and get the right information. In this call we also included why we were separating from the GSF. We did not want restrictions on our organizing and tactics. One of the main clauses that GSF set up to lead to us breaking off was that of "no sticks, no stones, no fire" though we did not mention that specifically in our public statement, we found this to illustrate the GSF trying to define and hinder and control the tactics of all groups of the protest and as we later found use these to push the "bad" protesters out and away and to the police.
We then discussed the need for equipment and communication and scouting of the red zone. Delegates volunteered and offered what info they had on places with gas masks etc. around the city and one delegate who happened to be a welder volunteered to check out the fence, so we broke up and took our decisions back to our affinity groups.

July 17th-
International Genova Offensive

WHY WE HAVE COME TOGETHER?

- We want to invade the red zone because we reject the legitimacy of the G8
as it is based on the division of nations and the capitalist system.
- We do not want to be limited by the GSF guide lines.
The state uses all means available against us therefore we will use all
means available to fight against it.
-We created the International Genoa Offensive to organize on our own terms.
We want to work closely with Italian groups and organizations in order to
achieve the most effective results on the days of action.

WHERE?

-(Bus 48) Sciorba stadium will be used as an Anarchist center for sleeping.
Keep in mind that this is a GSF sanctioned space open to all, not just
anarchists. During the day Pinelli (bus 12 directionVia Turati or 12 barred,
direction Piazzale Kennedy or 14, direction Via dante. Get off when you see
an IP gas station on the right, cross bridge turn to the left, ask driver
for Sciorba or canile when getting off) will be the anarchist co-ordinating
center.
-We suggest all new comers sleep at Sciorda stadium Those Anarchists who are
in Genoa are welcome to sleep here.

Anarchist daily meetings will be held at:
TIME: 8:00PM

PLACE:
CSOA PINELLI (TEL: 010835 26668)
no. 3 Via P.Pinelli (formally 9b Via Adamoli) north east Genoa, quarter of
Molassana.>>
(This is the statement we used)
We got up and moving to the Media Center where we spent all morning and most of the afternoon translating the call of The International Genoa Offensive or the Anti-National Genoa Offensive into Polish, German, French, Spanish, English, and Italian. A group of about 6 of us made large posters, about 2 or 3 in each language and broke up to put them up in the sleeping locations, the media center and the Convergence space. Then 4 of us delegates from the IGO attended the Pink bloc meeting to invite someone to our meeting that evening at 8pm to see if perhaps both blocs could perhaps coordinated. During our speaking however we discovered that someone with a GSF badge had ripped all our IGO call posters down off the information board at the Convergence Center. This for me, and some others, was the last straw and led us to perceive, as I deem rightfully so after some future events unfurled, the GSF as another adversary.

The Second meeting began at Pinelli at about 8:30. The numbers had doubled from the last meeting and more translations were needed so the general assembly took about 2 hours, often breaking into debate and argument. Then a flash went off, a man was using his camera and taking pictures of the meeting. He was immediately asked to stop and yelled and shouted at, but the man in defiance took another, which led to his camera being taken and him being escorted off the premises by 3 large Paris Redskins. When the agenda was finally set, The 20th, proposal to pink bloc, materials, perimeter review, security, co-ordination with Immensa (another social center further out of Genoa), and border/jail solidarity, affinity groups broke off to discuss the ideas. The delegates came together at about 11:15pm and it was a mess. There was large tension between the Italian anarchists of Pinelli and us internationals due to the fact they had set up this union labor march from the west side of the city on the 20th away from the red zone and most of us wanted to start actions against the G8 and the red zone on the morning of the 20th. After some yelling and shouting a some sort of peace was reached, a rather simple conclusion though it took about half an hour of arguing to decide on, that those who wanted to do the march would and those who didn't would work on the attacks on the 20th, but we'd all be in solidarity and together on the 21st. A proposal was drafted to be brought to the pink bloc the next day about starting our marches together on the 2oth, this also came under fire from many Greek anarchists (whom, in my opinion, are amazing) who wanted to see "anarchists in front, behind, all around, why we need the pink?" but the general consensus was to bring this proposal and upon joining the pink in the morning of the 20th depending on our numbers split off from them prior to reaching the zone. Now it was approaching 1am and we were all getting tired and rather short tempered, so we quickly drafted a list of materials and supplies needed and each group was responsible for their own, and the list was posted up inside Pinelli so others would know what to be on the lookout for in the next few days. Our final conclusion as a group was not to have a set sleeping place, at let people either stay where they were in the city and let people coming in decide themselves. Which worked rather well, seeing as we all tended to migrate towards each other, so most ended up in a park right off the waterfront, Arboro, or in a stadium further out of the city to the east.

July 18th

My comrades and I awoke and headed to the Media Center to pick up any new information and raid the Indy media floor for breakfast. There we discovered the pink bloc was to meet at 3pm at the Convergence Center. So we had a few hours to take a quick break and relax.
We, my comrades and I had arrived in Genoa on the 12th and since then everyday the city became more and more like a military zone. Everyday more police vans, busses, cars and tanks filled the streets, helicopters now flew over head, at night with spotlights raining blinding white light on those who walked on the streets.

The pink bloc meeting was just about as argumentative and tense as ours had been the night before. We brought our proposal, but found the pink bloc, which had originally had a clause "no pro-active use of Molotov, sticks, and stones" but would practice self defense, had been over run by militant pacifists and the meeting broke down into a long violence non violence debate, so we, the 4 of us there, decided working with the pink bloc was a no go for now, though they were sending to delegates to our meeting that evening. Then the 4 of us made our way and approach Cobas, a more militant communist union. We proposed joining their section of the GSF zoned march. The women we talked to seemed positive and instructed us to come to their meeting at 6pm in the media center. We followed here there, then lost her and found no meeting anywhere. So we made our way back down to the convergence center for the spokes meeting, but by then it was nearing 7:30, so we hoped on the bus back to Pinelli.

The meeting started at 8:30 and again the number had doubled. The agenda was set to discuss which group we would converge and march with on the 20th, what materials had been collected, and to be honest my memory fades here because basically the meeting broke down into argument, debate, until about 1am when we all decided to meet again the next day at 9pm at Immensa Social Center outside of the city.

My small group of comrades and I then walked over to Sciorba to sleep.

July 19th-

I awoke early and walked to a small shopping center to purchase painter's masks, goggles and helmets, as well as breakfast, while my partners slept.

3 days prior 4 people were arrested purchasing gas masks, so needless to say the shopping trip I embarked on, was a little tense but all went well.

Returning to Sciorba, we packed up and made our way to Albaro, where we would sleep and for a smaller meeting with some French redskins, German and Greek anarchists.

We arrived at Albaro and found it very much like home with many black and red flags and CNT stickers.

The 2pm meeting actually grew inside to include representatives from pretty much everyone from the camp and we finally after 4 days of meeting decided on the 20th we would meet and march with Cobas. We decided those who were staying at the Albaro camp would meet at 10 am the next morning and join in on the Cobas march as it passed by at 10:30am and convene with other Black Blockers at 12pm at the Piz. Paolo da Novi. We also concluded it would be best if an evening meeting was needed to have it at Albaro at 10pm instead of heading an hour or so out of the city to Immensa, since most people were planning to skip that meeting anyway due to the distance.

At 4pm we assembled and left the camp for the Immigrants right march where we all began to spread the word on a one to one basis of the plans for tomorrow.

That night, when we returned to the campground a security/watch system was set up incase of police raid. (The Carabinieri Station was about 2 blocks up from the campground, fortified in a hill between the main road along the sea and reaching back to the road that ran in front of the Albaro campground). Two people would stand watch all night at back and front entrances.
It began to rain, so all of us with out tents moved in to the tennis center with in the park to sleep.
As we went back outside to see if the 10pm meeting was actually going to transpire we found people tearing up benches, breaking apart polls, fashioning long flag polls, pulling metal bars out of the ground, attaching flags to wooden beams, and collecting everything that could be of use the next day and storing them for the night. We set about collecting the materials our small affinity group would need and painting our helmets black.

At midnight we returned into the tennis court to sleep. People were laughing, playing dodge ball of sorts with the tennis balls lying around, people utilizing the shower stalls, smoking cigarettes, drinking beer, and generally relaxing in air of anticipation for the next day.
Needless to say I did not sleep much that night, spent most of it talking and laughing with one of my comrades curled in a sleeping bag.

July 20th-

The morning came and everyone was on the move.
We dressed, packed our one back pack with needed materials, and then went to find our one missing comrade, who it turns out had slept outside in a tent and never bothered to check inside the tennis court to find us. We then collected the materials made and set up the night before. We made our way with our materials and assembled in the back of the park. 10:30 am came and went and news the marched had been delayed by police came and that Immensa Social Center was under the attack by the police, so that was about 300 or so comrades tied up outside of the city. There was a bit of argument but it was agreed for us to leave out the back and march alone as a bloc to the convergence point to make sure our other comrades were not left isolated in the city.
We, about 500 or so of us, climbed the stairs by 3's and entered on to the street in a sea of black. A chant started.
"No Justice, No Peace, Fuck the Police".
Spray painting and some re-decoration were done on the way, but it seemed to be the unspoken decision that we concentrate on getting to the meeting point and not getting stopped before hand. Despite a few minor directional confusions we arrived at the meeting point to a see of red Cobas flags and other masked comrades.
As we marched in, and collected, some of us went to certain targets. As we were concentrating on a bank, cops came in from the right. There was brief offensive staged of a few Molotovs and stones, when the cops deployed tear gas and charged. The group I was with was pushed down the main street towards the sea. The police seemed to have stopped their pursuit briefly, so we took the opportunity to assemble barricades out of trash collectors, wood, and whatever other materials we could gather. Fires were started in some of the trash collectors (dumpsters), as others in this smaller bloc, we had been broken off into about a group of 300, continued to target the faces of capitalism, banks and gas stations. Desks, chairs, computers, etc. from the banks were pulled out and added to the barricades. But the police did not relax for long, they came in, there was again brief confrontation, an attempted charge by the bloc (about 5 of us actually) and then we were forced to retreat once again closer to the sea. This process continued for about an hour until we were finally pushed to the street right in front of the GSF convergence center. . (A parking lot on the edge of the sea, literally). There we had time, thanks to some flaming barricades, to re group and attack some more banks and a car dealership. One main bank was set on fire.
Facing into the city from the waterfront, to the sharpest right there was a steep staircase leading up into city neighborhoods, to the more gradual right the main road on which we were located leading towards the Cobas camp, Albaro, and right by the fortified police station. Straight ahead were the barricades and the lines of riot cops in the distance, and to the left was the Police camp, with trucks, vans, tanks, etc.
For about half an hour we secured this location, during which we destroyed and attacked the property of banks and other specific targets of the capitalist system. When we then became aware of the police closing in from the front, from the left and from the right, using tear gas to force us into the GSF convergence space. We then took up barricading the exits and entrances in the about 12 foot fence the enclosed the GSF convergence center against the sea.
The center at the time had about a two hundred more people, most members of Cobas who had been pushed back along with the bloc. We lined the fence and studies the riot cops that stood lined on the other side of the street. A few comrades rolled under the fence and through rocks and attempted to defend us and push back the cops, as others climbed atop of stands in the convergence space and fired slingshots. This small stand off lasted for about another 30 minutes, when we began to migrate to the back of the parking lot and along the rocks of the sea and out the other end of the convergence center, further down the road, in the direction of the Cobas camp, pass the riot police barricade on that side.
About 500 Cobas and black blockers were left and we continued our march, which it turned out was Cobas heading back to their camp. When we passed the police station rocks were thrown at the windows and cracked, the security cameras destroyed and the walls spray-painted. About a block pass the police station, a certain sect of Cobas bloc of the street and would not let us continue with them, leaving us trapped between them and the riot police station. This led to fighting between the groups, as these certain Cobas members were basically violating all standards and principles of solidarity by basically trapping us and pushing us back towards the riot police. After 20 minutes or so of confrontation and fighting they stepped back and allowed us to pass.
At this time my comrade (we had been separated from the other two in our affinity group) and a few others ducked under some cover to change into other clothes.
Once changed, we walked out and around the city to get back to the media center in a large loop to avoid the police presence. We wanted to get to the media center to see what had happened to the greater half of the bloc. There was fighting reported deeper in the city by the series of bridges. So we, and a few others, made our way quickly to that section of the city.
We arrived in a square and saw tear gas flying, quickly ducked in cover and re-equip over selves.
We then headed over to where the tear gas was floating from, to find a rather small contingent of comrades being pushed back by a line of about 20 or so riot cops. So we cut back through the square and up a side street towards the bridges.
The three of us, pass blindly into an intersection and glancing to our left saw a line of riot cops facing us, the three of us being caught a little off guard, saw the cops raise their tear gas guns and fire right at us. We quickly ran and ducked through the intersection and into the mob on the road running up hill lining the bridges.
We now found ourselves in the middle of the Yabasta, white overalls action. They were already retreating up the street as police pushed in shooting tear gas, mind you there were hundreds of Yabasta and not that many riot cops. We began back up the hill, but seeing as they were retreated decided to cut over one of the bridges before the police line made it up to the edge to cut it off. On the other side of the bridge we ran into some other blockers, de masked, and drinking beer. We were then informed after being split up early that morning a group of about 3000 anarchists were pushed further back into the city. We were told they had destroyed various banks and other institutions of capitalism, before being pushed on by police, where the went by the prison and apparently broke through the gates, broke windows and raised the prisoners spirits before being pushed away by the riot cops, and finally they had looted a supermarket chain and now the bloc appeared to be breaking up into smaller groups and heading out for the day. We were warned to de-mask. So the 3 of us headed down the steps of the other end of the bridged ducked in an alleyway, changed and headed back into the city to the supermarket chain, where we met up with other comrades. We made our way back leisurely to the bridge where we had crossed.
Upon return we found other members of the block at a stand off with the police on the bridge.
We quickly climbed the stairs and ran up to the front lines to help. The police began firing gas and these large bullets, which upon hitting the ground shot off gas canisters in different directions.
My comrade and I were forced to duck behind a car to avoid the raining tear gas canisters. The small bloc (about 150 or so id say on the bridge) was pushed down the bridge, which curved slightly and hit the street.
The police stayed right where the stairs met the bridge and where the bridge curved.
We then set about building barricades along the bottom of the bridge and out along the street, using the small dumpsters, and materials from a gas station, some newspaper cases, and metal fences near by, once the barricade were built we began to collect stones and other materials to defend ourselves against the tear gas canisters and the large canister bullets.
We began our confrontation against the police and held for a while when two large tanks were pulled in on the road by the bridge by the bottom of the stairs. When the tanks rolled in the lines of riot cops began to advance, we then splintered up and headed into the hills of the city.
We were with a group of about twenty as we climber through the hills, about 30 minutes in to our climb, we stopped and people changed under cover, seeing as a helicopter had been following over us. We climbed through the hills and out of the city for about an hour or so, when our Italian comrades split off and we decided it was time for us to make our way in a round about way back into the city, us to the media center, and our other comrades to the camp.
We hiked back down into the city and cut up to the left to bi-pass areas with heavy police concentration.
We reached the Media Center at around 7pm.
(To enter the media center a pass was required, and to enter the Indy media floor another pass with photo idea was required)
My comrade and I climbed up to the 3rd floor (which was in actuality the 4th) where Indy media was located. The floor was rather crazy, people darting here and there, stories and reports be checked and double checked etc. We proceed to the kitchen/meeting room, where we found a group clustered around a small portable TV watching the local Italian news.
This is when we first heard of the shooting and killing of Carlo. There were rumors of other deaths circulating through the Indy media offices.
We then located an empty computer and signed on line. We found pictures that had been uploaded of the shooting and spent a few minutes in a rather silent shock; I personally did not really process this information fully until a few days later. Many of us were too consumed in our immediate environments and the constant feeling of being on guard to fully have time to realize the implications of what had happened that day. We found that the protests and actions of the day had basically broken up and ended as people were struggling with this news of murder and the police violence seen that day.

We then proceeded to cook some pasta on the propane burners in the Indy media kitchen and gather information from others as people came in with their stories of the day. Many of our comrades were moving from Albaro Camp in anticipation of a police raid to the school located across the street from the Media Center. After eating and touching base with a few more people. Some of my comrades and I made our way back to Albaro to collect our things.

On entering the camp, it already showed the signs of desertion. Half the tents were gone, and many others stood in mid-process of collecting their things. We made our way to the back of the camp were the tennis hall was located to collect our belongings. The inside hall was all but empty, a few piles of sleeping bags and groceries left but that was about all. My comrade and I collapsed for a little while on our sleeping bag before collecting our things and heading bag down to the convergence center.
We had set a meeting point at the convergence center at 10:30pm, incase we were separated from our comrades.
Our other two comrades never arrived so we set up camp with about 100 or so others in the convergence center. Helicopters flew overhead about every 20 minutes or so with large searchlights on tracing the streets. After a couple of beers we managed to fall asleep to the rattle of helicopter propellers and the lull of bright white light.

July 21st-

We woke, rolled up the sleeping bag and headed back to the Indy media center. The meeting had fallen through last night and all we knew was today was the day of the big offensive and attack of the red zone. We expected about 10, 000 for the bloc, but now how to find out how we'd be all together. Originally it had been thought we all march together in the middle of the huge permitted march and break out as we approached the red zone and lead an attack against the zone.

Upon arriving at Indy media we found our two missing comrades and were informed there was a small bloc meeting across the street in the concrete yard in front of the school.

A small group of us sat down and due to the disorganization decided the best idea, instead of marching all the way out of the city to the beginning off the permitted march, wait at the convergence center and join around 3pm or so when it past with the rest of the bloc that should be already assembled.

It was about 1pm so my small group decided to head to the Convergence center early and grab some food. We passed down the steep steps, where one military van and military police were stationed.
Back at the Convergence center we had an hour or so to relax on the rocks and enjoy peaks into the police encampment, which on the night of the 18th had been blocked off by large containers two stacked on top of each other, creating an about 24ft wall between the convergence space and the temporary police station.

At around 2pm the first parts of the march began to pass into the city, turning at the bottom of the steep steps. Our small affinity group decided to march further up to see as all the groups past. We marched about 5 and a half blocks out from the convergence center and stood in wait of the rest of our comrades.
We waited about 20 minutes when some friends from the previous day approached and informed us they had marched all the way to the back of the long demo and saw no bloc.
So we made our way back to Convergence space to find that a group was already at a stand off with the police.
We changed and quickly joined our friends.
The banks that had been attacked the first day were re-entered and materials collected for barricades. Another group of us moved a car to the middle of the street and flipped in order to block the street more effectively.
The line of 100 or so riot cops was continuingly deploying gas, forcing most of us back due to lack of equipment, but by then the barricades were set and the car burning.
My small group backed up due to the fact that we had been moving material to the barricades and with a lack of adequate protection from the gas, we were not the most effective members to be on the front lines.
The police were advancing little by little, as we had to move further and further back to dodge the gas canisters falling.
The police finally charged or must have broken through the barricade for people started to run back from the barricades and others split off towards the march and into the city.
Our group headed into the city. Three more banks were destroyed and we were congregating around a corner and a supermarket when a line of riot cops came charging around the corner. Gas once again filled the air as they charged. We broke and ran for the back of the permitted demonstration.
Those who did not run fast enough, even though we were not engaged in any activity when the police charged, were beaten badly.
I was separated from my group as I ran to join into the march.
The peaceniks, barred me off, and others, refusing us entrance into the march, basically isolating us and handing us over to the on coming police, so after some harsh words, we cut up a side street and joined the march in the middle.
I positioned myself on a bench scanning for my affinity group. Some comrades came across me at my perch and showed my back to my group.
Once re-joined with the group we continued with the march. As we passed along one Side Street we saw some men yelling and pushing some masked demonstrators out of the march and down a side street.
We went over to see what was going on. As we approached a man and women came up to my comrade and I and the man addressing my comrade yelled,
"The movement doesn't need you"
The woman was yelling as well, my comrade gave the man a swift push as I pushed the woman away. The man continued to yell, and at one point spit at my comrade (I am not sure if my comrade was aware of the man spitting).
We, and our other comrades, decided to just push past and continue on our way.
The irony of the situation, of a group who claims some false moral high grown because their tactics differ from ours, are willing to physically harm us and push us in the hands of the police, whom most of us deem the greater enemy, because we are "violent".
I will continue on the above tangent in a separate piece.
The march continued and a smaller bloc, about 300 of us formed up towards the back, with small fighting continuing with the police lines advancing behind us. The March then passed under a set of three bridges. On the other side, the bloc decided to barricade to try and stop or at least delay the advancing police. A bank windows on the side of the street were smashed and the protective ply wood on the main door and windows pulled off. The wood and dumpsters were pushed to block each of the three exits from the tunnels under the bridge. Then we entered the bank and collected boxes, carts, desks, etc. to add to the barricades. There was then an effort to push the barricades further into the tunnel. As the barricades were moved in, a group tipped a car over and added into the middle tunnel exit. While this was being set up another portion of the bloc was collecting loose cobblestones and brick from the courtyard next to the bank and stacked neatly behind the barricades. Once the barricades were set and in the right place they were set on fire, and loose papers and cardboard were brought from the bank to keep the fire burning.
With these barricades set up we moved back into the main drag. My affinity group decided to keep moving into the city as reports of police confrontation from further up along the march were heard. A group of us headed forward, finding comrades targeting every bank and gas station that was passed. We helped here we could and then moved on, but after a little while decided to head back to the bridges, due to the fact the situations we found we could only help so much and most were very small and over in a few minutes. As we headed back to the bridges gas clouds appeared, we push as close as we could and discovered the police either came around or broke through our barricades, but once again using the gas most of the bloc was forced to scatter and pushed back.
We ended up in a square where the march concluded and someone was giving a speech.
It was now early evening and the day had consisted mostly of these small stand offs and then being pushed back. The Italian police had been smart both days of action splitting up the bloc quickly and keeping on dividing it until the bloc became pockets of a hundred or so all over the city.
My affinity group decided to change and head back to the Indy media center.
On our way back we passed over the bridge where we had the stand off the day before, and headed down a side street to the small square, where we passed the shell of a burnt police car. As we passed along the street, we heard sharp shots and the heavy smell of tear gas. We kept moving but could not really locate where the shots or gas was coming from.
We eventually ended up back in the neighborhood of the Media Center and took a look at the main street by the convergence center from the bird's eye view from the steep stairs. The entire street was littered with glass. Everything seemed to have clamed a bit, and stopping by the school across from the media center we found out the day was basically over. We also discovered that our Greek comrades were surrounded in their campground by the police that morning and had fought them all day and apparently were victorious. My group and I, decided to call it a days as well and headed back to the convergence center to hang out, get some food, relax and decided on our plans for leaving the city.

The mood of the convergence center was festive with loud music as people talked, ate, and drank. Groups were meeting busses and packing their things to make leave of Genoa.
Two bonfires were lit to burn all the wooden crates from the food and water bottles and people gathered around, either sitting in circles or dancing. At around 10pm we decided to head back up to the Media Center, pack our stuff and move over to the school for the night and leave the next morning.

We climbed those steep stairs, bumping into another American girl, who proceeded to tell us there were rumors of raids going down that night at the media center. We were not too concerned. My comrades and I thought that the Italian police were not that stupid or ignorant, to make such a dangerous political move by raiding a center given to the GSF by the city and the Media Center was composed of corporate media, not just Indy media and a medical station, so tactically it just did not seem very smart for the police to raid anywhere, given the actions were over and there was now no distinction between political factions etc.

We arrived at the Media Center. Before entering, we ran into another comrade, also from the states, who had a huge bandage on his head.
He explained that in the afternoon, when we split off with the group into the city, a portion of the bloc continued to hold the lines and keep the police back, but then tanks came in and the remaining bloc was pushed back and found them selves trapped between the permitted march and the on coming riot police. He said that instead of people letting this small retreating bloc into the march they kept them out by locking arms or using flagpoles to push them away. This left them trapped. As the police drew closer they began to fire tear gas at point blank rage, one hitting our comrade in the forehead, from which he fell to the ground unconscious and was dragged by friends into the march, as the "legal" demonstrators became aware that the police were shooting and planning to beat everyone, not just this small bloc of people.

At this point some other redskin comrades approached us, one went on to say how they had just been stopped by police and were being beaten, when a reporter happened to walk by and they called out and soon he came over, and then more reporters showed up, so the police let them go. I will distinctly, remember this moment due to the fact one of these large tough redskins commented, "I really thought I was going to die." They went into the school retrieved there stuff and were off, out of Genoa as quickly as they possibly could. It was by now 11pm.
We finally got into the building and climbed to the 4th floor where Indy Media was located, passed through the checkpoint. Two of my comrades sought out a free computer as I made use of the time to change and pack up our sleeping bags to move over to the school for the night.
I check in with them and they were busy looking at pictures from the day, so I told them I'd meet them outside.
I made my way outside and sat down in the street on our sleeping bags to wait. A friend joined me and after talking she asked for an address of a mutual friend so I ran back inside to copy it out of my address book and to check on my two comrades. They were still looking at pictures on line. I made a quick snide comment and they said they'd be down soon.
I returned and joined my friend in the street as we started to talk again, it was around midnight; two people came running down the street yelling "Policia! Policia!" We both stood up and started heading for the school, whose gates were closing to be barricaded, but recalling my comrades I cried out "Shit!" and my friend and I turned sharply, by now the police were pulling down the street and dashed into the media center right as the doors were being shut against the oncoming police. We dashed to the 4th floor, where people were desperately securing and hiding film, etc, documenting the police brutality and misconduct of the past two days; others were quickly pulling helmets, masks, etc. out of their bags to discard on the floor, but most were gathered around the windows watching the police break into the school. I hurried to our bags to remove certain materials out of them, all the while calling for my comrades. When one of my comrades found me, we embraced quickly. He had watched the whole raid and saw the police beat severely some kids sitting in the street where my friend and I had been sitting, and had been convinced it was I. We rushed to the windows, where we observed the police, most in "black bloc" garb, still masked, with just vest and helmets marked Policia were storming the school, dragging and grabbing people from the floor, we could see them reach down and swing their clubs, at the same time some police began to through bottles at the people in the Media Center's windows. I turned around and walked into the room a little ways a way from the window to discard my jacket, when we heard the police break through the doors to the Indy media desk and the shouts of people on the floor. They came in and yelled and ordered us into the hall. My comrade quickly discarded the camera we had been using behind a tipped over table in the hall as we were forced to sit in the hall backs against the wall. Three of the officers remained masked as they passed in and out of the rooms. Two were plain clothed, with their masks, bandanas, removed and tied round their necks. They tapped their batons in their hands as they strolled up and down the hall. About 10 minutes later, one officer discovered a video camera still filming the hall, in which their was some yelling in Italian and they brought the camera back into one of the rooms, which I and a few others still had view of and proceeded to destroy it. I also witness them destroy various computers, disks, cameras, and video. About 15 minutes later a man wearing a corporate media pass followed by another man with a video camera entered the floor, exchanged some friendly comments with the police and headed to the back of the hall, and recorded everyone sitting against the walls on video. During this, shouts, screams, and cries, from the school Diaz could be heard.
Then about 30 minutes after the police arriving on the Indy media floor, a woman dressed in orange came up and exchanged some angry words with the police man who seemed to be in charged, about 5 minutes after this the police exited the floor.
We would find out later that the woman was an Italian senator who happened to be doing an interview on the corporate media floor when the police raided, and if it had not been for this coincidence we probably would have all ended up in a similar situation of our comrades across the street.
My comrade and I grabbed the camera, which the police had not found and hid it in one of our bags. One of my bags had been gone through and some pictures I had brought of friends and family from America were taken as well as a few other odds and ends. Upon stashing the camera, we tracked down two of our other comrades, one with a camera and headed to the front of the Media Center.
All the people in the Media Building lined the front fence as we began to watch the horror unfurl before us. About 50 or so riot police lined the street in front of the school gates, and vans, trucks, and re-enforcements waited and either end of the streets.
That's when the first ambulance arrived and for the next two hours we watched our comrades one by one be brought out on stretchers, some conscience others not, with each person we cried and shouted louder and louder, "ASSASSINI!". The cop who appeared to be in charge, made a show of pulling on a warm up jacket, which had the Italian flag on the back.
About an hour into this process three cops left the building carrying a dark green plastic bag, thought later it turned out to be confiscated "evidence" the style of the bag and the way the 3 police men were carrying resembled and body bag. This lead to screams and shouts, and a small group of us ran in front of the fences and out in the street, screaming at the riot police standing "guard". At this, some GSF officials linked up to create a line between the riot police and us. One of our polish comrades who witnessed some of his friends being wheeled out, screamed "Id rather be in jail with my comrades than hide here like a coward". He began to try and push through to the lines of riot police. Apparently, upon catching up with him later, the GSF reps tied his hands with rope and brought him back with in the building.
I returned into the fence and climbed up on a cement wall for a better view. In the next hour or so, not one person walked out on his or hers own two feet, they either were on stretchers, leaning heavily on comrades or slowly limping to the police vans and ambulances. Around 2:30 am the police left about as quickly as they arrived.
Groups of us crossed the street to gather what we could from the scene. Upon entering I walked past a few puddles of blood and glass. My friend from before was gathering people's toiletries and placing them on a table, I joined her. We collected people's dairies and journals and stacked them at the edge of a table. As we were gathering some other things we noticed a man wearing a corporate media badge reading one of the journals. My friend and I hurried over and snatched it out of his hands, disgusted. He made a snide comment to which I gave him a swift, hard push towards the door, telling, well yelling at him to leave. I then began to fold some clothes. I picked up a pair of black "crusty" shorts, and found my hands covered in blood. I finished folding them, than decided to head upstairs as more people came in to the first floor. The floors got progressively worse. Chunks of flesh, blood soaked sleeping bags, puddles of blood so thick they had congealed into thick bricks that stood up centimeters off the ground.
By the fourth floor I had had enough, seeing doors that had been smashed and kicked in. more blood, hair, skin, and I headed back over to sit on the ledge of the media center. A comrade of ours came upon me and we cried and hugged. He informed me that it seemed that 56 people were taken to hospital and 46 or so were taken straight to jail.
My comrade returned and sat down next to me. We agreed like the hundred or so others who had survived by luck these raids, to sleep in the Indy media center.
Another comrade approached us at this time to inform us about 20 or so people had escaped, by climbing out the scaffolding on the school, and a few were out to grab some food so they were not in the building. Apparently our American comrade from before and about 20 or so others were in a pizza shop near by, and the police raided, some managed to escape out the back, but he was taken by the police, and the beatings, like those in the school were brutal.
My comrade and I headed back in the Media Center, where people clung to each other in hugs, tears, and kisses. People tried to put strong faces on and keep the atmosphere positive after the disgusting display of force we just saw.
I started to cook some pasta for people on the Indy media floor. My comrade came to join me and we hiked up to the top floor and set up our sleeping bags and fell asleep from pure exhaustion.

July 22nd-

We woke at 11 am or so and found the room empty so enjoyed an hour or so a limited privacy before heading downstairs.
We were told on the Indy media floor, police were picking up small groups trying to leave the city, especially people wearing black, beating them and dragging them off to jail.
Those of us (100 or so) left in the Media Center called a meeting.
GSF reps, reported they had secured two buses and a train to Milano for us all, as we all agreed traveling together would be best. They also said lawyers would be waiting for us at the train station to see us off, at if necessary travel with us, and then in Milano the local Social Centers had organized groups to meet us.

We all set about collecting up our stuff and packing and helping all the belongings from the school be carried across to the main room in the Media Center, as that would be open and secure so people could return and retrieve their belongings once out of jail. As we were sitting in this main room reading newspapers, a German comrade from the school came in, happy to see him, he told us what happened to him. He and a few others had managed to escape the school minutes before the police broke in and had spent the night hiding under cars and darting around the streets avoiding the helicopters searchlights. He had arrived at the Media Center that morning.

At 3pm all of us grabbed our stuff, laughing and smiling, marched down the hill to climb on the buses to the train station. Perhaps our positive upbeat attitudes were due to the fact is we had no idea if we'd make it out of Genoa, so we might as well enjoy what could be our last "free" moments.
We all crammed onto two public busses that past through one police checkpoint with out even being stopped. The busses took us out of the center of Genoa to a smaller, more rural; train station, where we all climbed off, and piled onto the train to Milano. Water and whiskey was passed around in celebration, we had gotten through the first part of the "escape from Genoa".
The Train ride went smoothly. When we arrived in the larger train station to switch trains, police lined the tracks. We all climbed of and in laughter and fun talk in a mass passed by the police with out any problems. We rushed to grab some food and jump on our next train.
We arrived in Milano around 7:30 pm, where about 500 or more comrades welcomed us, clapping and cheering, our bags were taken to the local social center and then we joined the march to the local police station in solidarity demos.

The next 3 days in Milano huge solidarity demos were organized for everyday, though no fighting with the police occurred, because of "peace police", the small numbers of riot police, and the fact when the anarchist/more militant Marxist or communists blocs marched past, the police would run inside the station or consult buildings.

Comrades released from jail arrived in Milano and more information came our way.
The school raid was as brutal as the blood, chunks of flesh and hair would indicate. Most if not all of the people in the school were sleeping, so none resisted arrested, but were beaten over and over again, some until they gave in a sang Fascist songs. One female comrade told me her friend just laid on the ground vomiting blood and the police just stood and watched, yelling threats about raping them with their batons and Billy clubs. Another comrade said some police peed on beaten crumpled arrestees as they waited inside the school. Many told us they could have sworn the police were on drugs, their eyes were crazed and they just did not respond like any sort of human being. Prison was just as bad, according to some comrades, fascist signs hung in the prisons and they were force to stand spread eagle, some naked for hours and hours, not allowed to use the bathroom many were forced to soil themselves and of course more beatings.

These stories kept coming….we were lucky all of us who happened to be in the Indy media center, and the senator being in the building, pure luck. Anyone of us could have been any one of our comrades who were brutalized and violated by this State Sanctioned horror.