Author: Clare Merante

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised by Gil Scott-Heron (1971)

1946-1989, Black, Date, Defining the Enemy, Disruptive Spaces, Subjectives of Refusal, The Home, White Supremacy

“The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” is a poem and song by Gil Scott-Heron, from his 1971 album Pieces of a Man. The title of the song was a popular slogan among the Black Power movements in the US, emphasizing that progress requires intentional action and comes at the expense of the status quo.

You will not be able to stay home, brother
You will not be able to plug in, turn on and cop out
You will not be able to lose yourself on skag and skip out for beer during commercials, because
The revolution will not be televised

The revolution will not be televised
The revolution will not be brought to you by Xerox in four parts without commercial interruptions
The revolution will not show you pictures of Nixon blowing a bugle
And leading a charge by John Mitchell, General Abrams, and Spiro Agnew
To eat hog maws confiscated from a Harlem sanctuary
The revolution will not be televised

The revolution will not be brought to you by the Schaefer Award Theatre
And will not star Natalie Woods and Steve McQueen or Bullwinkle and Julia
The revolution will not give your mouth sex appeal
The revolution will not get rid of the nubs
The revolution will not make you look five pounds thinner, because
The revolution will not be televised, brother

There will be no pictures of you and Willie Mae pushing that shopping cart down the block on the dead run
Or trying to slide that color television into a stolen ambulance
NBC will not be able predict the winner at 8:32 on report from 29 districts
The revolution will not be televised

There will be no pictures of pigs shooting down brothers on the instant replay
There will be no pictures of pigs shooting down brothers on the instant replay
There will be no pictures of Whitney Young being run out of Harlem on a rail with a brand new process
There will be no slow motion or still lifes of Roy Wilkins
Strolling through Watts in a red, black, and green liberation jumpsuit that he has been saving for just the proper occasion
Green Acres, Beverly Hillbillies, and Hooterville Junction will no longer be so damn relevant
And women will not care if Dick finally got down with
Jane on Search for Tomorrow
Because Black people will be in the street looking for a brighter day
The revolution will not be televised

There will be no highlights on the eleven o’clock news and no pictures of hairy armed women liberationists and Jackie Onassis blowing her nose
The theme song will not be written by Jim Webb or Francis Scott Keys
Nor sung by Glen Campbell, Tom Jones, Johnny Cash, Engelbert Humperdinck, or The Rare Earth
The revolution will not be televised

The revolution will not be right back after a message about a white tornado, white lightning, or white people
You will not have to worry about a dove in your bedroom, the tiger in your tank, or the giant in your toilet bowl
The revolution will not go better with Coke
The revolution will not fight germs that may cause bad breath
The revolution will put you in the driver’s seat

The revolution will not be televised
Will not be televised
Will not be televised
Will not be televised
The revolution will be no re-run, brothers
The revolution will be live

One Fine Day by Klaas Bense (2011)

2011-Present, Authority, Date, Defining the Enemy, Disruptive Spaces, Occupation, Self Institution, Tactics of Disruption, Urban Spaces

One Fine Day is an investigation into modest individual actions, their astonishing outcome and the often severe personal consequences. The documentary consists of portraits of six people from different cultures and religions who all, through a small non-violent act, have had a significant and positive influence on society. In the film we meet a young Burmese monk, a Chilean student, a German pastor, a young Iraqi woman, an American former athlete and a Chinese youngster.

The following video is an excerpt that follows Maria Jesus Sanhueza, a student protester during the 2006 Penguin Revolution in Chile. The full film can be found here.

Extinction Rebellion (2018-now)

2011-Present, Blockade/Barricade, Consciousness Raising, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Tactics of Disruption, Urban Spaces

Extinction Rebellion (XR) is a decentralized global protest group dedicated to raising awareness for biodiviersity loss and climate change, as well as persuading governments to enact policies that respond justly to the growing climate emergency. This report contains an overview of their organization, lists what they have accomplished in 2020, what they plan to accomplish in 2021.

XR-Global-Support-Annual-ReportDownload

The Red Rebel Brigade (2019-now)

2011-Present, Blockade/Barricade, Consciousness Raising, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Tactics of Disruption, Urban Spaces

Red Rebel Brigade symbolises the common blood we share with all species,

That unifies us and makes us one.

As such we move as one, act as one and more importantly feel as one.

We are unity and we empathise with our surroundings, we are forgiving

We are sympathetic and humble, compassionate and understanding,

We divert, distract, delight and inspire the people who watch us,

We illuminate the magic realm beneath the surface of all things and we invite people to enter in, we make a bubble and calm the storm, we are peace in the midst of war.

We are who the people have forgotten to be!

The Red Rebel Brigade is a subset of Exinction Revolution. This group uses performative art as spectacle to disrupt daily life. Their goal is to draw attention to the ongoing climate crisis and to foster solidarity.

Throwing Like A Girl by Iris Marion Young (1980)

1946-1989, Date, Defining the Enemy, History/Theory, Patriarchy, Subjectives of Refusal, Theory, Women

This feminist essay by Iris Marion Young draws on works from Simone de Beauvoir and Maurice Merleau-Ponty to look at differences in feminine and masculine movement and how that movement is embodied and how it affects the mental and physical space of women.

The women lives her space as confined and closed around her, at least in part as projecting some small area in which she can exist as a free subject.

Iris Marion Young
Throwing-Like-A-GIrlDownload

Introduction to Anarchy Comics by Jay Kinney (2012)

1990-2010, Consciousness Raising, Date, Tactics of Disruption, Uncategorized

Anarchy Comics is a series of underground comic books that were anarchist and satirical, criticising mainstream society. The first three issues were edited by Jay Kinney and the fourth by Paul Mavrides, and the contributers included anarchist artists of the times, such as Spain Rodriguez and Gilbert Shelton. The first issue of Anarchy Comics can be found here.

Anarchy-Comics-IntroductionDownload

Anarchy Comics: Issue 1 by Jay Kinney (1978)

1946-1989, Consciousness Raising, Date, Tactics of Disruption, Uncategorized

Anarchy Comics is a series of underground comic books that were anarchist and satirical, criticising mainstream society. The first three issues were edited by Jay Kinney and the fourth by Paul Mavrides, and the contributers included anarchist artists of the times, such as Spain Rodriguez and Gilbert Shelton. An introduction to Anarchy Comics, written by Jay Kinney, can be found here.

Anarchy_Comics_The_Complete_Collection_-_Anarchy_Comics_1Download

Processed World Magazine by Chris Carlsson, Adam Cornford, Greg Williamson (1981-2005)

1990-2010, Consciousness Raising, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Subjectives of Refusal, Tactics of Disruption, The Workplace, Workers

Processed World Magazine was established to foster unity among office workers, temps and any creatives who were being alienated by the processed world of the workplace. This file is the first issue of the magazine. More issues can be found here.

processedworld_issue01Download

Raise Three Fingers for Democracy (2021)

2011-Present, Authority, Date, Defining the Enemy, Disruptive Spaces, Urban Spaces

This website was created by Myanmar artists as a way to unify the global art community in support of the protesters in Myanmar. The three fingered salute, originally from Suzanne Collin’s young adult dystopian novel The Hunger Games, is used as a gesture for support for those fighting for democracy. Anyone can upload artwork to their website.

Website: https://www.threefingers.org/about

Images From the Website:

Communiques from the Earth Liberation Front (1997-2002)

1990-2010, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Sabotage/Ecotage, Tactics of Disruption, The 'Natural World'

The Earth Liberation Front (ELF) is the collective name for a group of individual cells that use ecotage to try to stop the destruction of the environemnt. This list of commniqes is compiled by former ELF spokesperson Leslie James Pickering.

The ELF realizes the profit motive caused and reinforced by the capialist society is destroying all life on this planet. The only way, at this point in time, to stop that contined destruction of life is to, by any means necessary, take the profit motive out of killing.

North American Earth Liberation Front Press Office
Earth_Liberation_Front_1997–2002_-_Pg_23-52Download

If A Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front by Marshall Curry (2011)

2011-Present, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Sabotage/Ecotage, Tactics of Disruption, The 'Natural World'

The Earth Liberation Front (ELF) is the collective name for a group of individual cells that use ecotage to stop the destruction of the environemnt. This documentary tells the story of one of the activists, Daniel G McGowan from his first attack in 1996 to his 2005 arrest by the Department of Justice while also examining the ethics of the organization as a whole.

The Black Man’s Stake in Vietnam by Eldridge Cleaver (1969)

1946-1989, Date, Defining the Enemy, Disruptive Spaces, Institutions, White Supremacy

Eldridge Cleaver, an early leader of the Black Panther Party, wrote this article to the Black men who were being drafted into Vietnam. Cleaver explains the implications of this on a global stage and calls for unity among all colonized people of the world.

The white man is deliberately trying to make the people of the world turn against black Americans, becuase he knows that the day is coming when black Americans will need the help and support of their borthers, friends and natural allies around the world.

Eldridge Cleaver
Cleaver-The-Black-Mans-Stake-in-VietnamDownload

Message to the Tricontinental by Che Guevara (1967)

1946-1989, Colonized, Defining the Enemy, Imperialism, Indigenous, Latino, Subjectives of Refusal, The Bourgeoisie

Che Guevara‘s Message to the Tricontinental was a seminal work for the 1960s global movement against imperialism through its expression of solidarity between all colonized people of the world. Its words and sentiment were adopted by Tom Hayden in the New Left Student Movement in the US.

How close we could look into a bright future should two, three, or many Vietnams flourish throughout the world with their share of deaths and their immense tragedies, their everyday heroism and their repeated blows against imperialism, impelled to disperse its forces under the sudden attack and the increasing hatred of all peoples of the world!

Che Guevara

POPaganda: The Art and Crimes of Ron English (2006)

1990-2010, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Sabotage/Ecotage, Tactics of Disruption, Urban Spaces

Directed by Pedro Carvajal and Edited by Kevin Chapados

Summary:

“Bombarded by relentless advertising in a growing culture of junk, one man-activist/artist Ron English-dares to hijack corporate advertising, challenging us to change the sham of reality…Ron takes traditional advertising hostage, subverting familiar images and words into confrontational art.”

Running time: 1 hr 18 min

BUGA-UP: Billboard Utilizising Graffitists Against Unhealthy Promotions (1979-early/mid 1980s)

1946-1989, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Infrastructure/Data, Sabotage/Ecotage, Tactics of Disruption

BUGA-UP is a organization formed in Australia to protest cigarette and other unhealthy advertisments, through cultutal jamming, specifically by vandalizing billboards.

BUGA-UP-interview-–-How-to-make-trouble-and-influence-peopleDownload
BUGA-UP-1Download

Towards a Semiological Guerrilla Warfare by Umberto Eco (1986)

1946-1989, Consciousness Raising, Disruptive Spaces, Infrastructure/Data, Sabotage/Ecotage, Tactics of Disruption

Orignially a lecture given at the University of Florence, this essay deals with semiotics, or a study of language and symbols. Eco argues that controlling the message is less important than controlling the possible interpretations of the message. To disrupt the mainstream mass media, Eco suggests using guerilla tactics, such as cultural jamming, against mass media.

Information is no longer an instrument for producing economic merchandise, but has itself become the cheif merchandise. Communication has been transformed into heavy industry.

UmbertoEco_Towards-a-Semiological-Guerrilla-WarfareDownload

Simulations and Simulacra by Jean Baudrillard (1981)

1946-1989, Disruptive Spaces, Time Interrupted

This treatise written by Jean Baudrillard introduces the idea that reality and a constructed form of reality are unable to be distinguished from each other. He introduces the idea of the “hyperreal” which is a creation of a new real that is not based on reality. He explains the ways images, culture and media work to define simulacra.

This is what terrorism is occupied with as well: making real, palpable violence surface in opposition to the invisible violence of security.
JeanBaudrillard_Simulations_and_SimulacraDownload

We decided to call our magazine Adbusters by Adbusters (2020)

2011-Present, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Infrastructure/Data

Created in 1989 by Kalle Lasn and Bill Schmalz, the Adbusters magazine was created as an act of rebellion against consumer culture. Rather than allowing media to be a reflection of daily life, the creators of this magazine were attempting to transform media into a catalyst for change.

Adbusters-ExplanationDownload

Media Burn by Ant Farm (1975)

1946-1989, Date, Disruptive Spaces, Infrastructure/Data

The aim of this video is to transform media from something that dominates to something that is used for liberation. This artwork demonstrates distruction of the television to emphasize the consumers capitulation to both an invasive media and a media that transforms subject to object.

Television, becuause of its technology and the way it must be used, can only produce autocratic political forms, hierarchies and hopeless alienation.

Two, Three, Many Columbias by Tom Hayden (1968)

Disruptive Spaces, Institutions, Students, Subjectives of Refusal

This speech given by Hayden during the Columbia take-over explains that students are protesting becuase they are opposed to the “fundamental institutions of society.” This protest was essentially disruptive because of it halted the college machinery and redistributed power (at least momentarily) into the hands of the students.

Two-Three-Many-ColumbiasDownload

Bring the War Home by Students for a Democratic Society (1969)

1946-1989, Students, Subjectives of Refusal

This pamphlet from SDS is a call to action for people to protest in Chicago, a renewal of the protest at the Democratic Convention a year earlier. It calls for an end to imperalism, white supremacy, male supremacy, and facism through disruptive means. The pamphlet specifies that the action taken during the protest should not only be against imperialism abroad but also domestic imperialism.

But, after years of peace marches, petitions, and the gradual realization that this war was no “mistake” “at all, one critical fact remains: the war is not just happening in Vietnam. It is happening in the jungles of Guatemala, Bolivia, Thailand, and all oppressed nations throughout the world. And it is happening here.

Bring-the-War-Home-PamphletDownload

Everybody’s Protest Novel by James Baldwin (1949)

Defining the Enemy, White Supremacy

“Everybody’s Protest Novel” is an essay written by James Baldwin that criticized protest fiction, specifically Harriet Beecher Stowe’s Uncle Tom’s Cabin, as something that perpetuates the status quo so that humanity becomes trapped within its own understanding of soceity. To break out of this mirror, Baldwin argues that the art we create must be disruptive.

Everybodys-Protest-NovelDownload

Black Power by Stokely Carmichael (1966)

1946-1989, Date, Defining the Enemy, Disruptive Spaces, Institutions, White Supremacy

Carmichael expands on black power in his speech to Berkeley students in 1966. SNCC and the Black power movement tried to create new standards of legitimacy by shifting away from white supremacy and trying to base legitimacy in Black working class culture.

Black Power – Stokely Carmichael 1966Download