Riot 2010: Photos From the Frontlines

From Insurgent Flickr

I travelled from California to British Columbia to photograph the resistance to the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.

2010 Heart Attack

Around 400 protesters raged through the streets of Vancouver on the "2010 Heart Attack" march on Saturday, February 13, 2010. At 8:30am, a crowd gathered in Downtown Vancouver to "Clog the arteries of Capitalism." By 9:00am, a black bloc wound its way through the streets, attacking corporate sponsors of the Olympics, smashing and pulling newspaper boxes into the streets, and battling police. When the pigs finally caught on to the fact that they had no control, they attempted to encircle the march to carry a mass arrest. The demonstrators charged the pigs, breaking their lines and evading arrest. The march ended up holding the streets for three solid hours. By the end of the day, a total of thirteen people were arrested.






























More photos from the Heart Attack March



Take Back Our City March

Some 3,000 people came out to protest the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics on Friday, February 12, 2010. There was a rally at the Vancouver Art Gallery, followed by a march to the opening ceremonies of the Olympics.


































More photos of the Take Back Our City March






Victory Square Torch Relay Disruption

On the morning of February 12, 2010, protesters gathered at Victory Square in Vancouver to disrupt the Olympic Torch Relay on East Hastings as it made its final pass through the city before the opening ceremonies.


















More photos of the Victory Square Torch Relay Disruption






Anti-Olympic Street Art in Downtown Eastside Vancouver

Graffiti against the 2010 Winter Olympics in Downtown Eastside Vancouver.























More photos of anti-Olympic Graffiti


More photos from the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics protests


Up the resistance

Up the resistance

As much as it risks the

As much as it risks the objectification of struggle, riot porn is sexy.

<3
puneta

Wow, spray painting random

Wow, spray painting random curse words is such a fantastic way to build support from the citizens of the city that actually have to live there!

i dunno, i mean i think

i dunno, i mean i think living with the Olympics in your town would piss you off pretty bad when you can't get to work because of the traffic, or you see a cop on every corner, or every restaurant in town is full of tourists, or public transit is filled beyond capacity...the olympics themselves create a lot of problems for everyone who has to live with them. When people see others protesting it, if they're not completely blind they'll at the very least be curious about the protesters.

Yeah I was upsetoff before,

Yeah I was upsetoff before, now I am uber-pissed that addition jack-assess decided to take the law into their own hands and vandalize my city and create additional problems.

capitalism and the state are

capitalism and the state are vandalism.

graffiti is resistance. it has been used as such around the entire world by resistance movements for centuries. shut the fuck up liberal.

Graffiti without the

Graffiti without the property owner's permission is considered vandalism, communist pussy.

CAPTCHA WIN = responsibility yeti

So what are all the ads

So what are all the ads plastered all over the place? Are those better than real human expression? somehow "RIOT 2010" sounds a lot more human than "DRINK COKE" or "MCDONALD'S: I'M LOVIN IT!"

and to be honest, i'd rather have "RIOT 2010" painted on my wall than "NIKE: JUST DO IT". of course, i'd be the one writing "RIOT 2010" on the wall, so i guess that's why.

What about the advertisments

What about the advertisments all over the place? Those are more tolerable and make sense compared to "Fuck 2010".

No, they don't.

No, they don't.

capitalism and the state are

capitalism and the state are murder and slavery.

graffiti is cute.

"graffiti is resistance. it

"graffiti is resistance. it has been used as such around the entire world by resistance movements for centuries."

shit, graffiti is intrinsically resistance? awesome! i'm gonna write GO FUCK YOURSELF in big red letters on your house/squat/apartment/face and then have a big ol' anarchist party afterwards

i meant that graffiti has

i meant that graffiti has ALWAYS been used as a tool in social struggles throughout history you fucking idiot.

elizabeth cady stanton was

elizabeth cady stanton was known for her tagging
like mlk
and gandhi

i guess that's not always?

anyway

shit, it's almost like you should stop writing in generalities to avoid (gulp!) being WRONG ABOUT FACTS

Because Elizabeth Cady

Because Elizabeth Cady Stanton was the only one that in that movement? Just like MLK was the only person involved in the civil rights movement. It's a well known fact that the rest of the people in all of those photos weren't actually there...just that one guy...right...?

but seriously, just because some certain people who "led" movements didn't use graffiti does not mean that no one did. In fact, the civil rights movement here and the Indian independence movement both had a LOT of graffiti.

But why should we bother knowing history when we can just make it up?

History's an imperialist

History's an imperialist racist construction, why the hell are you citing "history" on an anarchist site? You disgust me.

^^^troll

^^^troll

What the anon meant to say

What the anon meant to say is that every voltgeist records the events and personages that supported its rise to dominance,hence history is false because it has lost its objectivity.

volkgeist.

volkgeist.

volksgeist

volksgeist

poltergeist

poltergeist

So your dialogue consists of

So your dialogue consists of monosyllabic same suffix nouns.Back to the grammar book for you child.

zeitgeist.

zeitgeist.

liberals think figureheads

liberals think figureheads ARE the movement, we know that movements are made by millions of people who all make a conscious decision to participate.

and that has ALWAYS included graffiti against the forces of power.

Traffic has never been this

Traffic has never been this great. Came in to work today in half the time. Loving it! Wonderful to experience some different food and exhibits that I wouldn't normally be able to see. Glad to live in the Olympic city. Don't mind protests as long as I am safe and there is not destruction of property. I guess this site is dedicated to those who are OK with that - whether your own property and safety is compromised. Too bad that some families will not be able to come downtown because of thier fear of getting caught up with protests. Hopefully you can find a peaceful way to get your message across to ensure the safety of all - you as well as me.

some of us lead entire lives

some of us lead entire lives that are not "safe" and can't chose whether to go into an unsafe area of not because THAT IS WHERE WE LIVE you liberal fucking idiot.

poverty is violence. the state and capitalism enforce it. when they decide to spend money on the olympics instead of ending that violence, they deserve to be unsafe. so does everyone else that would rather ignore the everyday violence some have to live under and lead oblivious lives of middle class apathy and self-interest.

fuck you liberals.

Calling someone a "liberal

Calling someone a "liberal fucking idiot" will certainly convince them of your ideas, right comrade?

Maybe we're not all worried

Maybe we're not all worried about gaining the support of liberal fucking idiots?

keep up the good work

keep up the good work champ
why not punch babies and throw bricks at blind people
because that's the only way you can become more marginalized

i will if they are liberal

i will if they are liberal babies and liberal blind people.

hahhaha.
fuck you.

:(

:(

"Maybe we're not all worried

"Maybe we're not all worried about gaining the support of liberal fucking idiots?"

RIGHT!

I'm more interested in gaining the support of the other kids who write graff in my neighborhood.

I don't think the guy is a

I don't think the guy is a liberal, i think he's an anarchist intentionally trolling the board. Which i think is great, because the more outside trolls appear on this board the less sectarian flamebait there is, and arguments end up being held off until people are face to face and might show a modicum of respect to their comrades.

yep, anarchists sure are

yep, anarchists sure are selfless

5 bucks this guy/gal isn't

5 bucks this guy/gal isn't actually from the city and is just trying to prove a point.

pfft money is slavery

pfft money is slavery remember jeez
(is using a computer)

Ad hominem fail.

Ad hominem fail.

"5 bucks this guy/gal isn't

"5 bucks this guy/gal isn't actually from the city and is just trying to prove a point"

yep, that's an ad hom, well spotted

Wow what bravery. Turning

Wow what bravery. Turning over some newspaper machines, throwing another through the window of some poor business owner, spraying graffiti on the street, a multitude of Hogan's Heros indeed.

no - real bravados kill

no - real bravados kill people and take no prisoners, ey Rambo? What do you do for what you believe in, champ? Or should I assume that you miraculously wound up at the same conclusions about Law, Gods, Rulers, Slavery, Capitalism, and other social blah blah as other middle class twits by logical analysis? Cause if you did, well here it is to your bravery for confronting your opposition on... the Internet!

-Squee

"What do you do for what you

"What do you do for what you believe in, champ?"

I wear a black bandanna and pretend that minor inconvenience caused to people I don't know somehow endows my wasted life with meaning

"Or should I assume that you miraculously wound up at the same conclusions about Law, Gods, Rulers, Slavery, Capitalism, and other social blah blah as other middle class twits by logical analysis?"

Assuming you own the computer you are using, live in a heated building with electricity, had your clothes originally made by poor people on the other side of the planet, you've made similar compromises.

Also for people who are dedicated to creating a classless society there's a lot of classist, racist hate thrown around here against whites, men, or people who happen to be middle class. It's okay though, they deserve it!

"Cause if you did, well here it is to your bravery for confronting your opposition on... the Internet!"

irony

it was supposed to be

it was supposed to be ironic!! Geez, I called you "Rambo" and "champ". The main thing you argued with about "what do you do" is even meant as irony. The joke is meant to match my assumptions to yours... about what anarchists do, how we dress, what class we are from, our character. Not worth a serious debate, it started off antagonistic.

If you really care about what us anarchists do, plenty of people on here can tell you if you ask genuinely. Anarchists debate the effectiveness and legitimacy of these actions too. It is not the limit or even the primary thing anarchists do. I'm working on software to promote free education, and I don't dress up for it. It's not a revolutionary project, and it won't be the spotlight of anarchist action, but I think it's useful for others. The point is that you and other assuming individuals make such comments about these small actions of anarchists, compared to the immense work many anarchists undertake, and usually don't care if they are right or not.

-Squee

if by "poor business owner"

if by "poor business owner" you mean a bank, then yeah, i guess you're right.

Banks have feelings to!

Banks have feelings to!

When I see you facing down a

When I see you facing down a line of riot cops, I will take this comment seriously.

yeah it's tougher shit than

yeah it's tougher shit than standing around clapping for the olympics

what fucking year is this? PROPERTY DESTRUCTION IS NOT SHOCKING AND IT ALWAYS WORKS

"works"?

"works"?

Thanks for the photo

Thanks for the photo coverage. Seriously. This is beautiful.

thank you for the fantasies

thank you for the fantasies of using those stupid metal chairs that are in my workplace someday against their windows.

-V- FOR VENGEANCE AGAINST A

-V- FOR VENGEANCE AGAINST A VICIOUS SYSTEM!

BUDABUPABUTCHAAAAAAA BANG BANG BANG SLAM SLAM SMASH SMASH SMASHY SMASHY AND RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

venge⋅ance: infliction of injury, harm, humiliation, or the like, on a person by another who has been harmed by that person; violent revenge

CHEERS~

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