Meaning of black bloc | Babel Free

Definitions

Any group of individuals who join a protest or demonstration, wearing black clothing including items to protect and/or conceal their faces and often engaging in violence and vandalism; the tactic of forming and participating in such a group.

Equivalents

Examples

“It made perfect sense to Michael that the Berlin police would choose to infiltrate the Black Bloc, rather than the establishment leftist parties.”

“The Black Bloc tactics emerged in Germany in the 1980s, and caught the attention of the North American public during the 1999 Battle of Seattle.”

“At the protests against the World Trade Organization in Seattle, activists formed black blocs, engaged in jail solidarity, built and marched with giant puppets, blockaded roads and buildings, danced at street parties, rode in Critical Mass bike rides, performed Radical Cheers, and used affinity groups and spokescouncils to make decisions.[…]In what follows, I consider the diffusion of black bloc, giant puppets, blockades, and jail solidarity to activists in six Toronto- and New York-based organizations.”

CEFR level