Direct Action

Trainers' Toolkit

Taking Direct Action on Climate Change

Direct Action Trainers' Toolkit

Welcome to this toolkit. The contents will give you a reasonably detailed guide to running direct action workshops. It's far from definitive, and represents the accumulated 'wisdom' of a very small pool of direct action trainers. See it as a starting point. Improvise, innovate and ignore as you see fit!

Contents of this toolkit

Exercises

Workshop Introductions

Exploring Nonviolence & Violence

Spectrum Line

Direct Action Support Systems

Fears & Solutions

I'd do that if...

Grounding & Breathing

Practical Protest Techniques

Passive Resistance

Simple Blockading Techniques

Public Perception of Direct Activists

The Hotseat

Dealing with Confrontation & Staying Safe

Hassle Lines

Body Language & Voice Control

Quick Decision Making Using Consensus

Action Roleplay

Street Protest

Resources

Group Agreements

Workshop Checklist

Sample Workshop Agendas

Briefings:

Affinity Groups

Practical Protest Techniques

Preparing for Action

Quick Consensus Decision Making

Street Actions

Activists' Legal Project Briefings 1 & 3

These exercises give you everything you should need to run a basic workshop, indeed too much to run a short workshop! Pick and choose to suit the group you're working with.

Whenever you plan your workshop, remember the basic needs of a good learning experience: variety to suit all learning styles, and a 'learning cycle' that includes the theoretical input, a chance to think about and plan how to apply the theory, an opportunity to experience the skills, and space in which to reflect on the experience.

Further Resources for Trainers

Seeds for Change – www.seedsforchange.org.uk

Training for Change – www.trainingforchange.org

Turning The Tide – www.turning-the-tide.org

RANT Collective – www.rantcollective.org

Training for Action – www.skillsharing.org.uk

Introductions

Why use this exercise?

The Introduction to a workshop can seem like a formality, but plays many important roles that shouldn't be overlooked. A good introduction allows you to:

Introduce yourself and get the participants to introduce themselves to each other, helping to build relationships and trust.

Informs the participants of the content of the workshop. This in turn allows them to make sure it's a workshop they're interested in (if the workshop isn't what they expected, and doesn't interest them they may express this through disruptive behaviour – better to deal with it early!).

Check the expectation of the group against your planned agenda, helping you to modify the workshop to meet the needs of this particular group.

Agree workshop groundrules/ group agreement with the group – setting a convention for how people should behave, and giving you a tool to help deal with any inappropriate behaviour that arises.

Energise, or focus the group, or build trust through judicious use of icebreakers and other games/activities.

Convey practical information about the workshop. This could range from where the toilets are, through when there will be breaks, to the fact that you have handouts for them.

Issues to explore

What will make this workshop a safe space to learn for this group?

What expectations do the group have of the workshop? Are these realistic given the situation (your skill, the time available, their experience etc)

What state of mind/ emotional state are the group in? Do you need to take any action to alter this (wake them up, calm them down, enthuse them, get them feeling more creative, build trust...)

How to run the exercise:

Spend some time preparing your space to ensure it's both functional (e.g. right number of chairs in the right arrangement) and welcoming. Prepare yourself – are you welcoming? It's easy to be so busy that you hardly notice people arriving. Avoid body language that says “oh no, someone's here – how annoying”. It's also useful to have prepared some visual aids, such as a flipchart of your proposed agenda, and some suggested groundrules. Think about what the first participants will do while you wait for latecomers. Is there anything they can read? Is it worth having some direct action videos playing in one corner? Are you free to chat to them?

Once you've got everyone together start your introduction. If you decide to wait a few more minutes for more people to turn up, it's worth telling people so they're not wondering what's happening. A typical introduction might flow as follows:

Introducing the facilitator(s) – people will be interested in who you are. They need to trust you if they are to trust in the workshop content. A couple of sentences often suffices, but on occasion you might feel the need to outline your relevant experience to show the participants that you have some!

Personal introductions – who is everyone? This is often in the form of a go-round in which everyone is asked to say who they are, where they come from and why they've come (or other similar short facts about themselves). But there are plenty of other 'name games' you could use. How much time you spend on this will depend on the depth of relationship you want or need to build. If it's a short workshop you may just ask people to state their name. If you're trying to build affinity groups, you need people to begin to trust and understand each other, so you might go more in depth here

An introduction to the workshop itself – what do you hope to achieve and how do you plan to do it. You could run through your proposed agenda flipchart and then ask the group “is that what you expected?”.

Expectation check – you may already have everything you need to know whether your planned agenda will work with this group. If you did an opening go-round in which you asked people why they came along you will have had some hints as to what they expect. Your agenda check may have uncovered more. If you didn't use these tools, or want a more in-depth look at participants' expectations, pick a tool that will help you do this. You might have been able to ask people in advance of the workshop, or you could ask them to write their expectations on post-it notes or flipchart as they arrive. You could do a second go-round just dedicated to what people want to take away from the workshop.

Groundrules / Group Agreements – you may decide there's no need for a formal group agreement, and that you'll deal with issues as they arise, or that the group knows each other well and is well behaved. If you do decide to use this tool, the important thing is that the whole group agree to whatever groundrules are proposed. You could spend time with them exploring their needs - “what groundrules do we need in place to make this a safe and effective workshop for you?”. Alternatively, if time is short, you could propose a set of groundrules. Propose don't impose and always leave room for people to add new 'rules'. One other method we've used is to have an ideastorm* around the concept of 'respect' – what does respect mean to people? Then turn the result into the group agreement for the workshop.

Practicalities – health and safety, loos, fire exits, food arrangements, childcare etc! You might also let people know about the handouts that you have with you (if you do) so they know they do or don't need to take notes.

Energiser or other game/activity – by this stage you may have been talking for a while and you'll have had a chance to gauge your participants' mood. A game can be a good activity to bridge the gap between introduction and the rest of the workshop, especially if it is relevant (based around trust or communication, for example). You could forget the game and use a more physical opening exercise such as a Spectrum Line (See Exploring Nonviolence and Violence).

Time:

Your introduction will take at least 5 minutes. If you cover everything above it could take much longer. A quick go-round for names, agenda check, expectation check, groundrules, and some practicalities will take 10 minutes. Add more time for longer go-rounds and games!

Materials:

Agenda flipchart, groundrule flipchart and anything you need for the games you choose.

Notes:

You may encounter participants who don't appreciate the value of the introductions and just want to get on with things. You may encounter others who don't see the purpose in the 'silly' game. It can help to explain to people what you're doing and why... “working in an affinity group requires trust, so we're going to play a trust game now, which will have the added advantage of waking us all up and making us more alert for the rest of the workshop”.

Time constraints sometimes mean that an introduction is largely presentational. If you're covering a lot of information, and are co-facilitating, break up the introduction by splitting it with your co-facilitator(s). This also allows the group to see all of you at work nice and early, helping to build the trainer-trainee relationship.

Variations:

There are endless variations for the introduction – a few ideas are mentioned in the text above. What combination of presenting information, eliciting information from the group, and activities to create the environment you think will maximise the potential of the workshop and participants, will vary from workshop to workshop. Consult any resource on icebreakers (sometimes called 'light & livelies') for more ideas on trust games, energisers etc.

*an ideastorm is a quickfire tool for collecting ideas. Write up the subject of your ideastorm on a large sheet of paper then ask people to shout out their thoughts. Write up every contribution on the paper, abbreviating and paraphrasing where necessary. It's important to collect every contribution, no matter how sensible or ludicrous it sounds – ideas can be challenged at a later stage! More information can be found in our Tools for Meetings and Workshops Briefing

Exploring Nonviolence & Violence

The Spectrum Line

Also called: Continuum, Wall Game

Why use this exercise?

A Spectrum Line is usually used to get people to reflect on their personal opinions on a topic – commonly on nonviolence and violence in a direct action workshop.

It can help to challenge people's preconceptions and broaden their thinking by exposing them to other opinions, or of course it can affirm their thinking.

It can also help participants identify like-minded individuals within the group, which can be useful in building effective affinity groups.

Issues to explore

There are a number of underlying issues that usually emerge in any diverse discussion about what makes a piece of direct action violent or nonviolent. Some of the common ones follow. When working with a group these areas can be used to stimulate interaction and debate because in any group there is usually a range of views on these issues:

an action being violent if it involves:

damage to property

damage to people/living creatures

an action being perceived as more nonviolent if it is effective (e.g. gets positive media coverage/ achieves its stated aims etc.)

an action being violent but still being acceptable and even necessary

an action being violent if it is illegal

an action being more violent if it is covert or less violent if it's accountable

How to run the exercise:

Explain that this exercise is an exploration of participants’ own ideas and not an attempt to teach facilitators' viewpoint by stealth (but only say it if this is true)! Explain that the scenarios you will present are brief outlines only, and that each participant will have to interpret the situation in the manner that comes naturally to them. We are trying to get out general theories of nonviolence, and not to get bogged down in detail. So for example, if one participant assumes that one of the statements implies an action that takes place at night – so be it. Other may think differently, and the accountability or visibility of the action may emerge as an important criteria in some people’s definition of nonviolence. Be aware that the more rational participants may struggle and constantly want you to provide them with full details!

Ask participants to stand and line up (standing against a wall makes life easier and designate one end of the line/wall ‘Agree’ - the other end ‘Disagree’. Signs may help make this even clearer. If you choose not to use signs, it can be helpful to repeat the option at the end of each statement “...so if you agree move towards the door, if you disagree towards the window...”.

Explain that you will read out some statements about violence. Stress that these aren’t your opinion and are just tools to spark discussion. If participants agree with the statement they should move towards the ‘Agree’ end of the line/wall. If they disagree they should move towards the ‘Disagree’ end of the line/wall. The more strongly they feel, the closer to the end of the line they should move. Those with less strong, or no opinion stand near or in the middle.

Make sure that people are aware that they can move at any time should they change their mind upon reflection or after hearing other participants’ opinions.

Take a sample of the voices present (e.g. people at either end of the line/ people who have moved a long way/ people in the middle) and facilitate a brief discussion. It helps to ensure that participants know that you will not be able to hear every voice on every statement, and ask for contributions to be focused and succinct. It’s common for the same few people to have strong opinions to express, so be selective, explaining that you are wanting to involve as many people as possible if necessary. It's usually just a case of saying “Let's hear from somebody that hasn't spoken yet...”. As with other area of facilitation, you will need to be careful about putting people who are reluctant to speak on the spot.

Facilitators can use provocative questioning to highlight inconsistencies or bring out new themes. For example you might ask “You said that you see hammering the nosecone of a fighter is violent because the very act of hammering is aggressive... does that mean you think banging a nail into the wall to hang up a picture is violent? Are all carpenters violent?”.

Example Scenarios:

It can be useful to start with a list of scenarios relevant to your group and an idea of the running order (but feel free to improvise if the situation requires it, and you’re comfortable with that). For a peace group you might modify your scenarios so they are war related and so on:

I experience violence in my everyday life

Breaking the law is an act of violence against society

Hammering the nose cone of a Hawk fighter jet to prevent it being used in combat is violent

Pulling up a genetically modified crop is violent

Nuclear deterrence is violent

Nuclear power is violent

Living an affluent lifestyle in a world where millions live in poverty is violent

Time:

In 20 -25 minutes you can expect to cover 4 or 5 scenarios if you take 3 or 4 brief opinions about each.

Materials:

You can use signs to mark the end of your line if you like. Other than that this exercise require no materials.

Notes:

This is an active exercise that requires movement, and requires people being on their feet for 20-25 minutes. It's therefore good for more tactile learners who engage physically with their learning. The discussion element also makes it great for reflective learners who enjoy listening to the various sides of a debate. But be aware of mobility issues – not all workshop participants or groups will be comfortable or able to stand for this long. If necessary put some chairs in strategic places so people can sit down during the discussion phases or keep it short and then sit down again and continue in a more conventional discussion format.

This exercise requires setting up clearly so that participants understand which end to move towards, that they can move at any time etc. It's worth repeating these facts throughout the exercise to avoid confusion.

Obviously a Spectrum requires enough room for your group to spread out. If you're tight for space you may need to create a U shape Spectrum, or think about using the same exercise on paper (see Variations).

In larger groups less people will get heard and the majority will end up feeling like they're standing around getting bored, so think about using another tool or splitting your group into 2 (if you have a co-facilitator)

Large groups and some venues (e.g. outside) can cause problems with people not being able to hear other people's contribution. You might need to repeat back contributions to the group so that everyone can hear them.

Be careful with your language. It's easy to talk about the people at each 'extreme' of the spectrum. It's probably best to avoid accidentally labelling people as 'extremists'!

Variations:

Follow on discussion: Run the Spectrum Line as above but write up the main criteria of people’s definitions of violence/nonviolence as they emerge (or preferably get someone else to write them up) and feed into a brief facilitated discussion if it's going to be useful and if you've got the time.

Other issues: Whilst the Spectrum Line is the classic violence/ nonviolence tool, it can easily be used to explore other topics. We've used it to explore personal definitions of what is effective direct action. We've also used this with groups to explore their limits and the support systems they require before they can take action, by combining it with an “I'd do that if” exercise, and using a spectrum from “I'd never do that action” at one end to “I'd find it easy to do that action” at the other. People in the middle are saying they would do the action in the right circumstances, and you can explore what those circumstances are (an example might be “I'd take part in this scenario if I was certain it would get good media attention”, which stimulates the group to think about what they can do to ensure good media coverage).

Evaluation: Spectrum Lines can be used when you want to answer a series of questions, such as when you're evaluating a workshop. Ask the group what they thought of your exercises, with one end of the Spectrum being 'Good' and the other being 'Not so Good'. It provides an active alternative to more reflective evaluations

Double Axis: Once you're feeling more confident you can create a double axis Spectrum, with one axis being 'Violent' and 'Nonviolent' and the other being 'Effective' and 'Ineffective, for example'. Participants would consider both criteria and move accordingly – so they might stand between the nonviolent and ineffective point for an action they felt was nonviolent but didn't achieve much.

Nonviolent Not effective Effective Violent very nonviolent & slightly effective x

Paper Spectrum: We use this when we don't have room. Get yourself a large sheet of paper and draw a line on it. Hand out post-it notes. Participants can then either put their name on a post-it and move that to express their opinion, or you can pre-prepare a series of post it notes and ask the group to place them along the line depending on how (non)violent or (in)effective they consider them.... so you might have post-its with a series of possible actions such as: suicide bombing, signing a petition, going to see your MP, starting a housing co-op, pulling up a GM crop, taking medicines into Iraq in contravention of UN sanctions, occupying a corporate office etc. Best done in several small groups. This exercise can be enhanced by asking the groups to pay attention to, and note down, the criteria they find themselves using to make their decisions.

Direct Action Support Systems

Fears & Solutions / I'd do that if...

Here's 2 ways of working from a starting point of the 'fears' that people have about taking direct action through to an understanding that there are things that can be done to support people and make any action less frightening and more empowering.

Why use these exercises?

Everyone has some concerns over taking action, whether they're new to it or an 'old hand'. These will vary from person to person. Some people will have significant fears, others just little concerns. It might vary from getting arrested through to going to prison, from being misrepresented by the media to worrying who will pick the kids up from school if you're arrested. In some cases it's enough just to acknowledge them, but both these exercises take it a step further and try to provide people with some concrete ideas on what they can do to make action more possible for them and for their group.

This exercise also plays a useful role in getting any concerns out the way, and allowing people to engage with the rest of the workshop free from the worries they may have arrived with!

Issues to explore

What issues prevent us from taking action or make action more stressful?

What can we do, individually and collectively, to change that?

1) Fears & Solutions

How to run the exercise:

Divide your participants into pairs and ask them to share the one example of direct action that has inspired them - “it could be something you’ve participated in, something you’ve seen reported on TV or in the paper”. It can help for the facilitators to give an example from their own thinking. Give the pairs 2 or 3 minutes to share their inspiring actions. This short exercise helps establish that there are positive things about taking action – we may have concerns, but we also find it inspiring.

You can gather the group back together and ask for a few examples of peoples' inspiration if you have time.

Next ask the pairs to share their biggest concern about taking action - it might be anything from a small concern to a serious fear. Facilitators can give examples to start the ball rolling and set the tone of the contribution that you’re looking for. This can be important. It's conceivable that someone could admit to a fear that you simply can't deal with. The tone of your contribution helps set the boundaries.

Make sure the pairs know that they will be asked to feedback their concerns, but that this won’t be in any way compulsory. Pairs should also make clear to each other if there’s something they are happy to share with each other but not with the full group. NB Be careful about the language you use here – ‘fear’ is a powerful word, ‘concern’ less so.

Either go round the pairs one by one, writing up the concerns on flipchart paper or just ask people to shout out their issues. Alternatively ask the pairs to write their concerns on post-it notes as they discuss them, and then stick them up on the wall or on paper in this feedback slot.

Facilitators can theme the contributions as they arise, speeding up the solutions section of the exercise. Common themes are:

Legal issues (usually 2 areas – arrest and police station/ longer term legal implications)

Violence or physical injury (e.g violence from the police, violence from within self, violence from fellow protester)

Employment & Travel (Will I be sacked? Will I get a visa? I’m not a British national, will I be deported?)

Effectiveness & communication (Will we get our message across? Will we be misrepresented by the media? Will other protesters hijack our peaceful action with their message or with behaviour we consider to be violent?)

7. Next take the themes, one by one and work with the group to come up with solutions. If time is short this may have to be more presentational. Ideally you will let the group do most of the thinking, adding in a few comments yourself where necessary

Training such as this to give people some theoretical background, and a taste of what direct action might be like

Legal support systems such as police station support

Legal briefings to ensure people know their rights and make informed choices

Bust cards ('Rights On Arrest' cards) to reinforce knowing your rights

Groundrules and/or guidelines for the action to help ensure it is the style of action you’ll be comfortable with (groundrules might include ‘no damage to property’, ‘respect for life’ or ‘no verbal abuse’ for example)

Buddying up to ensure that you have someone with you throughout the action

Affinity groups to act as a support community of like-minded people sharing similar aims and limits

Police liaison role to ensure clear communication with the police

Legal observers/Photographers/Stewards to monitor & record police behaviour on the ground and mediate where necessary

Using the media (including the alternative media) to ensure your message is heard

Talking to friends, family, employers in advance to build support, reduce the risk of alienation and misunderstanding after the fact

Having someone on the action to help facilitate good decision making between activists who might be spread across an action site

Time:

We've tried to limit this to 20 to 25 minute sessions and usually failed. Depending on the depth of concerns, and the dynamic in the group you're working with it could easily take 40 to 60 minutes if you cover every concern listed.

Materials:

Flipchart paper & pens, post-it notes.

Notes:

You're not there to present a definition of (non)violence, so be aware that one person’s fear of “violence from fellow protesters” may revolve around throwing bricks through McDonald’s windows, which to another contributor might be perceived as a valid act of political expression against a trans-national corporation. Be careful about ‘taking sides’.

If nothing else, stress buddying up and affinity groups as the basic support mechanisms available to activists. Make sure everyone is clear that buddies stay together through thick and thin. If one person wants to leave, their buddy should leave with them – safety & support is most important. These details are covered on the handout for this workshop.

Be careful about raising significant fears and then leaving them unaddressed at the end of the exercise!

This exercise can take time. You may have to deal with some people beginning to get bored and restless, especially in larger group. You can obviously alleviate this by working in 2 or more facilitated groups.

1) I'd do that if

How to run the exercise:

Divide your participants into pairs

Explain the concept of the exercise – exploring personal limitations and then looking for ways to support people in overcoming them

Give the group a scenario and ask them to discuss whether they'd find it easy to do that action, whether it was something they could never do, or if there was a third “I'd do that if...” option (e.g. “I'd do this action if there were a large number of us taking part”, or “I'd do this if we could get good media coverage”)

Feedback on peoples' limits and possible support systems that could overcome the concerns – if the pairs just come up with their limits, question them about what might be done to get past the limits. You might need to feed in some of the common support roles yourself.

Ask participants to move on to another partner and continue the discussion with another scenario

Feedback as above

Repeat with new scenario

Possible scenarios:

Running an info stall in town to encourage people to come to an action

Marching to a military base and then sitting in the road to block the gates

Sitting in the road and locking to each other

Taking part in a die-in on the steps of a government office

Occupying the foyer of a government office

Occupying a government office, barricading yourself in a room and locking on

Taking part in a citizens arrest of Tony Blair for warcrimes

Time:

If you limit the scenarios you use (e.g. one low level action, one medium level, and one 'high risk scenario) you can complete this exercise in 25-35 minutes.

Materials:

Flipchart paper & pens.

Notes:

You're looking to get across the same information as with 'Fears and Solutions'

Variations:

We have successfully used a Spectrum Line in combination with 'I'd do that if'.

Set up a spectrum line – one end of the line 'I'd never do that', the other 'I'd find it easy to do that'. The centre represents 'I'd do that if..', i.e. I would do that in some circumstances

Give the group a scenario and ask them to move accordingly, making sure they are aware they can move at any time.

Debrief – why are people standing where they are? What are the issues holding them back? What can be done to support them?

Grounding & Breathing

Why use this exercise?

To give your participants a practical tool to help them stay more centred in stressful situations.

How to run the exercise:

Introduce the need for grounding techniques: actions can be stressful, and so we like to give you methods to help stay calm. This also helps in making the action more mindful, deliberate and less likely to erupt into violence – also you can make better decisions when you’re calm!

Ask your participants to stand up in a circle and place a hand on their chest. Then ask them to breath fast through their mouth. Keep this up for about 30 seconds.

Ask how people feel – common responses are “lightheaded”, “panicky”.

Now ask people to stand with their feet firmly on the floor, and place a hand on their stomach. Ask them to breath down into their stomachs, through their noses, and imagine the air pushing their hand away. Keep this up for 30 seconds

Ask how people feel – common answers are “calm”, “centred”. Suggest that people practice this latter state of breathing so they can slip into it easily when they need to.

Time:

We've run this in as little as 5 minutes! That's not to say it wouldn't benefit from more time.

Materials:

None needed.

Notes:

Some people might feel a little self-conscious doing this exercise. By keeping your language practical and explaining the benefits you can mitigate the worse effects of this.

Variations:

Pick any of the many breathing based techniques that can be borrowed from yoga, tai chi, other martial arts, or self development techniques.

Practical Protest Techniques

using your body and simple equipment to prolong your protest

A basic level direct action training might cover a few practical techniques such as Passive Resistance and Simple Blockading Techniques (holding a space):

Passive Resistance

Passive resistance is essentially 'going limp' when police or security are trying to move you. There are usually 2 reasons why people choose to passively resist – the ideological and the tactical. Ideologically it's a gesture of non-cooperation with the police or security guards that are trying to move you from an area. This can be very empowering. Tactically it takes a lot more effort to move a passively resisting protester than a tense one. So passive resistance can tie up police resources and slow down the process of removing protesters. Arguably it can also keep you safer, as a relaxed body bruises less easily than a tense one.

Why use this exercise?

Demonstrating and practicing passive resistance gives participants a chance to think about and experience a technique in a safe space, to consider the practical aspects of safety, what to wear, what (not) to carry with them etc and to be able to make mistakes without it mattering!

It's a great exercise for getting a group working with each other. The physical nature of it breaks down some barriers.

It's an effective action technique!

Issues to explore

Effectiveness – is the technique useful? In what situations?

Health & Safety – what are the possible risks involved? What can you do to mitigate them?

Empowerment – how does it feel to passively resist? Who has the power in the relationship with the police/ security?

Fashion Tips – what practical issues are there about the way you're dressed? What accessories are useful and what are potentially dangerous?

How to run the exercise:

Issue a warning at the beginning that this isn’t an exercise suitable for people with back problems or other physical limits. Make sure the group know it’s optional and that there's always value in having observers (if you do have observers though, involve them by asking for feedback at relevant moments).

Demonstrate briefly with one facilitator sitting or lying in a tense fashion, and at least 2 volunteers trying to move them a few feet, Repeat with the ‘protester’ relaxing & going limp. Ask for comments from observers, from the 'police' and add comments from the point of view of the protester. In your demonstration draw attention to the head & neck – emphasise that the chin can be tucked in tight to the chest to prevent injury to the head even when the rest of you is relaxed

Divide your group into smaller groups of 3 or 5 (to practice 2 police moving 1 protester, or 4 police moving 1 protester as appropriate).

Ask the groups to find a space and practice until everyone that wants to has had a chance to be the protester. It can be useful to ask the groups at this stage to be aware of any issues to do with safety or clothing.

Circulate amongst the groups trouble shooting any problems, checking people understand the technique and aren't getting hurt!

Feedback to the full group – possible questions to ask them include: How did it feel? Was it effective? What was it like to be a police officer? How do you think they might feel after moving several protesters? Would that effect their behaviour? What safety issues arose? What about clothing?

Time:

You can normally demonstrate and practice this briefly in 15 minutes.

Notes:

The exercise should show clearly that relaxing makes it more difficult to move you.

Draw out any other learning points related to clothing, jewellery, wearing rucksacks (see below)

You might need to emphasise:

The difference between passive and active resistance (actively pulling away from the police, or in any way tussling with them can constitute a crime – resisting arrest/obstructing an officer – with obvious legal consequences. Passively resisting may not be liked by the police, but it isn’t a crime).

It’s your choice whether or not to passively resist, so you can get up and walk at any time if it gets uncomfortable or intimidating. It’s not a competition, so don’t feel obliged to passively resist.

You can passively resist from a standing position, but as this involves falling over it's probably best not to go there!

Be aware of your own health and safety – if you're lifting protesters lift with a straight back, using your knees to give you the strength you need! OK, OK lecture over!

Fashion Tips:

Hopefully most of these will arise from the groups' own experiences when practicing, but if not you might like to feed them in at appropriate moments:

Wear appropriate clothing – for the weather and the style of action: e.g. being dragged across tarmac by the police whilst in inadequate clothes / shoes can lead to injury

Wearing several layers of clothing to protect your body – you can remove clothing if it gets too warm, but can’t add clothing if it gets cold if you haven’t brought it with you!! Spare clothing also serves as padding in your rucksack, protecting your spine & kidneys against injury and helping keep your head off the floor

Removing jewellery – any jewellery can get caught on clothing or people in the melee of direct action. You might unintentionally injure yourself, fellow protesters or the police (which could lead to prosecution). Better to remove it in advance rather than lose it on an action

Tying up hair – helps prevent entanglement, and gives police & security less to get hold of!

Cutting nails – as with jewellery, helps prevent injury to you and others

Simple Blockading Techniques

Why use this exercise?

As with passive resistance, these techniques aren't the sort of thing you experience in your everyday life, so it can be incredibly useful for people to feel what it can be like both physically and emotionally to lock on or to form a human blockade.

Again it's an interactive physical exercise that can be juxtaposed with more 'thinking' sessions to form a workshop that suits all tastes and learning styles.

Issues to explore

Effectiveness – is the technique useful? In what situations?

Health & Safety – what are the possible risks involved? What can you do to mitigate them?

Empowerment – how does it feel to work with others to hold a space or create a blockade? Who has the power in the relationship with the police/ security?

Communication & Decision Making– unlike passive resistance in blockading techniques you're working as part of a group – how can you communicate successfully in potentially stressful, changing and even noisy situations?

Fashion Tips – what practical issues are there about the way you're dressed? What accessories are useful and what are potentially dangerous? Anything that's not already been covered in the passive resistance exercise?

Support – any blockade requires support; people prepared to bring food and drink, help with communication and decision making, liaise with police, speak to the media, or just keep spirits up. What level of support are people comfortable with?

How to run the exercise:

As with the passive resistance practice, issue a warning at the beginning that this isn’t an exercise suitable for people with back problems / injuries. Make sure the group know it’s optional and that there's always value in having observers

Ask for at least 3 volunteers. Get your volunteers to sit on the floor in a line, facing the same way. Ask them to get close together and link arms at the elbows, taking hold of their own wrists.

Explain that this is one technique for creating a temporary human blockade.

Ask for feedback – how does it feel? Do they feel stronger? Bring out that the people on the end are more vulnerable because they're only attached to the line by one arm. Are there any safety or comfort issues? What if the group were sitting on concrete? In a muddy field? What support would the group like if this were a real blockade? You could mention that they can't use their hands, so can't light cigarettes, open a drink, make a phone call...You could ask if anyone has any experience of other ways of blockading with their bodies.

Ask for more volunteers until you have at least 6 people and ask them to form a circle, sitting on the ground, with everyone facing inwards, and linked together as before.

Ask for feedback – how does it feel? Usually there will be a comment that it feels more sociable, easier to communicate, or stronger. Remind people (if they don't make the comment themselves) that they need to act as each others eyes and ears, since they are all facing inwards and can't see behind them. Mention that they now have the option of entangling their legs as well.

Explore what might happen if one person was being forceably removed from the circle. What are the important issues? How can the group communicate to avoid holding on to someone that wants to leave the group (they could be being pressure pointed by the police and be in a good deal of pain)?

What to take on the action:

In addition to the 'fashion tips' above you might like to draw out the following relevant points:

Taking essentials with you:

water (plastic bottle not glass – glass could break and cause injury, or be perceived as an offensive weapon by the police in the wrong circumstances)

snacks to keep your blood sugar up

A rucksack to protect your neck, spine & kidneys – make sure that backpack doesn’t contain items that will cause you discomfort (hardback books, glass bottles etc)

Time:

You can expect to cover the information above in 15 minutes as a minimum.

Notes:

It's easy to create a hierarchy of actions and leave people feeling inadequate because they have never locked on, or don't feel that they want to. It's therefore important to emphasise the need for and the value of support roles on these types of action.

It's equally important not to make light of the risks and safety issues

Variations:

Fluency - depending on time you can practice variations on the circle or line that the group come up with. You could give the participants the chance to get fluent with having to form a circle or line quickly.

Blockading equipment - also depending on time you might introduce other simple blockading tools such as D-locks, handcuffs or arm tubes. This can be as simple as a quick visual demonstration. You can then leave the tools out for people to play with in breaks. Obviously it's possible to extend this and run an 1 ½ to 2 hour blockading session. When using the tools cover how they can be used, safety issues specific to the tool etc (a few ideas follow):

D-locks

locking on under pressure – why not use a buddy?

what to do with the key? - Do you hide it on your body or have a buddy take it away with them? If a buddy takes it away it's important they don't get arrested and you can communicate with them at all times so you can ask to be unlocked

where to lock on to – avoiding moving parts on vehicles or easily removable items

Handcuffs

removing or damaging the quick release catch

possible injuries to the wrist – do you make it clear to the police that you're handcuffed so they don't try to pull your arm (it's easy not to notice a pair of handcuffs)?

Armtubes

what support do you need if you can't use your arms?

what position is most comfortable for a long blockade?

if you're blocking a road, how do you deal with irate drivers who might not realise you're locked on?

Public Perception of Direct Activists

The Hotseat

Why use this exercise?

This exercise helps participants new to potentially illegal / controversial direct action explore potential support and conflict they might encounter if they take such action. It gives them a feel for how they might be perceived by family, friends, work colleagues and people in the street, and how they might justify their decision to act.

Issues to explore

Public perception of direct activists (both positive and negative)

Personal responses / justification to taking potentially controversial or illegal action

How to run the exercise:

Divide your participants into small groups – anywhere from 5 to 8 people should work.

Each group sits in a circle, and asks for a volunteer. The volunteer is briefed that they should imagine they've taken part in a piece of controversial and/or illegal action on an issue they are passionate about. You can identify the specifics of the issue and the action if it would help the volunteer and the group (ask the participant to supply the issue). The rest of the group are briefed that the local paper has just run an article about the volunteer's action, mentioning their recent arrest and upcoming court appearance. They are to ask the volunteer questions about their motivation – these questions can be judgemental and awkward, some can be supportive.

Allow the dialogue to run for 5 minutes or so. Thank your volunteer for agreeing to sit in the Hotseat, and, if necessary, give everyone a short time to calm down, and get out of role.

Repeat with a second and third volunteer if time allows.

Progress into a general discussion on the issues raised.

Example Questions:

Here's a few questions that help demonstrate the possibilities of the Hotseat dialogue...

What did you think you would achieve?

What about your family? How do you think they're going to feel?

What can I do? How can ordinary people get involved?

Did you really think that your actions could make a difference?

You could have been hurt or killed – did you think of how that might effect your family and friends? Did you think at all? Weren't you just being selfish?

There's a range of possible questions that would revolve around the issue – so, for example, someone arrested over War on Iraq could be questioned about their support for mass murdering dictators.

Time:

20 minutes should be long enough to 'Hotseat' a couple of volunteers and have some brief discussion afterwards

Materials:

None needed

Notes:

This can be a daunting exercise for the volunteers. It can help to acknowledge this from the start, and be ready to move on with the agenda if no-one is willing to take that role.

The flipside of not finding a volunteer is that you get the 'usual suspects' volunteering – the confident members of the group who do most of the talking. This exercise won't be such a challenge for them, and they probably won't learn as much from it. Encourage others to take the risk – perhaps using the confident volunteer first, and making room for a less confident person second.

You may need a facilitator to sit in with each small group and get the ball rolling with some questions until the group warm up.

Variations:

Action Plan 'Inquisition': This technique can be used in totally different contexts, such as testing the strength of an action plan, with the planners being questioned and having to justify the decisions they've made, all with the intention of finding any holes in the plan.

Dealing with Confrontation and Staying Safe

Hassle Lines

Also called: Parallel Lines

Why use this exercise?

Hassle lines are a well established method of giving your workshop participants the opportunity to explore their own emotional response to direct action related conflict situations, and to practice some simple body language and voice techniques to help de-escalate that conflict.

As with many other physical exercises, they keep the workshop feeling dynamic and interactive.

Hassle Lines are great for giving an experiential side to the thinking about nonviolent interaction, de-escalating conflict, and staying grounded that your workshop may have covered at this point.

Issues to explore

Responses to conflict – what aggravates conflict and what de-escalates it? Some obvious things may emerge, like body language, tone of voice, (lack of) eye contact. There may be other less obvious things, such as the use of silence. ( e.g. some people find it very empowering to stay silent. Others find it the only way they can stay calm and in control. But it can leave the 'police' feeling frustrated and more likely to resort to physical violence).

Power and empowerment – where does the power lie in the interaction? How can the balance be changed?

How to run the exercise:

Line the participants up in two lines facing each other. In larger groups this can be facilitated by asking people to shake hands with the person opposite them (to ensure they have a partner).

Give the group a warning that this is a roleplay technique that can stir up unexpected emotions. Make sure everyone feel able to step aside and observe the roleplay at any time.

One side of the line plays the role of the protester. The other plays the role of police, security, employees or member of the public, depending on the scenario you’re using. NB: these encounters should be strictly verbal unless you specify otherwise – make sure people are aware of this (ignore small & inevitable examples of touch such as a hand on the elbow/shoulder) but don't tolerate 'violence'.

The two lines should be separated by short distance (about 2 paces) so that when the hassle line starts one side can step forward and there is a sense of coming together.

Work through 2-4 of the following scenarios, letting each one run for somewhere between 30 seconds and 2 minutes (until it naturally climaxes or you need to move on). Observe for interesting actions/reactions (fists waved in faces, one person looming over another, raised voices, calm voices, eye contact, smiling, silence, sitting down, turning away etc).

Stop the action, step in between the lines and ask people to get out of their role. You might like to encourage them to have a quick shake, or pause for reflection before debriefing. Then debrief by asking for a few ‘voices’ from each side and facilitating short discussion on key points. Feel free to pick out important examples of behaviour (good or bad; body language or voice control) and ask direct questions. NB: you won’t be able to take every comment – make this clear at the start of the debrief.

Questions might involve asking who felt in the position of power and why; how people felt when faced with particular behaviour; whether particular behaviour inflamed or calmed the situation (e.g: does a silent protester aggravate the police and lead to a more rapid descent into physical violence? Does remaining silent make the protester feel more powerful? Does eye contact help? When the protester smiles is that seen as a sign of warmth or superiority?). Question using emotive language ('how did you feel' rather than 'what did you think') to encourage an emotional response.

You might want to briefly demonstrate good or bad body language or use of voice as part of the debriefs. Alternatively this can be done as an introduction or conclusion to the session (see below for notes on this).

Swap roles with each new scenario (protester side of the line become police and vice versa). NB it can sometimes be useful to get everyone on one side of the line to move down one person, so that participants work with new partner each time. This is especially useful to equalise obvious imbalances (noisy vs quiet person/ tall vs short person).

Final reflections at the end focusing on behaviour and the emotional experience.

Example Scenarios:

We find it works well to pick one overall scenario that suits the group you're working with. So for a peace group you might have peace protesters blocking a gate on a military base to prevent delivery of bombs that will be used in a current and controversial conflict. They might come into conflict with police officers charged with clearing the road and generally upholding the law. You can then run a selection of short roleplays such as the ones below:

First scenario: Police approach and ask protester to leave. Protester briefed to react naturally – whatever comes to them

Second scenario: As above but protester reminded about the need for calm and unprovocative body language and voice

Third scenario: Protesters are faced with an casual employee (e.g. cleaner, kitchen staff) who wants to go to work and won't be paid if they don't turn up

Fourth scenario: Police briefed (without protesters' knowledge) to approach aggressively, swearing and shouting if you feel it is appropriate and the group will cope with the tension, protesters still acting as individuals (i.e. not briefed to work together, though it may happen naturally!). In debrief, stress that this is not common behaviour, but can happen, and better to experience the shock/fear/aggression in a safe space first

Fifth scenario: Police briefed to work in 3s or 4s and ‘gang up on’ one individual from the protester lines, ignoring the others. In the debrief, discuss whether the other protesters just stood by, or acted in solidarity & support.

Time:

You will need at least 20 minutes, in which time you might get through 3 scenarios with a short debrief after each. Ideally though you would allow yourself at least 25 minutes if not more.

Materials:

None needed

Notes:

Hassle lines are sometimes used to practice perfecting the words you will say when challenged by authority/public. However, we usually use them to explore participants emotional responses to conflict and the reality of confrontation and get beyond the merely verbal response. In this case, when debriefing, you will need to focus on these emotions and how modifying behaviour (voice, body language etc) can alter our emotional state, and the power balance of the scenario.

Hassle Lines are roleplay and some people find it difficult to do roleplay. Do what you can to encourage everyone – they will find it difficult to be the police. If you have more experienced or assertive people, ask them to stand on the side of the line that is starting as police or security. Because they are a roleplay, it can be necessary to get people out of their roles. If you think people are still carrying their emotions from their roles, deal with it good and early by taking a break, playing an appropriate game, doing some grounding and breathing exercises or other similar technique.

Briefing one side of the line can be difficult without arousing the suspicion of the other side (who may then huddle and plan a response!). You can get around this by briefing both sides in their respective group as to how to respond next time (ideally you will have a co-facilitator who briefs one side whilst you talk to the other), or by asking the protester line to stand in their lines and remain silent.

Large groups and some venues (e.g. outside) can cause problems with people not being able to hear other people's contribution in the feedback session. You might need to repeat back contributions to the group so that everyone can hear them.

In a short workshop there may be no time for an action roleplay, so this may be your main experiential exercise providing space to put all the theory into practice and (briefly) to reflect on it. In this case you may need to give the Hassle Lines and debrief a little more prominence.

We have had people get quite distressed in Hassle Lines, so it can be worth issuing a warning at the start of the session that you are intending for people to explore their emotion, and it might be a little uncomfortable. Remind them it's not compulsory, and that they can observe, but encourage them to participate on the grounds that it's better to discover these emotions in a safe space than on the streets. Hit can be useful to work with a co-facilitator who can attend to anyone who does find themselves overcome by emotion.

Variations:

Body & Voice Control: this is a formal introduction of some simple theory on using body language and voice control in confrontational situations. If you have enough time you can add this as an introduction of conclusion to your Hassle Lines. We find it works well if you add a little at a time in the debriefs between Hassle Line scenarios. Anyway, here's some notes that might help:

Introduce the concept of awareness of body language & use of the voice in escalating or calming conflict situations. Refer to pop-psychology - that less than 10% of communication actually comes down to the words you use (actually 7%). The rest is body language (55%) and tone of voice (38%). So we need to be aware more of our bodies and tone of voice than the words we say.

Demonstrate examples of good and bad body language, such as:

Stepping forward into someone's personal space, making fists, waving hands in other people’s personal ‘space’, tense facial expressions, tilting head to the side 'cockily', drawing one hip back sharply ( a gesture that can be interpreted as the precursor to throwing a punch!) are all potentially aggressive gestures

Stepping back, looking down & away, crossing arms and legs are all potentially defensive & submissive gestures

We need to strike a balance – assertive but not aggressive. Body language that is open and clear can help. E.g. standing evenly on both feet, with the palms of the hands visible and open by the side, making appropriate eye contact and smiling

Demonstrate examples of good and bad voice control:

Screaming “Let go! you’re hurting me” will simply raise tension and is likely to increase violence (facilitators can demonstrate then ask people how their heart rate feels! If you really screamed, it will have gone up!)

Whimpering “you’re hurting me” will get you nowhere – you’ll be ignored and deemed submissive

Calmly & clearly calling “Please stop it, you’re hurting me” will be heard, will carry to friends, journalists and legal observers and is more likely to be taken seriously.

Briefly add that you can call for “observers” and “cameras” if you feel threatened at any stage. Add that calling out police badge numbers can put individual officers on the spot and may help modify their behaviour (as in “Officer 345, please stop hurting me)

Politeness may help – we’re conditioned to be nice to people who are polite to us!

Hassle line progressing into roleplay: If you're workshop is too short for both Hassle Lines and an Action Roleplay you can compromise by allowing your final scenario to progress into a more physical roleplay. One scenario that usually encourages this is to have the police form a line (link arms) and move forward ordering the protester line back (shouting 'Get back') and pushing against the protesters. You can anticipate that this will lead to protesters sitting downs & passively resisting. You can make this more likely by asking the protester line to co-operate if necessary, or just by telling them to 'look out for each other'.

Perfecting 'opening lines': many trainers use Hassle Lines to explore the words that communicate best in the situation, and aren't so worried about the emotional content. Tailor your scenarios to give the protesters the chance to state their case to different 'audiences' and debrief on what opening lines worked well at engaging the partner in conversation, and which didn't.

Quick Decision Making Using Consensus

Why use this exercise?

Direct actions can be (at times) fast moving and ever changing. They rarely go entirely to plan. It's therefore essential that any group needs a method of making quick decisions during actions.

Because we work with an affinity group model, and because affinity groups are non-hierarchical and value autonomy, it seems appropriate to use a consensus based decision making process.

Even with groups who aren't (yet!) committed to a democratic grassroots model Quick Consensus Decision Making (QCDM) has advantages: it creates decisions that people are more committed to and therefore more likely to implement or abide by; it's empowering to use.

Issues to explore

Effective decision making – Is a decision effective if it gets implemented even if it leaves people feeling undervalued and disillusioned? Is a decision effective if everyone really enjoyed making it but nothing got done? Where does the balance lie?

Personal power versus co-operating with a group – Does QCDM threaten personal autonomy or enhance it? How do we suspend our personal agendas to work towards a group agenda?

Making the best possible decision in the time available – QCDM won't make the same decision as a 4 hour long meeting, but in an action you rarely have 4 hours!

The role of the facilitator in QCDM – which facilitation tools are appropriate?

How to run the exercise:

The details of the exercise will depend on the length of time you've got. This assumes you've only got around 30 minutes.

Introduce the need for quick decisions on actions. Explain that for this exercise you're going to be looking at a consensus based model

Introduce consensus – in the limited time you've got that probably means a short presentation. Some ideas on what you might cover follow:

Consensus is

Participative - requires and encourages everyone to engage

Democratic - power is equal throughout the group in a consensus based decision

Avoids the usual oppressive behaviours - actively discourages domination on account of gender, race, sexuality or any of the other 'usual' isms

Attempts to find win-win solutions to a groups problems - decisions that everyone is happy to implement, thus avoiding isolating and alienating minorities. It's a synthesis of the best elements of everyone's thinking

Task orientated - consensus is by definition about making effective decisions

conditions for good consensus

Trust in each other and in the fact that consensus works

Awareness that group is bigger than the sum of the individuals

Must work towards a common group goal

Requires active participation & good facilitation

All participants must understand the consensus model the group is using

the Quick Consensus model covering:

Start by ensuring that there's clarity on what decision needs to be made and how much time there is to make it

Facilitation - restating & summarising the problem and proposed solutions to save time

Clear use of the language of consensus to avoid confusion (say “I propose...” so that people know to pay attention, don't say “block” when you mean “stand aside” etc)

Making proposals (& friendly amendments if there's time!) - is there time for a period of reflection or discussion, or are you looking for the first proposal someone can think of?

The use of the block and how it varies from a stand aside – the block as a total veto because:

the decision will destroy group cohesion (even one person leaving the group does this)

the discussion is paralysed and time is ticking so you block to kill the proposal and make room for a new one

The various uses of a stand aside (non support/ support but inability to actively participate)

Implementing the decision – who will do what?

Give the participants the chance to clarify anything they are unsure about. You may have time for more general questions – but be aware that any introduction to consensus can lead to a lot of questions, many of which are fascinating but not directly relevant! Offer to speak to people after the workshop or in a break and answer their questions then, or refer them to the handout (available from www.seedsforchange.org.uk).

Split people into small groups – 5-6 people in each group works well. Once they have settled down, explain to them what's going to happen: you will read out a scenario and they will have a short time to come to a consensus decision using the model you've outlined previously.

Ask each group to appoint a facilitator for the first scenario, if necessary elaborating (briefly) on the role of the facilitator.

Read the first scenario, and then repeat it to ensure everyone is clear and tell them how long they will have to make the decision. Start the clock!

Observe the roleplay, noting any particularly good / bad / interesting events.

Stop the roleplay after the required time and ask which group came to a decision. You may have to be quite firm to stop people talking – they may carry on if they're focused on making the decision.

Facilitate a short debrief. Start by explaining that you're not so interested in what they decided to do as in how they did it. What happened? Which groups made a decision? Was it a decision that everyone was happy with? If not, why not? What can they learn for next time? Use your observations to provoke response if need be (“this group seemed to make a decision and then sat back without deciding who would implement it.. is that a fair observation?”)

Repeat with at least another 2 scenarios, appointing a new facilitator in each group for each scenario. It will normally take at least 3 scenarios for people to get the hang of the process.

Example Scenarios:

It can be useful to customise the list of scenarios to make them more relevant to your group and to have an idea of the running order. We usually start by giving the group 3 to 5 minutes to make the first decision and working down to 30 second decisions.

You are taking part in a sit down protest outside a government building. The police have told you that you have 5 minutes to move out of the road and behind their cordon, or they will move in and arrest you all (5 mins)

Your affinity group is participating in an action which has groundrules that include no property damage. Another affinity group is preparing to spray-paint messages on one of the buildings. Unbeknownst to them a TV crew is setting up to film them spray painting (2 min)

You are a support affinity group acting as legal observers for an action. The police have ordered you to move away behind a police cordon 50 yards away, threatening arrest. They have started clearing protesters using what you regard to be excessive force. The protesters are calling for legal observers.(1 min)

One member of the affinity group is having a fit of nerves and wants to leave the protest now. The police are moving in to arrest everyone. (1 min)

You are taking part in a sit down blockade of a gate at a military base. The guards are momentarily distracted by another protester trying to climb the fence, and the gate is unguarded. You had not planned to enter the airfield but….( 30 secs)

You see a fellow protester (from another affinity group) being treated with excessive force as the police carry them to a police transit ( 30 secs)

You're an affinity group taking part in a large mobilisation around George Bush's visit to the UK. You're walking away from the main protest to go find something to eat. As you walk down a side street you see a limousine with a police escort coming towards you down the street....( 30 secs)

Time:

You can do a whistlestop tour of QCDM in 25 to 30 minutes, but you'll only have time to practice 3 scenarios. You can also fill 2 hours and make it a workshop in itself, or anything in between the two.

Materials:

Flipcharts to support your introduction of consensus and the QCDM model

Handout to reinforce the learning (download our one from www.seedsforchange.org.uk)

Notes:

QCDM raises lots of issues. You will find that some of the small groups don't get any decisions made in the time you've got. This can leave people feeling unsatisfied and even disempowered. You need to counter this by reassuring them that it does take practice, and finding positive things from their experience (Did they improve? They're likely to be the groups who did the most learning – can you illustrate that for them?).

These roleplays often get the group buzzing, which is very positive, but it can then be difficult to facilitate the debrief. Some groups will want to keep talking amongst themselves and conduct a post mortem of their last decision. Be prepared to facilitate firmly to get and hold people's attention on learning the lessons.

It's common for participants to want to focus on the task – they want to know what other groups decided, or share their decisions. If you've got time, this is fine, but sooner or later you'll need to focus them on the process. They're learning a process to make decisions – the decisions they make are less important in this context. You can make this easier by saying at the start that you won't be asking for feedback on the decision themselves, but on how they were reached.

Common problems that you should be aware of, highlight and offer solutions for (or get solutions from the group) include:

Facilitators feeling they need to do all the work, and make all the proposals

Facilitators making the decision on behalf of the group

Groups making the decision but not delegating the implementation of it

People volunteering others to take on roles – probably best avoided (“OK, so we need someone to step into the road and stop the convoy, any volunteers?” ...“Jo will do it!”) but often happens

People not volunteering to take on roles. In QCDM it's important that the group achieves its goals but not that any one individual does. Sometimes you'll need to highlight this. People might need to step out of the action limelight into a support role unexpectedly, for example.

Counter proposals. A group will find it almost impossible to coherently discuss 2 proposals simultaneously and it will usually lead to paralysis. Encourage groups to take one proposal at a time, using the block to kill off proposals if need be, or reflection to ensure that when proposals do emerge they are at least partly thought out.

Variations:

Longer Workshop: If you have the luxury of more time there's plenty more you can do. You could think about adding in sessions:

the history of consensus

facilitating quick decision making

more scenario practice, possibly changing the make up of the group so that the dynamic changes each time (different people, larger group size etc)

opening roleplay – throwing the participants into the deep end by asking them to get into groups and make an urgent decision against the clock. Debriefing what worked well? what didn't? how decisions were made? were they democratic? This will almost certainly throw up lots of issues that you can then solve in the rest of the workshop by introducing consensus.

Quick Decisions without a model: some trainers do run quick decision making exercises without 'teaching' the consensus model (Trident Ploughshares, for example), and use the debriefs to highlight the issues to do with democracy and power in the group.

Action Roleplay

Why use this exercise?

Roleplays provide an 'experiential' element to the workshop. They allow people to actually practice the skills they've been exploring, and that's vital if they're going to have a complete learning experience in the workshop.

A roleplay is a safe space to practice in. It doesn't matter if you make a mistake in practice. During the action it could be much more serious!

Issues to explore

roles and support on action – what roles are necessary? What are their strengths and limitations? How does it feel to be (un)supported on an action

communication – with each other and with non-activists in the roleplay

relationships with the police / security

physical wellbeing on actions – including clothing etc., during passive resistance and blockades

effectiveness – what worked? What didn't?

How to run the exercise:

Decide on a suitable scenario for your group, and for the space you're using. Think about what roles you will need filled in the roleplay. You'll probably need several 'police officers'. You might also want to have members of the public, reporters, or employees interacting with the activists. Do you need any observers to give feedback after the roleplay? What skills do you want the activists to practice? Do you need to build in a decision making element to let them practice their quick consensus, for example?

Ensure you consider the health and safety aspects of your space – you might need to move furniture, people's bags, notebooks etc.

Recruit your police and other no-activist roles.

Brief the remaining participants that they are activists. Explain the scenario, and the geography of the roleplay. You might have marked out an area for a gateway, or a road, or a police van. Let them know how long they have to prepare for their action, and any limitations (are they allowed to pretend to lock on?). Ensure you give appropriate health and safety warning and let people know they do not have to participate – observers are welcome.

Whilst the activists prepare, brief your police, reporters etc.

Announce the start of the roleplay

Allow the scenario to run until either you run out of time or there's a natural moment to break.

Give people a chance to get out of role. This may mean a 10 minute break for a more intense roleplay, or it could just be a quick shake and 30 seconds to calm down. Some action roleplays are very physical and people may need to get their breath back and replenish their bloodsugar, or get a drink.

Gather everyone and facilitate a feedback session. You could have all the activists meet in a small group to debrief, all the police do the same etc. At some point though it's useful to bring everyone together for feedback. What happened? Did the activists see it as a success? Was it effective? What made it effective? What could have been better? What roles were filled? What other roles would have been useful?

If it's useful, write up the feedback.

Example Scenarios:

We often use a simple blockade of an entrance to a military base, conference centre, field or factory depending on the group we're working with.

Time:

You can run a roleplay in 20 minutes if you introduce it quickly and limit the action preparation time. In most cases the actual action only needs to last for 5 to 10 minutes before most issues have been raised. If you have longer, great!

Materials:

It can help to use furniture to mark out the major geographical features of your action roleplay scene.

Notes:

Always make roleplay optional. Some people do have real reservations about taking part. If someone does stand aside from the roleplay, try to find them another role, such as observing and feeding back.

Be aware of your own needs. You'll often end up roleplaying the police and having to drag activists around. It can be tiring!

Depending on your group you may want to agree some groundrules before the feedback session to ensure that people feedback constructively. Some suggested groundrules are:

Giving feedback -

say something positive before you give someone negative feedback

don't make it personal – criticise what people did not who they are

give feedback that's designed to help us learn, not just to get something off your chest

be honest!

Receiving feedback

listen and accept feedback as well meant

don't get defensive and counter/excuse every point

thank people for their feedback, even if you don't like it

Variations:

Starting with a roleplay: You can start the workshop with an action roleplay. You can literally meet people as they arrive and set up the scene “ the nuclear convoys just 2 minutes away – you need to block the road now!”. This gives everyone a shared action experience that you can refer to throughout the rest of the workshop. It will also raise many of the key issues about actions – such as communication and roles, and help people appreciate the need for them.

Repeating the roleplay: After your feedback session or some other time later in the workshop, repeat the roleplay (or a similar scenario) to allow the participants to put anything they learnt into practice.

Street Protest

This session is divided into 2 main areas – staying aware of your surroundings on actions in order to respond more effectively to changing situations, and police activity, and working together on the street in affinity groups or the less formal 'street teams'.

Why use these exercises?

Street protest can be fast moving – especially in a 'mass mobilisation' context – and these exercises give participants a chance to think about and plan for some possible street mobilisation scenarios, and hopefully help them realise the value of awareness on actions

To provide an opportunity to think about, plan and experience issues around communication, support and safety in unpredictable action situations

To encourage participants to develop tactics for street teams / affinity groups

These exercises can also play a part in affinity group formation.

Issues to explore

What factors make street protest more unpredictable than other forms of action?

How can we stay effective in fast changing situations

What support systems do we need in place

Are there particular tactics we can employ to make us effective and well supported?

Awareness on Actions – 'Milling'

There are a number of possible exercises that use milling as their central tool. They can stand alone or be used in a sequence to improve awareness skills. One possible sequence is outlined below. You will be able to think of other possibilities.

How to run the exercise:

Step 1:

Create a clear space in your workshop venue, and ask everyone to put their bags, mugs, pens & paper etc. to one side.

Explain that this session involves some quite physical exercises and that people should be aware of their own limits. They are welcome to sit out at any stage and observe the action.

Talk about the changing nature of mass actions and the need to stay alert, and aware of what's happening around you. Ask everyone to find their own space and stand with their arms out in front of them. Ask them to move their arms slowly to the sides whilst looking straight ahead. At what point do they lose sight of their hands? That's the limit of their peripheral vision. They'll probably be surprised at how far they can see around them. Encourage them use their peripheral vision at all times.

Now ask them to pick 2 other people from the group, without telling anyone who they've chosen. Get the whole group milling around the room quickly. Everyone should attempt to keep both of their chosen people in view at all times.

Debrief – What happened? How easy was it to keep both people in sight?

Step 2:

Depending on how many facilitators there are, you may need to recruit a few participants to be 'police' for this exercise. Outline a scenario to your group. For example you might tell them that they are the vanguard of a larger group of activists, and have gone ahead to take an important road junction to prevent the bad guys getting to wherever the bad guys go. They arrive to find other activists there, many of whom are old friends. There’s no apparent imminent threat from the police who are just observing so there's time to go and say hello to everyone. Tell the group to mill around, saying hello and bestowing handshakes, hugs, slaps on the back as they go

When everyone's moving the facilitators and recruited police rush into the group and snatch one of the milling participants and drag them out of the group.

Debrief – What happened? Who noticed? What did the person who was snatched do? Was it effective? What else might they have done? Did anyone else intervene? What did they do? Was it effective? What else might they have done? The debrief discussion might touch on some of the following options:

the need for the snatched person to call out for help

passively resisting or sitting down to slow down the snatching

agreeing to go with the police willingly to avoid injury or confrontation

other people calling for help, observers, or cameras as appropriate

other people attempting to prevent the snatch or to de-arrest the snatched activist

buddying up to ensure there's always one person to support or protect you

Repeat the exercise until you're happy lessons have been learnt. It can be useful to run it at least once with everyone working with a 'buddy' to see what impact buddying up can have. You can also complicate issues with groups that are reacting well by having a second group of police snatch a second individual whilst the bulk of the group are dealing with the first snatched activist.

Variations:

Making & holding a space: We've used this same milling technique to help improve people's simple blockading techniques. After covering the basics of how to work together to hold a space (sitting in lines, circles and linking together) we have outlined a scenario such as the one above. We've told the group that they want to hold the space, but don't perceive an imminent threat. They've posted scouts who will blow a whistle when the police are moving in to clear the area. On the whistle they need to take & hold the space. After 1 or 2 attempts/ debriefs we've complicated the scenario by moving in unannounced (the scouts have been arrested!) and seeing how the group react.

Time:

You could reasonably expect this sequence to take 20 – 30 minutes as a minimum if you kept the debriefs focused.

Materials:

Whistles for the variation

Notes:

These are very physical exercises, so be very aware of health and safety related issues. When snatched people could react in many unpredictable ways, from lashing out to falling to the floor. Only snatch people you are confident are physically fit.

You might need to work hard to get people to genuinely mill. There's a tendency for participants to huddle and shuffle in order to be closer together when you next strike! Obviously this is more likely once they have realised you are moving in a grabbing people. Encourage them to keep moving.

Street Teams

We can't always form long term affinity groups but we can form street teams – people that work together for the duration of the action but don't necessarily have the shared history and established trust of an affinity group. This exercise involves a Spectrum Line progressing into a series of short roleplays.

How to run the exercise:

Step 1: Spectrum Line

Ask everyone to line up according to the risk they're prepared to take in a mass mobilisation situation – moving to one end if they see themselves as 'front line' and arrestable, at the other if they want to protest but stay safe and not get arrested. In the middle if they're willing to take some risk but not be the first ones 'over the top'.

Once people have found their place on the Spectrum Line group people together with those standing in a similar place on the line – this should group people according to the the risk they are willing to take. These groups form the street teams for the rest of this session.

Step 2: Organisation and Communication on the street

Ask the groups to find a space and to think about how they will communicate on the street, and how they will regroup if they get split up, imagining that the room you're in is the scene of the street action.

Some possibilities:

whistles (will they work if lots of protesters have whistles?)

other unusual group noise or word that can be shouted

putting hands up high

mobile phones (but sometimes won't work on large demos, as the police block or use those frequencies, also people don't always hear them. There's also issues around phones getting damaged or address books being useful evidence if the phone (and it's owner) are arrested)

pre-arranged and safe regrouping point

phoneline with a remote access answermachine on it

staffed phoneline

flags

Whilst the groups are still talking, the facilitators roleplaying the police move in quickly with batons to clear the groups out of the space. Let the roleplay run for a while and then debrief: What happened? Why? What could have been done differently? How did people communicate? Did they get split up? Did they successfully regroup? Did teams fulfil the roles they took on (avoiding arrest, challenging the police etc.). Feedback other solutions the groups came up with and list these on paper if it's useful.

Introduce the concept of using signals such as flags: In the following roleplay you are using 2 signals - a 'to the barricades' flag to lead people to where the action is happening, and a 'safety' flag to lead people away from danger.

Give appropriate street teams the 2 flags

Outline a march /procession scenario – perhaps a march to the conference centre of a G8 meeting. Make sure everyone knows where they are heading to within the space you're working in (a set of doors is a good final destination).

Ask every street team to think about the role they want to play on the action – are they there to add colour and noise, to protect other teams from the police, to blockade the conference centre entrance, to offer support such as legal observers etc.

Give the street teams some time to discuss, but before they finish, the facilitator-police move in. Let the roleplay run and then debrief.

Repeat, this time allowing the march to start properly and moving in to police it once it's underway.

Time:

Give this at least 25 minutes. To get full value from the debriefs, you may need to allow longer.

Materials:

Whistles, 2 flags, newspaper batons for the police

Notes:

As with the milling, these roleplays are by their nature unpredictable, so do everything you can to ensure safety!

Group Agreements for Workshops

Group agreements are a useful tool for getting your workshop or training session off to the right start. They help the group to come to an agreement on how the group will operate rather than the facilitator setting out rules for all to follow. People are much more likely to respect and implement an agreement that they have had an imput into. It will also make your job as trainer or facilitator much easier – when problems or conflicts arise you will be able to refer back to this agreement (eg “We all agreed at the beginning that it's best if only one person speaks at a time...”)

Below is an outline of a process you can use to create a group agreement for a longer workshop. It takes a while, but you will save that time later on, as your workshop will be running a lot smoother as a result.

Allow a minimum of 30 minutes to come up with a group agreement. Once everyone has arrived, ask a question like:

“What things would make this group/workshop work well for you?” or

“What would make this group a good space for learning?”

People can respond in several ways:

People call out points which are written up on flipchart paper for everyone to see

People write their comments on pieces of paper and group the pieces of paper together on the wall.

People talk about the question in pairs or small groups and then feed this back to the whole group.

Once you have drawn out people's ideas, go through the list one by one and checkfor clarification. Dicsuss how this can be turned into practical ways of working.

Take for example “it's alright to disagree”. How would this work practically? You could add “by trying to challenge what a person says, not attacking the person themselves.”

Another example is “Confidentiality”. This is also quite vague and you will need to examine what people understand by it and what level of confidentiality they expect from the group.

Finally you need to check for agreement for all the points from the group.

Other ways to create group agreements:

proposing rules then seeking additions, amendments and then agreement (this can be quicker and is useful for shorter workshops lasting only a couple of hours)

ideastorming/ discussing around the idea of 'respect' (what would make me feel respected in this workshop) and using that as basis for agreement

Checklist for planning a workshop

Aims

What do you want people to learn ? Work out key information and key skills you want to get across.

Who is it for?

What kind of people do you expect to particate? What will their expectation of the workshop be? What kind of skill/knowledge level do you expect people to have (beginners, experienced people, people with only theoretical knowledge, people with lots of practical knowledge or a mix of all of these?)

Check people's expectations at the beginning of the workshop to make sure you've got it right.

Space

What sort of space will you need (eg, does it need to be in a metal workshop, in a woodland, in a calm room)? How will you arrange the seating etc?

Time

What can you realistically fit in? Will it be an introduction or an in depth workshop? Take into account people's concentration levels – these will fluctuate, so it's important to mix activities and have breaks.

Tools and Exercises

What tools and exercises will you use? Make sure you have a good balance between theory and practice, and trainer and participant input. Check that you have a variety of activities to cater for different learning styles.

Special Needs

Find out about people's special needs, if possible in advance of the workshop. Do people need large print handouts, wheelchair access, childcare? Check that your agenda doesn't exclude people.

Materials

What materials do I need? This can include flipchart paper, pens, coloroured cards, blue tack, handouts as well as stuff for practical exercises such as arm tubes, bikelocks, radios. It helps to draw up a list so that you can check that you've got everything you need.

Agenda

have you drawn up an agenda or workshop plan, detailing the sequence of activities, methods to be used and the time allocated for each?

Evaluation

How are you going to check that learning has taken place? How can you find out what people liked about the workshop and how it can be improved?

Sample Agenda 1

3 ½ to 4 hour agenda

Background:

This agenda was designed for a anti-militarist group that had already made the mental, ideological and emotional decision to take direct action. The group asked for a workshop that would explore:

What makes effective and useful nonviolent direct action

Preparing to take illegal action

Legal Rights -what can you be arrested for?

Techniques for keeping nonviolent and de-escalating conflict

Action scenarios using roleplays

The facilitators had been warned to expect significant numbers (over 20 people) so had to consider splitting the group in 2 for some exercises.

Start Time	Timing	Exercise	Materials
	10 min	Introduction to the workshop: Facilitators introduce selves Group Go-round – quick sentence on who they are, what they're hoping for from the workshop Aims of the workshop, as we see them & Check that agenda meets expectations of the group Groundrules? - propose a group agreement?	Agenda written up on flipchart
	5 min	Energiser	
	20 min	Effective Direct Action Spectrum Line Possibly in 2 groups, depending on numbers Create a line and label the ends "Agree" and "Disagree" Read out a selection of the following statements and ask people to move along the line as they see fit. If they have a strong preference they should stand close to the end. If they have no firm opinion they stand in the middle and so on. Make sure people know that there's no right answer - it's about exploring personal opinions. Ensure that everyone understands that they can move should they change their mind at any stage. Ask a small sample of people for their thoughts on why they are standing where they are. Use provocative questioning to elicit discussion. e.g. Writing to your MP is effective direct action An action is more effective if people get arrested Suicide bombing is effective direct action Setting up a housing co-op is effective direct actions Staging a bloody 'die-in' at the gate of a military base Blocking the road that gives access to a military base, preventing the movement of personnel and equipment Breaking in a military base and damaging a bomber Going on hunger strike until all GM food is removed from supermarket shelves Pulling up a GM crop from a test site	Prepare to do on paper in small groups if need be
	25 min	“I'd do that if” In 2 groups depending on numbers: Set up a carousel / parallel line so participants are in PAIRS Explain the concept of the exercise – exploring personal limitations and then looking for ways to support people in overcoming them Give the group a scenario and ask them to discuss whether they'd find it easy to do that action, whether it was something they could never do, or if there was a third “I'd do that if...” option Feedback on limits and possible support systems that could overcome the concerns – express support in terms of ROLES Use another scenario, get participants to move on to another partner and continue the discussion Feedback Repeat with new scenario Allow to lead into general discussion on support / support roles if there's time Possible scenarios: Running an info stall in town to encourage people to come to an action Marching to a military base and then sitting in the road to block the gates Sitting in the road and locking to each other Taking part in a die-in on the steps of a government office Occupying the foyer of a government office Occupying a government office, barricading yourself in a room and locking on Taking part in a citizens arrest of Tony Blair for warcrimes	Flipchart paper to write up support roles
	10 min	Support Roles Taking the list of support roles and support systems from the previous exercise, brainstorm any remaining support and action roles that haven't been covered but are necessary for effective action Leave time for explanation or clarificaton, using group's own knowledge where possible Things to try and cover: • Training • Legal support/briefings/bust cards • Action groundrules • Buddying up/ Affinity groups • Police liaison • Legal observers/ photographers/ stewards • Media spokes • Talking to friends, family, employers in advance • Quick decision facilitator	
	10 min	BREAK	
	10 min	Passive Resistance & Fashion Tips Facilitators DEMONSTRATE passive resistance sitting down or lying - showing the difference between tense & relaxed then participants PRACTICE in 3s or 5s as appropriate – **ask groups to think about safety & support (inc. clothing etc.)** Emphasise: The difference between passive and active resistance (legal implications of the latter) It’s your choice so you can get up and walk at any time keeping your head off the ground, tensing your neck if need be Ask for comments and experience from the group Make sure the following are brought out where appropriate. If not summarise at the end: Appropriate clothing & wearing several layers Removing jewellery, tying up hair & cutting nails Using backpack to protect neck, spine & kidneys	
	15 min	Simple Blockading techniques & more Fashion Tips With volunteers DEMONSTRATE: Sitting in a line arms linked - VOLUNTEERS Ask how it feels? What are the strengths and weaknesses? When/where would we use this technique? Sitting in a circle (face in) arms & legs linked - VOLUNTEERS Ask how it feels? What are the strengths and weaknesses? Mention communication, being aware of letting someone go when they’re in pain & watching each others backs Talk about other techniques such as using banners etc to prolong sit downblockades When/where would we use this technique? Bring out any more fashion tips & support issues as appropriate Show basic equipment if relevant, but don't spend much time on it	
	25 min	Body & Voice Control - Hassle lines Hassle Lines Introduce the roleplay and explain that we're going to explore our response to conflict & confrontation. This can bring up some unexpected emotions - think of it as a safe space for exploring emotions - better to discover them now then on an action! Don't feel obliged to participate though we recommend you do. Scenario: 'blockade' of the gates of a military base 1) police/ protester straight into roleplay with no discussion of body language etc in advance. Police briefed to be quite assertive. debrief: look for any interesting responses such as protesters remaining silent, poor body language, raised voices, laughter, smiles, eye contact etc. then repeat scenario with other side of the line Body and Voice control Illustrate with examples from the hassle line whereever possible introduce the concept of awareness of body language & voice. [pop-psychology: only 7% of verbal communication actually down to the words you use. Rest = body language(55%) and tone of voice(38%)] Facilitators demonstrate the difference between calm and clear communication, and communication likely to induce panic/escalate conflict, with a simple voice example - calling for observers calling for cameras calling out police badge numbers Briefly demonstrate body language - how to stay open and look neither aggressive or passive. Talk about how body & voice can (de)escalate conflict in an action situation Then back to hassle line – 2 of following 3 2) Employee / protester 3) Police 3 on 1 => brief police to pick a likely suspect and to work in 3s and move in to intimidate their victim. => debrief: check whether awareness of body and voice helped. Talk about support (or lack of it) offered by protesters to the victims What happened? How did you respond? How did it feel to be picked on? How did it feel to be ignored? What support was offered? Was it effective? If not what could have been done. Mention BUDDYING, CALLING FOR HELP Aggresive Police => brief police to go in fast as a unit, shouting at the protesters to get back and pushing them back if necessary What happened? What was effective? What else might you have done?	
	10 min	BREAK	
	30 min	Legal briefing - likely charges Get participants into small groups (3 or 4) and give them all a copy of Activist Offences Scenario Handout. Ask them to decide what charges they think are relevant to each scenario Feedback from the group Correct any misunderstandings and add any missing information	see Activists' Legal Project Briefing 3
	30 min	Legal briefing - rights on arrest What happens when you get arrested? What are your major rights Consequences of a record: employment, travel, residency etc	Arrest Process flipcharts Activists' Legal Project Briefing 1
	20 min	Action Roleplay Roleplay sit down blockade scenario, such as a the gate of a military base. Debrief on what roles were filled and how useful they were? what other roles would have been useful? what was effective? what wasn't?	
	5 min	Evaluation	

Sample Agenda 2

1 ½ hour - Direct Action & Blockading Techniques

Background

This workshop was designed for an open workshop at an activist gathering. The facilitators had been asked to run a 'blockading skills' workshop. Participants were drawn from several countries and couldn't be expected to speak fluent English.

Timing	Exercise	Materials?
10 mins	Introduction to the workshop: Facilitators introduce selves Group Go-round – quick sentence on who they are, why they're at the workshop Run through proposed agenda then check it re expectations Propose and agree group agreement Language / translation – check if everyone is happy workingin English, and improvise translation from within the group if not. Introduce handsignal to show some language related help is needed (translation, speaker slowing down etc)	Both Agenda written up Groundrules written up
5 min	Setting the scene Quick intro to the workshop – why you might want to blockade a couple of examples of where it has been used that this workshop will cover techniques using just your body & techniques with simple tools Warning: quite a physical workshop, so be aware of personal limitations, and sit out if you want to	
15 mins 5 mins 2 mins 5 mins	Grounding, Breathing and maintaining awareness Introduce the need to stay centred in order to stay effective and be able to make sensible decisions Grounding & Breathing Get group standing in a circle and ask them to breath rapidly and shallowly through their mouths. Ask them how they feel: talk through the 'fight or flight' type breathing – shallow, tense, fast – point out tension in shoulder & neck, unsettled stomach, lightheadedness Repeat but this time ask them to place a hand on their stomach, breath into their hand/stomach through their nose, ask them how they feel now Ask them to root themselves, feet flat and in contact with the ground, body relaxed Get them bumping into one another, maybe push a few folk and see how they feel Maintaining Awareness Introduce need to stay aware – of each other, of the police & security, of opportunities and of threats Ask group to put their hands up at their sides and stick their thumbs out. Get them to slowly move their thumbs back whilst looking ahead and to notice where they lose sight of their thumb – the edge of their peripheral vision Moving whilst aware & grounded Now ask them to move around and bump into each other firmly to test their groundedness Then get them to move around making eye contact, but trying to avoid each other, using their awareness to stay apart	
35 mins 15 mins 20 mins	Prolonging your protest - Passive Resistance & Blockading Passive Resistance Facilitators DEMONSTRATE passive resistance sitting and lying - showing the difference between tense & relaxed then participants PRACTICE in 3s or 5s as appropriate - ask groups to consider clothing, safety, support they'd want/need Emphasise: The difference between passive and active resistance (legal implications of the latter) It’s your choice so you can get up and walk at any time keeping your head off the ground, tensing your neck if need be Basic Blockading Techniques With volunteers DEMONSTRATE: Sitting in a line arms linked Sitting in a circle (face in) arms & legs linked (mention communication, being aware of letting someone go when they’re in pain & watching each others backs) Talk about other techniques such as using banners etc to prolong blockades d-locks, handcuffs, armtubes, seatbelt / coatloop lockons Make sure the following have been brought out. If not summarise at the end: Appropriate clothing - wearing several layers Removing jewellery, tying up hair, cutting nails Using backpack to protect neck, spine & kidneys	D-locks Handcuffs Clips /armtube Seatbelt
10 mins	Roles on blockades PRESENTATION blockades need you to work together. Strongly recommend buddies, affinity groups, street teams Possible roles Those locking on Support (action elves) – to feed, protect, communicate, lock you on, take keys, facilitate decision making etc. Observers Media spokes Drivers First Aid /street medic Police liaison	Roles flipchart
20mins	Action Roleplay: Simple roleplay scenario such as blockading a gateway/sit down protest. Recruit a few police officers Brief protesters that they have 5 mins to prepare to blockade a gateway, that facilitators + volunteers are roleplaying the police, that once arrested and put in a van they are out of the game, that ‘police’ will act as realistically as possible (including using reasonable force!) Debrief: GO –ROUND with 1 thing that went well with the action, 1 that could have been done better (not making it personal!) followed by general discussion if time.	
10 min	Evaluation	

Sample Agenda 3

5 hour agenda - Preparation for nonviolent direct action

Background

An open workshop that was run as part of a training session prior to a week of action to stimulate more action and equip people with some basic tools for taking action.

Timing	Exercise	Materials?
5 mins	Introduction to the workshop: Facilitators introduce selves Participant Go-round – name, what hoping for and what NVDA experience Aims of the day & check agenda against group expectations Proposed workshop groundrules – seek additions, amendments and then agreement	Name stickers proposed agenda & groundrules written up
5 mins	Inspiration & Motivation: In SMALL GROUP or in PAIRS share with each other an example of NVDA that has inspired you (something you saw on TV/Read about/took part in etc.). Facilitators start the ball rolling by giving an example of what first inspired them to get interested in NVDA	
25 mins	NV Spectrum Line Create a line and label the ends "Agree" and "Disagree" Read out a selection of the following statements and ask people to move along the line as they see fit. If they have a strong preference they should stand close to the end. If they have no firm opinion they stand in the middle and so on. Make sure people know that there's no right answer - it's about exploring personal opinions. Ensure that everyone understands that they can move should they change their mind at any stage. Ask a small sample of people for their thoughts on why they are standing where they are. Use provocative questioning to elicit discussion. I experience violence in my everyday life Throwing a molotov cocktail into an empty office is violent Breaking the law is an act of violence against society Hammering the nosecone of a fighter jet is violent Spray-painting peace symbols on a fighter jet is violent Climbing over the fence to get into an airfield is violent Pulling down the fence to get into a military base is violent Linking arms and attempting to push through a line of riot police is violent Nuclear deterrence is violent Nuclear power is violent Living an affluent lifestyle whilst millions live in poverty is violent	
30 mins	I'd do that if...... Set up a carousel, or 2 parallel lines of chairs, with participants facing each other. Give the group a scenario and ask them to discuss: "I'd do that if ..." to explore the support people need to move beyond their existing limits. Facilitators give an example to set the tone Expand the scenario, get participants to move on to another partner and continue the discussion Feedback to group what the limits are and what support would help Give a second scenario and repeat etc. Possible scenarios: Running an info stall in town to encourage people to come to an action Going on a protest march to a military base Going on a march to a military base despite an official ban from the police Marching to a military base and then sitting in the road to block the gates Sitting in the road and locking to each other Speaking at a public meeting from the stage Occupying the runway of a military airfield Taking part in a die-in on the steps of a government office Occupying the foyer of a government office Occupying a government office dropping a banner from the window Occupying a government office, barricading yourself in a room and locking on Taking part in a citizens arrest of Tony Blair for warcrimes Group Formation & Support Systems LIST all the criteria that people come up with for the support/roles needed to make actions possible for them Try and identify clear roles or other support systems and briefly introduce them to the group. Make sure that Buddying /Affinity groups are covered. Other things to try and cover: • Training • Legal support/briefings/bust cards • Action groundrules • Police liaison • Legal observers/photographers/stewards • Media spokes • Talking to friends, family, employers in advance • Quick decision facilitator	
10 mins	Body & Voice Control: Introduce the concept of awareness of body language & voice. [pop-psychology: only 7% of verbal communication actually down to the words you use. Rest = body language(55%) and tone of voice(38%)] Facilitators demonstrate the difference between calm and clear communication, and communication likely to induce panic/escalate conflict, with a simple voice example - calling for observers calling for cameras calling out police badge numbers Briefly demonstrate body language - how to stay open and look neither aggressive or passive. Talk about how body & voice can (de)escalate conflict in an action situation Point out nonviolence often considered to apply to body language / voice as well as fists…	
25 mins	Passive Resistance & Blockading techniques: Passive Resistance Facilitators DEMONSTRATE passive resistance standing, sitting and lying - showing the difference between tense & relaxed then participants PRACTICE in 3s or 5s as appropriate Emphasise: The difference between passive and active resistance (legal implications of the latter) It’s your choice so you can get up and walk at any time keeping your head off the ground, tensing your neck if need be Basic Blockading Techniques With volunteers DEMONSTRATE: Sitting in a line arms linked Sitting in a circle (face in) arms & legs linked (mention communication, being aware of letting someone go when they’re in pain & watching each others backs) Talk about other techniques such as using banners etc to prolong blockades Facilitators show what can be done with d-locks 1 person locked on to something solid 2 people locked together Several people locked together (mention potential hazards, issues to do with keys, and usefulness of having support people!) Facilitators talk about arm tubes and their uses (mention need for support people, especially for people with both arms in tubes!, length of the tubes, need to practice quick 'entry' into tubes, making sure any tape/chain round wrist is comfortable)	
30 min	LUNCH BREAK	
20 mins	Hassle Lines Roleplay Introduce the roleplay and explain that we're going to explore our response to conflict & confrontation. This can bring up some unexpected emotions - think of it as a safe space for exploring emotions - better to discover now than on an action! Protester/Authority examples (police/security/employee), Practiced with one side of the line only, then move to the next example React naturally (police/ protester) React with reminder of body & voice issues (if needed)(employee/protester) Look for any interesting responses such as protesters remaining silent, body language, raised voices, laughter, smiles, eye contact etc. Then 2 of the following 3 Police briefed to go in aggressively, protesters still acting as individuals Police briefed to work in 3s or 4s and ‘gang up on’ one individual from the protester lines (debrief whether other protesters moved to support target, or just watched) Protesters go forwards (walking) => police link arms & block, order back => passive resistance. (activists briefed on benefits of co-operating).	
25 mins	Quick Consenses Decision Making Quick introduction to: why we use consensus description of the Quick Consensus process by facilitators. Brief Q & As for clarity In AFFINITY GROUPS/SMALL GROUPS use 3 or so of the following examples You are a support affinity group giving legal support to an anti-war action. The MDP have ordered you to move away behind a police cordon 50 yards away, threatening arrest. They have started clearing protestors using what you regard to be excessive force. Protestors are calling for legal observers.(1 min) Fellow protestor being treated with excessive force on the way into a police transit ( 30 secs) You are participating in an action with groundrules that include no property damage. Another group is preparing to spray-paint messages on one of the buildings (1 min) Decision to go back into the road after being moved by police & threatened with arrest (2 mins) You are blockading a gate. The guards are momentarily distracted by a protestor trying to climb the fence, and the gate is unguarded. You have not planned to enter the base ….( 30 secs) One member of the affinity group wants to leave the protest now. The police are moving in to arrest everyone. (1 min) Brief feedback on process after each decision Was a decision reached? Was it a quality decision? Did the group follow the process successfully?	
5 mins	BREAK	
60 mins	Legal Briefing: Covering likely charges rights on arrest/arrest procedures consequences of a criminal record Q & A	Activists' Legal Project Briefings 1 & 3
5 mins	BREAK	
25 mins	Action Roleplay: Simple roleplay scenario (ideally outside), such as blockading a gateway/sit down protest. Brief protesters that they have 5 mins to prepare to blockade a gateway, that facilitators + volunteers are roleplaying the police, that once arrested and put in a van they are out of the game, that ‘police’ will act as realistically as possible (including using reasonable force!) Debrief: GO –ROUND with 1 thing that went well with the action, 1 that could have been done better (not making it personal!) followed by general discussion if time.	
5 mins	Evaluation Pie Chart evaluation & Evaluation Form

Richard Shore

2007-04-10T11:18:32