A-Infos in reply to an insulting and slanderous message

[Wu Ming 1 <roberto.bui@libero.it>]

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Cari/e compagni/e,

On June 19th, 2002 A-Infos put into circulation an anonymous message from 
Italy stating that
(1) the Wu Ming collective is part of the so-called Disobbedienti and
(2) is "relative" of the people who assaulted an "Umanita Nova"-selling 
anarchist in Venice some time ago. In the same message the Wu Ming 
collective was also
(3) charged with being "social democratic" and "bolshevik" and somehow 
accustomed to attacking anarchists. Furthermore,
(4) we were accused of being "hypocrites" and "shits" because our novels 
are published by a corporate publisher "part of Silvio Berlusconi's group".
Here's our repleader.


	-1-

We are not part of the Disobbedienti or every other current of the 
movement, we are absolutely autonomous from all currents, groups and 
parties, we are a collective of novelists.
Indeed we criticize the Disobbedienti, sometimes we do it bitterly. We were 
involved in the "tute bianche" experiment (1998-2001), one of us took even 
part to escorting the Zapatista "March of Dignity" in Mexico, that's well 
known, but later reflected upon the flaws and limits of the TB experience. 
After Genoa we wrote that everyone (not only those wearing white overalls) 
had to start over. In case someone is interested to read our analysis on 
the tute bianche and their times:
http://www.wumingfoundation.com/english/giap/giapdigest11.html
Not every person involved in the "tute bianche" joined the Disobbedienti, 
indeed, several local affinity groups quit that network in the past 12 
months. Our critique of the "wooden language" employed by the Disobbedienti 
is available here (unfortunately only in Italian):
http://www.wumingfoundation.com/italiano/outtakes/languedubois.html


	-2-

We never were anarchists, that's no mystery: we position ourselves a 
thousand light-years from most branches of the Italian anarchist movement 
(especially those who affect ultra-nihilist suicidal tendencies). we also 
dislike most articles featured on Umanita Nova, and yet we *strongly* 
condemn any aggression, anybody must be free to publish and spread any kind 
of opinions, if someone else disagrees they have to counter with other 
opinions not by kicking asses.

As to our alleged custom of "attacking" anarchists: we never did that. We 
were extremely critical of the way Black Blockers acted last year in Genoa, 
that's no mystery either, we still think that on July 20th 2001 the BB was 
*mocked*, imitated by agents provocateurs in several spots of the town, 
however, we never criminalized the BB. Our appreciation of the way the BB 
acted in Quebec City is available here: 
<http://www.wumingfoundation.com/english/englishmenu.htm>
On June 19th 2001,after the riots in Gothenburg, we also co-authored a 
communique titled "Stop The Encirclement of the Black Bloc", which I 
enclose here:

<<"The Black Bloc is no bullshit. It should not be trivially associated 
with vandalism and irrational devastation. It is an informal network of 
affinity groups, mostly - but not exclusively - anarchist ones, and it 
extends all over North America and continental Europe. They've been active 
for years, elaborate strategies and tactics and are willing to transform 
them in relation to contexts, alliances and aims. It should be clear that 
so far the Black Bloc hasn't manifested itself in Italy.
As the recent history of the movement proves, the Black Bloc are 
not  static and can adopt different tactis and seek "cross-fertilization" 
like they did in Quebec City during the anti-FTAA mobilisation. In those 
days they acted in full respect of the town and its inhabitants, and 
concentrated all efforts in tearing down the "Wall of Shame". They even 
chose to use symbols and practices devised by the white overalls (pads, 
shields, position holding etc.) and co-operated with other affinity groups 
in the street.
In Gothenburg the Black Bloc talked with the white overalls and decided to 
take action in a common frame including more peaceful protesters. Troubles 
started when the vast majority of spokespersons and coordinators were 
"preventively" arrested during the thursday night raid. The morning after, 
the cops cut in half the demo and isolated a section of it, which was 
labelled as "Black Bloc". These demonstrators could only defend themselves 
by throwing stones, and a few shop windows were broken [...] The peak of 
police violence was reached at an apparently peaceful moment: on friday 
night, when the cops surrounded a park where hundreds of youth had 
organized a rave party. They attacked the ravers, which tried to resist 
unbecomingly [well, you can't always be stylish], then the police fired. 
Certainly the rave was not organized by the Black Bloc.
Black Blocsters are political activists, we may disagree with their praxis 
and theory, but we don't deem them as brainless Pavlov dogs foaming at the 
sight of truncheons.
Moreover, they are more fanciful than people think: a few months ago Black 
Blocsters split off a demo in Buffalo, entered a destitute neighborhood and 
picked up garbage. When journalists asked what the fuck they were doing, 
they answered: "You wrote that we would trash the town, we decided to pick 
up the trash!".
We're witnessing a very serious attempt at criminalizing this section of 
the movement. We refuse to save our ass to the detriment of the Black Bloc, 
we regard them as a fully legitimate part of the movement and refuse any 
distinction between "good protesters" and "bad protesters".
White Overalls of Bologna / Wu Ming>>

	-4-

The things we do everyday are sufficient evidence of the fact that we're 
neither "bolsheviks" nor "socialdemocrats".

	-5-

The socio-political and economical situation in Italy is too tangled and 
bizarre to be summarized here, and it's very difficult to explain that 
there is no apartheid between high and low culture, the mainstream and the 
underground etc. It is all the more difficult to explain how bankrupt and a 
system of chinese boxes forced the most prestigious leftist publisher in 
Italy (that published such authors as Gramsci, Marx (both Karl and 
Groucho), Adorno, Benjamin, Agamben, Pasolini, Aleksandr Herzen, Sartre, 
Barthes, Tzara, Breton, Artaud, Gandhi, George Jackson, Angela Davis and so 
on) to become a sub-label of the Mondadori colossus whose main shareholder 
is Berlusconi. Nevertheless, Einaudi remained completely independent as far 
as contents and editorial choices are concerned.
Anyway, the most important thing is that we have complete control on our 
output, since the mid-Nineties we have imposed an anti-copyright notice on 
our books and, generally speaking, we manage to do whatever the fuck we 
please, in happy and thorough self-management.
As far as our bank accounts are concerned, we are a group and share every 
precious drop of income. So far we have barely made a living out of that.

I hope that you'll give this reply the same relevance you gave to the 
slanderous message.

Thanks,

Wu Ming 1 (on behalf of Wu Ming)


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