#ColoRevolution
#paintingourstreet #colorernosluttes
Coordinated actions “color our struggles”: the story, pictures, advice and next appointment(s)
For a color revolution…
The streets are gray and dangerous like capitalism,
Let’s take it back with our colors–the color of life, of discord, of struggling together,
Arm yourself with a can of bright paint and paint the streets, with the unknowing help of those machines that still run,
Every trail of paint spread by a tire will serve as a signature at the end of our call to {revolt | stay up}.
The appeal of May 22
Sunday, May 22, activists from NuitDebout, with their friends from hundreds of occupied squares in France and in twenty or so countries, assembled in “action groups” from various horizons, decided to start a movement of joyful reappropriation of public spaces. The project was to repaint the places of government, of struggles, the streets, the cities, until authorities would heed their voices — as part of their activist struggles.
Their appeal was widely circulated, and read (full) :
“We call on all strollers, bikes, kick scooters, skates, rollerblades, all those activists on wheels,
To converge towards the places of government, the occupied squares,
To move towards refineries, deposits,
Armed with a can of paint ready to be joyfully spilled on the pavement,
At the same moment everywhere in France (and in the world?),
To draw lines of the bright colors of discord,
To color our cities, our streets, the places of struggle and power, until we are heard!
REFUSE the labor law, REFUSE the 49.3, REFUSE the deafness of a dull and austere government,
LONG LIVE COLOR! LET’S PUT COLOR (BACK) INTO OUR STRUGGLES!
Let’s paint public spaces with the colors of our hopes!”
picture used by the group for the appeal
The story
The first action on May 26
During the May 26 demonstration against the labor law and in support of the blockades, groups of friends scattered across the procession had decided to “play with paint.” Note that the paint ended up more often on the police than on the pavement! (see pictures below)
The first coordinated action took place in Paris on Thursday 26 May at 6 pm, in front of the Assemblée Nationale.
The date was set for 5 pm, 800m from the place of the deed, in a suitable place (open and near several terraces) that we will keep secret, in case it should be used again by those activists.
Three of them spotted the locations before the date (to take into account all elements, state of the pavement, cameras, direction of traffic, presence of the police…). There, a friend photographer kept in constant contact to warn them of contingencies or of an early arrival of the police…
The group was made of a dozen people. An hour before the deed, they coordinated, in particular to split the “pouring” locations among several teams. Since the intersection in front of the Assemblée Nationale is shaped like a T, the major branch being the Concorde bridge, they divided into three teams of 2-3 people. One person stayed with the trailer used to carry the paint cans and took care of “precious” goods (in particular, a change in clothes).
Each team had at least one bicycle driver with the person with the paint can sitting on the rack (or in the front basket). The person with the paint would step down to pour paint on the road and hop back on the bike. The team would be gone in 30 seconds flat at the next intersection.
Assemblée Nationale intersection, 5 minutes after the paint job — on the right, the artists after the job
Video of the action: https://www.periscope.tv/
Video François VB (or not)
After the job was done, the joyful painters gathered at the original meeting point and went to debrief (and celebrate) in a café nearby. No one got in trouble.
- Our friends and the police
In #Paris, some thought that pink was brighter than blue. Hence the picture.
CRS thinking about life, organic paint, and violence — in general
#Lyon, the color palette was more diverse
NB: please send the pictures of paint jobs in your city and share them with the hashtag
#ColoRevolution
… this also includes those who confuse paint with shampoo, see cf. https://youtu.be/1inNsNvhGYw!
Color revolution
To protest against the corrupt Macedonian government, demonstrators have led their own “Color Revolution” since April 21, armed with paint guns and spray paint and redecorating official buildings of #Skopje.
These groups are now in contact!
Picture preview – PHOTO AP – more pictures here https://www.facebook.com/
Advices
Technical advice
How to make paint?
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During a major action at the Etoile roundabout in Paris, Greenpeace used ocher mixed with lemon juice to brighten it (if not too diluted, you get a beautiful and sunny yellow), along with water and wallpaper glue so the paint wouldn’t wash off too easily. You can also seek the opposite effect (see part on legal issues below). You can use red ocher for red. It is also possible to use blue powder like azuleto.
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For the Color Run, Paris agreed to using color powder made out of cornstarch and food coloring (see http://thecolorrun.fr/faq.html); you can also dissolve chalk into water.
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For the action at the Assemblée Nationale, organic water-based paint was used. The action group’s advice: dilute paint with water to increase the volume and get a texture that spreads more easily (if the paint has the texture of yoghourt or is creamy, add ¼ of water).
Which paint to choose?
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Pick according to the action (and the floor coating), to the quantity of paint required, to how long you have to prepare, and before all: of the available funds.
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Which color to pick: warm colors should be loud: pink, orange, red, yellow, (…) watch out: the yellow must be opaque enough, and pink and red should not be too dark.and cold colors should be bright, such as apple (or bamboo) green, azure blue, turquoise, …Avoid colors too similar to tar (blue, purple…)
How to use the paint:
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If you’re riding a bicycle, get off the bike and pour the paint on the floor. Leave at once, as fast as you can: let the cars be the artists and paint and spread the paint on the road. Be wary of the material of the road: it does not work well on cobblestone, but pedestrian crossings make beautiful paint palettes.
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You can also tie the paint can to the back of the bike, and make a hole in the can. As the bicycle advances, the paint falls and lines are drawn. This method can also be used with strollers, rollerblades, kick scooters, skateboards, and anything on wheels (they make for a faster getaway and are unconspicuous)!
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By foot, during a march or demonstration! The crowd protects you from being arrested. However, do not forget to prepare in advance bottles or balloons filled with paint: 2-liter paint cans aren’t very practical. An activist told us an interesting story: “We are there. We were there. We walked. We were on the street. Even if we are no longer there right now, we left impressions that last and show our resolution. Even if we are not there in person, we are present. Fear us, men of power, we are there, we are everywhere, sneaky like contamination, sneaky like your power games, sneaky like capitalism, that gnaws at our souls. But our hearts breathe color and hope. Our prints are but the shadow and the trail of our hope and our resolution. Whatever it takes, we will change this dark world.
Legal advice :
Finally, the last e-mail shared after the appeal of May 22, before the action on May 26, gave some (mostly legal) advice. Since it is short, here it is:“Are you ready to paint our streets on Thursday May 26 at 6 pm?
* Essential advice!
Please remember:
- you do not have the right to paint the streets, you are taking it of your own free will
if the police is there to welcome us, do not go forward (in France, you may be fined at least 3700€, according to article 322-1 of the penal code) - if you decide to act, smaler, mobile teams work best (unless you are in the middle of a crowd): spill the paint and leave! Others will take pictures of your work for you.
lawyers available through Defcol: Raphael Kempf (having a lawyer is fundamental, remember this name or pick another one) - choose organic, water-based paint to protect the environment and minimize possible degradations (which makes it less risky for you). Latex gloves are also a good idea
- avoid carrying your phone during the action, but carry ID
- a bicycle helmet, sunglasses, and an air-pollution mask are very effective against CCTV. If your criminal record is blank, it is also less risky for you.
- keep your cool if you get arrested.
Let’s color our streets, our struggles, our hopes…
Coordination
The next action is set for Sunday 5 June at 6 pm (Paris time): everywhere in the world!
Contact us if you can find us… Self management and free spirits rule: DIY!
If you’re in Paris: send them an e-mail:paint@nolist.org
In all other friendly cities and squares, in France and abroad: do it yourself! Self-management and free initiatives are requiqred, each must decide whether and how they coordinate or act alone.
Send your pictures and tag them with