WIRED: What to Bring (and Not Bring) to a Protest -- A List

[ancianita]

Notes from the article...

We recommend the following. You probably have everything you need around the house, and if not, these items are likely accessible at your local stores.

A bag and/or backpack: You'll need something small, lightweight, durable.
-- a cheap daypack, a belt bag in case you were to lose your backpack.
-- whatever you own that lets you keep your hands free.
-- while your bag should be big enough to hold all the supplies you need, be sure to avoid anything too bulky.
Water: you need proper hydration. Carry drinking water. Bring the biggest bottle that you can fit in your bag. Water can also clean wounds and flush the eyes of anyone who's been hit with chemical gas or pepper spray.
A face mask or bandana: in 2020, we advised wearing masks because of covid; that’s less of a concern for many people now, but you still may want to take precautions
-- Face coverings also have the benefit of shielding your identity from cameras and police surveillance. Bring an extra mask if you have one.
A hat and/or sunglasses: Aside from shielding you from the sun during a long day, hats and sunglasses can obscure your face from surveillance and protect your privacy. If you wear a hat, and are interested in further protecting your identity, keep the brim low.
Snacks: You're likely in for a long day. Pack lightweight, nutritious, protein-rich snacks. Jerky, energy bars, and nuts are all good picks.
Protest signs: If you want to carry a sign,
ensure that your slogan is in big, bold letters that can be easily read from far away. Short, punchy sayings are arguably better than a block of script. Poster board is flexible, but stiffer foam-core board is more durable. You can affix paint-stir sticks or other flat, wooden sticks to the sign using strong tape to create a handle.
You might want to make extras to hand out to fellow protesters.
Don't litter—when you're done with your sign, dispose of it properly, or donate it to another protester.

Suitable clothing: It's a good idea to wear all black or dark color (lightweight) both because that's what the organizers of most solidarity protests suggest and because it helps you blend in with a crowd.
Privacy experts recommend you cover any tattoos if you can, and that you hide your hair if it's dyed a distinctive color.
A change of clothes: on a hot day, you may need extra clothes.
-- also handy if you're exposed to substances that can hurt your skin or if you're splashed with paint, gross road water, or other people's sweat. An extra pair of shorts, a tank top, and extra socks in the backpack.
Hand sanitizer: You might find yourself holding hands with a stranger, grabbing onto gunky street signs, or tripping and falling into a puddle. These scenarios make hand sanitizer essential to carry.
Good walking shoes: This is nonnegotiable. Wear closed-toe shoes that are broken in and good for walking long distances.
Your ID (maybe): If you're detained, not having your ID on you might keep you stuck for longer. However, in some states, you might not have to show the police your ID if they ask for one. Use your best judgment, and consider looking up the laws for your state for more specific guidance.
Your phone (maybe): To protect your privacy and prevent surveillance, the best thing you can do is leave your phone at home. Consider using a secondary or burner phone instead.
If you bring your phone, avoid using traditional phone calls/texts if at all possible. Signal is a secure, end-to-end encrypted messaging app that offers the option to delete messages after they're sent.
-- also disable biometric unlocking, like FaceID or fingerprint features, and use a six-digit passcode instead.
-- If you do need to carry your primary phone, keep it turned off (before turning it off turn on airplane mode) until you absolutely need to use it (then turn airplane mode off). This will make it harder for law enforcement to track your movements, since law enforcement officials can collect or purchase data that can tell them which devices were at a protest they’re monitoring and who those devices belong to.
Cash: Just like your phone can leave digital breadcrumbs of your whereabouts, using your debit or credit card will make it easier for the authorities to track your movements.
-- Instead, bring cash. Separate your bills; stash some in your bag, keep some on your person, either in your shoe, your bra, your pants pockets, or somewhere else secure.
A power bank: If you or your group will have a phone, you need to make sure that you have a way to charge devices. Other protesters may need to charge their gear as well. If you don't have one already, A portable recharger helps.
Other things you may want: Ibuprofen. A cooling towel. Duct tape or gaffer's tape. A flashlight or a headlamp. Goggles. Blister-prevention patches. Extra hair ties. A pen and paper. A Sharpie. A laser pointer. Bandages or other first aid supplies. Ear plugs. Saline solution. Extra face masks. A copy of emergency phone numbers and a card declaring necessary medical information that someone may need to know if you're unable to tell them yourself (for example, if you have asthma or if you're hard of hearing). Medications that need to be taken on a schedule (in a labeled prescription bottle if possible) with the understanding that you may be away from home much longer than anticipated.

Get in the Right Mindset
Mental preparation is important. Protesting can be physically grueling and emotionally taxing. You may experience sheer joy. You might cry. You might get angry. You might get scared. Most likely, you'll experience all these. Take the time to prepare yourself. Before heading out, drink some water, apply sunscreen, and eat a meal.

Realize It’s Not About You
One of the primary reasons to attend a protest is not just to stick it to the man and to take a selfie while doing it, but to be present for others. Show up ready to listen. Be prepared to amplify what people are saying. If you aren't comfortable with potentially physically intervening, shielding vulnerable protesters from police violence, and listening more than you speak, your efforts to be an ally are likely better spent elsewhere.
“The most important thing to realize,” Williams says, “is that you’re showing up in solidarity with other people. It’s not your job to decide how things should go. It’s your job to show up and listen and be in support. Deprioritizing yourself is an incredibly important part of the experience.”

Much more: https://www.wired.com/story/how-to-protest-safely-gear-tips/

Love and solidarity!

[Torchlight]

1. I would strongly suggest a discrete can of pepper spray

if you're comfortable with it and if your state/local ordinances permit it. I live in TX, and it's legal to carry in public under almost any circumstance (which we do, no sweat).

Given the baiting by the RW that will invariably occur and potentially get too aggressive in their own right, hot sauce is an efficient deterrent to sudden, up-close acts of assault or aggression.

[ancianita]

2. Check state laws. I'd advise NO. Doing this you're not preparing to be peaceful. Pepper spray implies assault, not

good in any protest context. Pepper spray is not good in any peaceful protest context.

Pay attention to Indivisibles. READ this article. Pay attention.

Peaceful protests should NOT harbor any secret assault mindset. But you ARE.

If you want to take RW bait, I'd advise against that, too, because you're already thinking like your right wing opponents.

If you prepare mentally now to physically engage, you're not a peaceful protestor at heart, and
you will only feed into the political violence that you as a Democrat say you decry about the Jan 6 people and their felon leader.

You're free to make your decision, take your chances.
My strong advice? Be honest with yourself.
If you're fearful, and you can't face violence without pepper spray, you really should not go.

Don't be part of the RW political violence problem. Be a part of peaceful solution.

[Torchlight]

3. Most state and local ordnances allows it

Kept in a pocket it remains invisible, and has no need unless need presents itself. Safety and fear are not synonyms.

[ancianita]

5. So what. Police don't care. Once you exert your "safety" both YOU AND THE PROVOCATEUR ARE ARRESTED.

Is that what you want? More pro-police corporate reports that "both sides do it"? Seriously?

If you get into physical scuffles you will ruin the entire peaceful protest.

Just carrying pepper spray makes you, whether you think you're in the right or not, makes you a dishonest, distrusting, divisive individual. And in others' eyes, the same as your procateur.

It's clear you're in denial when you say you want to "defend" your safety.

What you're saying to your fellow peaceful protesters -- and any onlookers, police and press -- is that it's really just about you.

By defending the indefensible here, you're already ready to derail the goal of peaceful protest.

Therefore you don't really understand the core principle of being in solidarity with other peaceful protesters.

[Prairie Gates]

4. Def write legal ph #s on your arms and one other place with Sharpie

Cops will try to blot it on your hands but will give up if it is too many places. They're ultimately lazy.

All the other stuff is more or less correct, too. We learned all this and trained in all this in the black bloc / anti-globalization protests of the late 1990s/ early 2000s, some of which, as you'll remember, got kinda "fun."

Remember that tear gas def burns your eyes, but its effect that really makes you want to leave is the burning/coughing feeling in your throat and lungs, which can be mitigated with a wet bandana over your mouth and nose (a little, anyway). Bring water and several bandanas.

Remember non-descript hats. Do a survey of your get-up for anything that could be identifiable. It's not a fashion show.

One of the clearest signs that January 6 was amateur hour was how identifiable all those yahoos were. Of course, it's also chilling: they could be identified, in their minds, because they were going to "win."

[Trueblue Texan]

6. I do not understand all these suggestions...

I could understand all of this if someone intends to do something illegal, but merely exercising your 1st amendment rights is legal. It seems your phone can provide evidence you were acting in a legal manner. I don't plan to do anything illegal before, during, or after the protest.

[ancianita]

7. Well, it's a big country, right? Maybe it depends on where one lives, where the protest is held, and what the

law enforcement climate is in one's area. Given the breadth and scale of the protests in the world's 3rd largest country, one could suppose, that this list -- some of it useful, some of it not -- is meant as help to a wide range of participants.