clipped from: en.wikipedia.org A black bloc refers to a tactic, developed in the 1980s by anti-nuclear activist autonomists, whereby participants attended protests and marches wearing black clothing, ski masks and motorcycle helmets with padding, steel-toed boots and often carrying their own shields and truncheons.[1] The clothing is used to avoid being identified by authorities, and to theoretically appear as one large mass, promote solidarity, and create a clear revolutionary presence.