If one is a anarchist is it better to be discreet about it

Question

I have two anarchy symbols on the back glass of my truck. I am a anarchist , but is it a good idea to be decreet about it. I have noticed the some anarchists dress very casual, and you would never know that they were a anarchist. I guess it is all about how you feel about it. i am just looking for some answers .

Answer 1

It really depends on one's goal and situation. I would not put a Circle-A on a vehicle if I anticipated the cops would harass me for it. Wearing a black bandana around your neck in public likewise means that you probably will attract more attention from authorities, especially in stores. Nevertheless, it can start conversations if you have that goal, and help people find you who you may find value in associating with. You can often find more people more easily though through groups/events in your local area such as Food Not Bombs and Earth First! or universities, or start your own deal by putting up simple fliers about a project relating to anarchy/ism and saying meet in such and such park at such and such time or whatever. Having said that, I do like walking around with a giant black flag on holidays such as the 4th of July. Some days I dress more casually, but mostly I wear all dark clothing (longstanding habit) and often my black bandana on my neck. I don't think that anarchy should have a uniform though. Wear what's functional, comfortable, and you feel expresses what you want. Put stickers on your vehicles or signs in front of your home if you feel safe doing that. It's really just a personal call.

Relevant image -- anatomy of a crust punk:
http://i.imgur.com/qnUvd.jpg

Comments

while both of you are focusing on clothing, the question of being out applies more widely, and is an on-going debate.
more political people tend to be on the side of not-showing (in order to have conversations with people who are not us(tm) in order to convince people), and more anti-political people tend towards showing. obv there are exceptions to these generalizations, as always.

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even when i was an adolescent i didn´t want to wear an anarchy symbol tshirt. Also I don´t like patches and even words themselves in my clothes. I think I became so anti-logos that I didn´t just reject the corporate and state ones. I ended up having reservations about the anarchy ones also. On top punks yell shit at me on the street and i am not a punk so i leave them the anarchy symbols. Oh and  I actually don´t like black colour clothes. I like colours and so i leave black clothes to metalheads, goths,  and existentialist pseudo-beatnik intelectual types.

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Good response Iconoclast; if you convert it to an answer I think it would stand well one its own.