Million Mask March

The Million Mask March, also known as the Million Mask Movement is a worldwide, annual protest associated with the hacktivist group Anonymous occurring annually on Guy Fawkes Day, 5th of November. The motive for the March varies, but includes some consistent themes prevalent in the Anonymous movement, including: corruption in politics, demilitarization, police violence, and self-governance.[1] The marches are set in motion to allow ordinary citizens to collaborate in order to create societal change through alterations to their governments. They are coordinated through a host of channels with most prevalent being word of mouth and social media. The Facebook group for the event marked over 18,000 Facebook users as going to the protests.[2]

Background

Anonymous, originally a group of internet forum users, first came into political activism from its battle against Scientology, referred to as Project Chanology. This culminated in a worldwide protest outside of Scientology churches across the globe.[3]

The first Million Mask March occurred in 2013, founded and created by John Anthony Fairhurst. Although the largest events occur in London and Washington, DC, there are smaller scale events across the globe, usually outside of government buildings.[4]

The 2015 protests spanned over 650 cities.[5]

On November 5th 2016, a metal band from India 'Night Wings III' released a song 'Anonymous - The Legion's Anthem'[6] as a tribute to the Million Mask March.

The short documentary film Million Mask Movement by Vinu Joseph (2016) focuses on an aspect of the movement, and stars cannabis rights and free speech activist Ed Forchion.[7]

Symbolism

Protesters at the Million Mask March frequently wear versions of the Guy Fawkes mask, in homage to the graphic novel ‘V for Vendetta’.[8] The costume references the novel, where the protagonist wages war against an authoritarian dystopia in the UK. In the film rendition, millions of masks are disbursed to citizens who gather around Parliament.

Events

  • London, UK: The march has become an annual occurrence in London. Protesters marched through central London on November 5, 2015 in protest of the manner in which the British government conducts surveillance on the country, the corruption that has become ingrained in government, and the State's socio-economic issues.[2] During the 2016 protest, 53 protesters were arrested during the march through Central London which were related to drug use, destruction of property and other criminal activity.[9]
  • Manila, Philippines: Activists linked to the hacktivism group Anonymous crashed 30 of the Filipino government's websites in response to the corruption felt toward politicians. The group released a video apologizing to the people of the Philippines for the disruption and courting them to protest in front of the parliament house on November 6, 2013.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "Million Mask March: What are Anonymous' demands?". BBC News. November 6, 2015.
  2. 1 2 Harbisher, Ben (2016). "The Million Mask March: Language, legitimacy, and dissent". Taylor & Francis Online. 13.
  3. ↑ Massa, Felipe (2011). "OUT OF BOUNDS: THE ANONYMOUS' TRANSITION TO COLLECTIVE ACTION". Academy of Management Annual Meeting Proceedings – via Business Source Complete.
  4. ↑ Quinn, Ben (November 6, 2013). "Protesters gather around the world for Million Mask March".
  5. ↑ "2015 Million Mask March: Anonymous readies for global day of action in over 650 cities". RT. November 5, 2015.
  6. ↑ "Night Wings III Release Their Full Video - A Tribute To Anonymous Hackers and The MMM". AnonHQ. 2016-11-07. Retrieved 2016-11-07.
  7. ↑ https://www.evensi.us/million-mask-movement-short-film-documentary-prerelease/170816734
  8. ↑ Brooks-Pollock, Tom (November 6, 2014). "What is the Million Mask March?". The Telegraph.
  9. ↑ "Police make 53 arrests at the Million Mask March". http://www.bbc.com. BBC News. External link in |website= (help)
  10. ↑ Potter, Garry (2015). "Anonymous: A Political Ontology of Hope". Theory in Action.
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