Whirl-Mart - smartmob as protest, action as language

I saw this and thought immediately, Smartmobs! (Update: Unforetunatly as commenters pointed out this is more akin a flash mob than a smart mob. Stupid!) Not that these are technically smart mobs flash mobs, but they very well could be. This is something I haven't seen before, it's not an entirely new kind of smart mob flash mob but a natural evolution. People gathering from nowhere for a silent observance and a peaceful protest. Action with a message. Participatory language. I must say I like this idea of it. It's not confrontational, it's legal, and yet it's a show of solidarity and a quiet observance. Sort of like critical mass bike rides it's marked by simple legal participation, or at the very least benign civil disobedience. I suppose if you had enough people it might even be considered a DOS, a social denial of service attack.

"Whirl-Mart Ritual Resistance is a participatory experiment. It is art and action. It came into being in 2001 as a response to Adbusters magazine's call for foolish action on the first of April. What began as a single happening in Troy, NY has over the course of a year evolved into a ritual activity that is performed across the U.S., and known around the world. It is a ritual during which a group gathers and silently pushes empty carts through the aisles of a superstore. Whirl-Mart utilizes tactics of occupation and reclamation of private consumer-dominated space for the purpose of creating a symbolic spectacle."

This is the English Whirl event, but there are also clips from New York and Sweden at the original demandmedia page. Enjoy.

WhirlMart.mpg
(18.1mb video/quicktime Object)

Original article: demandmedia || Whirl-Mart Videos from New York, England, & Sweden

I don't condon it, I study it.