"The Front Line was generally built out of inner tubes, of the kind one uses to be dragged behind a speedboat. These have handles built right onto them, and they’re lightweight, and quite strong. They were reinforced with packing tape, cardboard, puncture-proof plastic wrap, and other materials.

Some common enhancements to the front line of inner tubes included attaching a skirt of tarps to protect the feet, and backing the tubes up with a layer of drywall or thick cardboard."

"Another model for the front line was to build large panels out of a see-through material like plexiglass or fencing, with handles attached so each heavy panel could be carried by three or four people. Note the wheels attached so they can be pushed down the street.

These rolling panels could be moved into different formations, as the need arose.

When the means aren’t available to attach wheels to one’s front line barricades, shopping carts do nicely."

"individual participants wore an outer layer of white coveralls with padding underneath, work helmets, goggles, boots, and gas masks. It was important for everyone to wear this stuff, so the entire group was able to withstand attack without breaking ranks.

Here’s a better look at how materials were layered under the coveralls. Note the cardboard outer shell, foam inner padding, welding gloves. The whole kit is assembled on the spot, so it can’t be too complex. Often life vests were used for this.

A common shoulder armor design below. It’s just a rectangular slab of foam rubber with a hole cut in the top, affixed around the shoulders and waist with duct tape.

Tute Bianche gear was built out of cheap or discarded industrial materials by people with no money living in squats and fighting for survival, and a lot of them were artists to boot, so there was a lot of innovation and self-expression to be found. Armor made of plastic water bottles was common.

Here are some samurai-style helmets, to protect the back

"While some demonstrators held the front line, others were equipped as skirmishers with personal-sized shields. These are mobile troops who can nimbly move to where they’re needed and fortify the defense against police incursions, usually unarmed aside from the shields. I’ve been seeing a lot of folks geared up like this in Portland lately. Couple nights ago, they pushed a line of those Feds back into the Courthouse.

Sometimes, White Overall skirmishers were armed with 2x4s or other long and stout objects, to strike helmeted police over the top of the shield line and drive them back during clashes.

In addition to the tubes or shields in front, big marches often included a second rank of shields pointed upwards to fend off munitions that were shot or thrown over the front line. These can be seen clearly in the background of this photo of a police line being overwhelmed:

Here’s how that second rank of shields works, from a longer view. Note the spaces between ranks — this keeps folks from tripping over each