The Other Side of the Looking Glass: Providing Security for Marches and Rallies
For many worldwide, freedom of expression is fundamental to liberty. It is common to witness protests where people express their viewpoints, challenge perceived injustices, or advocate for expanding freedoms. As security professionals, we often work for organizations that have been the target of protests, whether in support of advocacy or in response to labor disputes. However, another aspect of this issue poses challenges for those employed by organizations that are willing to engage in protests and marches, requiring professionals to organize security for these events.
For clarity, we will divide these events into two major types. Rallies are those gatherings, indoors or out, where the participants remain in one location. In contrast, marches are those events that typically proceed along the designated path and cover a much larger geography, most often in urban areas. Regardless of the type of event, the overarching goal is usually the same: to generate media coverage, influence public opinion, and advocate for desired changes.
Understanding the Nature of the Organization and the Opposition
One of the most famous axioms attributed to Sun Tzu reminds us that we need to know ourselves and those who oppose us. Anyone working to organize the safety of a rally or march must understand the organization, its values, and those who are likely to oppose those values.
The people who organize protests and marches are often quite public in their activities. As a security professional, your job is to understand the backgrounds of the individuals leading the organization, what they will and will not accept in terms of risk, and to appreciate their dedication to the mission. Just like in any business decision, it’s essential to understand and articulate those risks in a manner that can be understood and accepted; this knowledge will be crucial for ensuring safety and effectiveness.
The second group to understand will be those in opposition. As with any social and political movement, there will always be differing opinions and people who strongly support those opinions. The challenge is understanding these groups’ identities and the methods they are willing to use. This is where applying your investigative and intelligence experience comes in handy. You will often find yourself in the devil’s advocate role with your organization’s leadership as you try to point out the various groups that might oppose your activities. Equally, some people will have a somewhat overstated opinion or belief about who the opposition is and the level of aggressive activity they are willing to do. Finding the correct balance and putting it in a proper context will be a significant challenge you must overcome to achieve a successful outcome.
For example, if your organization strongly supports gun control, it may seek to conduct a protest in favor of restrictions on high-capacity magazines. Its allies may include parents of gun violence victims, local law enforcement, and religious groups. Counter-protesters could consist of gun clubs, small business owners, militia groups, anarchists, and people advocating for self-defense. When we consider the level of concern for each of these groups, the presence of militia groups or anarchists would elevate the level of risk more than small business owners or people advocating for self-defense.
As a security professional, you can add tremendous value by balancing the perception and reality of your organization and its competitors. This value can best be achieved by starting with a well-thought-out assessment.
Security Starts with a Good Assessment
To conduct an effective security assessment, it is essential to begin with a thorough understanding of your organization. This involves developing a detailed plan for those participating in the rally or march. The primary goal for protest leadership is raising awareness in support of their cause. This will require a marketing campaign and the strategic use of media resources to attract as much attention as possible and raise the public profile of the cause. This is often achieved by seeking the support of high-profile individuals. Your responsibility will be to collaborate with the leaders to identify these individuals. By understanding who they are, you can conduct a tailored assessment of each one as part of your intelligence efforts.
Here are some questions you can ask during this assessment: Will government officials, media figures, sports personalities, or celebrities be present? Do these officials hold any controversial or provocative public opinions? What are their previous statements regarding the protest’s topic? Have any been associated with other protests or actions that were disrupted somehow? Asking these questions will give you a clearer picture of the potential risks that must be managed.
Next, it is essential to understand the geography of the event. Time and place are critical factors in assessing risk and developing a solid security plan. Consider the type of event being held: Is it a rally at a well-known landmark or a protest march along a designated route? If it is a march, how long will it be, and what are the likely weather conditions? Conducting a site visit to map out where the rally or protest is planned is vital for success.
Conducting a site visit to map out where the rally or protest is planned is vital for success.
Additionally, it’s important to understand the significance of the location to the local community and how the group may be received. The nature of the event will also influence the type of permit required. Most jurisdictions require permits for rallies or marches. As a security professional, you must coordinate with local law enforcement to ensure your actions align with the permit. Securing a permit is generally mandatory, so working closely with the event organizers to ensure all documentation is filed correctly and on time is essential. Permits establish the official parameters of a protest, essentially serving as a permission slip. They can regulate protest size, timing, duration, route, and designated areas for participants and media. More importantly, permits help local authorities allocate resources, manage traffic, and minimize business disruptions during the event.
In the case of our hypothetical gun control rally the permits restrict the time and location of the rally to a designated portion of a public park at the center of a city. If it is a march, the permits would identify a route that will take the marchers past several major landmarks but do so at a time that will minimize the impact on traffic congestion and business.
After you’ve completed interviewing the key staff, assessing the risk, and conducting a terrain walk to understand precisely where and when things are being done, you will want to write a risk assessment report. This report should detail the expected risks and the recommended mitigation actions that will help reduce the likelihood of those risks. This plan should be circulated among all key personnel who are the asset owners under the enterprise security risk management (ESRM) model that security leaders employ. As the asset owners or, in this case, the event organizers, they need to be aware of these risks to make the most informed decisions.
Structuring Your Security Resources
Once you have completed the planning and received approval for your operational risk management concept, you should begin building a safety and security structure that supports both your risk assessment and the desires of the organizers.
The key component of this will be coordinating with local law enforcement officials. Remember the obligation to maintain safety and security within the event itself may be considered outside the scope of law enforcement. Many factors determine what law enforcement will and will not do in support of rallies and protests, and you will have to ferret them out carefully during the planning process.
As a security professional, you’re likely accustomed to working with law enforcement officials either in your current capacity or perhaps you previously served in law enforcement. An ability to establish a rapport with these officials will help you understand precisely what the police will or will not do to support your event.
The obligation to maintain safety and security within the event itself may be considered outside the scope of law enforcement.
The biggest challenge may be establishing direct contact with the person in charge. It’s a good idea to leverage the Law Enforcement Liaison Community within ASIS International to facilitate making a connection. Also, contacting law enforcement where you do not currently have a relationship might be possible through professional colleagues working in that area. These connections are essential in helping you understand with whom you should be dealing and what you should expect.
Regardless of your level of interaction with local law enforcement, your security and safety plan should be as self-contained as possible. It is common for support for a march or rally to be minimized—or withdrawn—with little or no notice. This observation is not a commentary on law enforcement; there are various factors that local governments consider when addressing a march or rally. These negotiations are often dynamic, and last-minute changes are more the rule than the exception. Your organization’s leadership may wish to rely on law enforcement to contain the costs associated with the rally, which is a perfectly reasonable thing for them to do. However, you must explain to those leaders the dynamic nature of support when it comes to sensitive topics and how support from the local governments can vanish rather quickly. A good plan that is ready and resourced will eliminate the risk of this short-notice change and allow them to continue their efforts.
In many cases, you will use contracted security staff that specializes in event security management. These teams are trained to handle large crowds and sometimes challenging interpersonal situations. Additionally, your plan should address potential medical emergencies. It is crucial to identify the number of emergency medical personnel required and their stationed locations. In an emergency, security personnel, organizational leadership, and even local law enforcement (if they support you) should know how to contact the medical personnel quickly and efficiently.
The final element of your plan should include a security awareness and safety briefing for all participants. This plan must guide participants on how to stay safe, avoid medical issues such as heat exhaustion, and respond to counter-protesters. This last point should be emphasized at all levels within the organization. As a security professional, you must raise awareness about potential opposition and share this information with all participants.
The primary objective for security professionals in this environment is to minimize confrontation with counter-protesters as much as possible. Such confrontations can negatively impact the goals of the organization and potentially lead to tragic outcomes. This objective directly contrasts with the intentions of the counter-protesters, who often aim to agitate or provoke protesters and marchers, encouraging them to react inappropriately. For many of these organizations, the goal is to create chaos, which ultimately serves to discredit the efforts of your organization.
One excellent way to avoid this is to have a written rules of engagement document (ROED) outlining expected conduct for attendees. Centered on safety, the ROED is developed with the support of the organizers and shared with all participating groups and their membership. It is also included in protest materials such as websites, social media, and emails. For most marches, the ROED directs attendees to stay in the middle of the street, with security escorting on both sides to create a protective barrier. At rallies, security is positioned around the perimeter and within the crowd.
A practical approach is to cover these topics during pre-event briefings with leadership and provide a handout to all participants, ensuring they are informed about the concerns. Counter-protesters often aim to provoke a reaction by capturing video footage of the attendees reacting in an aggressive or vulgar fashion, which will be circulated very quickly via social media to create a viral moment designed to discredit the goal of your organization. Stressing the importance of avoiding this trap can help prevent the organizers’ message from being overshadowed by inappropriate responses.
Find Your Inner Diplomat
One of the most challenging aspects of providing safety and support to rallies and protests is the complexity of the various stakeholders involved. It is common for multiple groups to come together to support an issue or cause, each bringing its agenda and level of risk tolerance. These events are voluntary and attract individuals who are often very passionate about the subject. Furthermore, the organizational structures of these groups are typically less formal than those found in commercial operations; they are generally not hierarchical and require significant diplomacy to manage the inevitable disagreements on how to proceed.
These differences can lead to unfortunate consequences on the day of the event. For security professionals supporting protests or rallies, diplomacy is not merely a nice-to-have—it is essential. Many attendees have previously experienced heavy-handed security measures and are understandably suspicious of security personnel. To build the needed rapport for success, you must clearly convey that you, as a professional, are there to support them and ensure their rally or protest is effective while keeping everyone safe. Security professionals should leverage their understanding of the organization, along with their de-escalation skills, to craft solutions that address risks while fostering consensus. This often requires spending more time explaining potential risks and providing updated support for your recommendations than one might typically encounter in a commercial setting.
For security professionals supporting protests or rallies, diplomacy is not merely a nice-to-have; it is essential.
Focusing on safety when dealing with large groups is a good way to establish a connection at the outset. Advocating for the presence of trained medical personnel or emphasizing the importance of hydration during hot weather can be seen as reasonable initial steps. Once rapport has been built, you can address the more challenging dynamics between protesters and law enforcement. These two groups often view each other with hostility based on past experiences.
After completing a thorough assessment, you will have gained valuable insights into how the protesters feel about law enforcement and their expectations. Additionally, your background as a security professional enables you to collaborate effectively with the police, drawing on prior experiences and possibly personal connections. This blend of knowledge allows you to act as an ideal diplomat between two groups that do not often see eye-to-eye. By serving as a bridge, you can help prevent situations that might escalate and detract from the mission the organizers aim to achieve—raising awareness about the issue they wish to change.
Securing protests or rallies presents a complex and intriguing challenge for security professionals. Collaborating with individuals from diverse backgrounds and perspectives on safety can be difficult. Factoring in the intense emotions surrounding contentious issues can create an environment that feels both uncomfortable and unfamiliar. However, by applying the fundamental principles of the security profession—understanding your organization, recognizing your competition, assessing risks, and offering sound professional advice to decision-makers—you can effectively navigate this dynamic setting. By focusing on the essentials of our work, you can help organizers achieve their goals, which should be the aim of every security professional, regardless of the type of organization they support.
Ralph “RC” Miles, CPP, is the global director of safety and security for the AIDS Healthcare Foundation. He is a security executive with over 25 years of private sector experience in designing, developing, and implementing comprehensive security, investigations, and intelligence strategies across different business environments and organizational cultures.
Darren Elliott, CEO of Elliott Security and Event Consulting, is a 20-year security veteran. He has provided services to major corporations, celebrities, and government figures and specializes in nontraditional, open-space event security.
