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Your Money > Banking Articles > G-20: A City Survival Guide
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By Parmy Olson
London Bankers here will face a rather treacherous commute to work this week, as well as some tough sartorial choices, as the G-20 summit kicks off Thursday at the Excel Center in East London. Expect tens of thousands of anti-capitalist protesters to pay the city's financial center a visit. It's an ambitious bunch. The British Anarchist society is organizing a gathering of thousands in the Square Mile intending to "storm the banks." The London Class War plans a quartet of processions headed by one of the "Four Horsefolk of the Apocalypse" (meet in front of the Bank of England at 12 p.m.). The group will be joined by G20 Meltdown, which plans to visit the Excel Centre to bang on doors. Some bankers and lawyers have told us they have no intention of being intimidated by all this or "dressing down," as JPMorgan Chase has already warned its employees to do. In Pictures: A Field Guide To The G-20 Protesters
Bankers, don't kid yourselves. London's Metropolitan police ditched their traditional truncheons for 50,000-volt stun guns. A change of shoes doesn't seem out of order. A few do's and don'ts: Hide the Handheld. Whipping out your BlackBerry in public is like holding up a sign saying "corporate swine here for the taking." No Pink Papers. Don't carry around newspapers of the salmon-colored variety. Pick up a copy of the Socialist Worker instead. Ditch the Logos. Skip the umbrella with your company name across the front. Stop by Boots and pick up a floral-printed compact brolly. It might appeal to the protesters' environmental sentiments. Brown Bag It. Leave the briefcase or laptop bag at home. Opt for an organic hemp shoulder satchel instead. On Your Marks. Loafers and heels are out. Think running. Think trainers. Blame Names. If confronted by protesters, be ready with a string of villainous phrases like "the establishment," "Thatcher," "tax dodgers" and "Bush." This should confuse them and buy you precious seconds to flee. The Big Guns. Can't shake them? Point into the distance and tell them you see Michael Foot/Tony Benn/Jimmy Carter. Run. More from Forbes
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