Anarchism Research Papers - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

The Book is a graphic montage piece, where comments, thoughts and short accounts from Ou Ning’s travels to Bishan are intertwined with drawings, clippings, color-coded text, handwritten notes, pictures and quotes. The forefathers of the... more

The central challenge for theorists and practitioners of radical politics today is to develop the tools for collective action on a global scale, but also account for the specificity of diverse local struggles and promote the free... more

The central challenge for theorists and practitioners of radical politics today is to develop the tools for collective action on a global scale, but also account for the specificity of diverse local struggles and promote the free transformation of individual and collective subjectivities through political action. This article examines the radical democratic theory of Chantal Mouffe, post-sovereignty cosmopolitanism of David Held and contemporary anarchist theory, in light of participant research in contemporary global resistance movements. As none of these concepts can meet the challenges facing global resistance movements today or the demands of liberty and equality, ‘democratic insurrection’ is intended as both an alternative theoretical category and a practical tool for radical politics. Defined by a forum–affinity–network system, democratic insurrection is based on voluntary associations and the production of the common. By expanding the democratic moments of deliberation, decision and action across time and space, democratic insurrection allows for democratic practice and acts of resistance on a range of scales and organisational forms. Radical politics today demands the theorisation and practice of democracy beyond the state and insurrection beyond armed revolt. Democratic insurrection demonstrates the possibility of such theory and practice, but must still overcome the persistence of dominant power relations that continue to plague global resistance movements from within.

A special issue for Issues in Teacher Education (ITE) that includes diverse ecocritical perspectives in teacher education.

Die vielfältigen Formen von Protest und Widerstand gegen den G20-Gipfel in Hamburg liegen mittlerweile ein dreiviertel Jahr zurück. Sie haben ein sehr unterschiedliches mediales und politisches Echo hervorgerufen und der öffentliche Kampf... more

Die vielfältigen Formen von Protest und Widerstand gegen den G20-Gipfel in Hamburg liegen mittlerweile ein dreiviertel Jahr zurück. Sie haben ein sehr unterschiedliches mediales und politisches Echo hervorgerufen und der öffentliche Kampf um die Deutungshoheit über das Geschehen dauert weiter an. Aber auch innerhalb der linken Bewegung sind die Ereignisse umstritten und die diesbezüglichen Positionen sehr heterogen, insbesondere was die Bewertung der Vorgänge am Freitagabend, den riot, betrifft, um den es im vorliegenden Buch gehen wird. Innerhalb dieser Haltung reichen die Positionen von der euphorischen Feier des riots bis hin zur kritischen Sicht auf G20 als Niederlage. Einige Positionierungen haben wir versucht hier darzustellen. Dabei kann dem riot auf verschiedenen Ebenen begegnet werden. Bei der Auswahl der Beiträge war uns wichtig, sowohl eine möglichst große Bandbreite innerhalb der Diskussionen der radikalen Linken zu erfassen als auch keine Beiträge zu verwenden, die sich jenseits einer kritischen Bezugnahme einfach vom Geschehen distanzieren und damit staatliche Deutungsmuster reproduzieren, statt sich ihnen zu entziehen. Der Titel eines Beitrages von Karl-Heinz Dellwo drückt somit die dem Band zugrunde liegende Haltung aus: Nicht distanzieren.
Das Buch gliedert sich in mehrere Teile. Auf die als Einführung konzipierten Annäherungen, die einen ersten Überblick über das Thema beinhalten, folgt ein längerer, chronologisch aufgemachter Bericht, der die Ereignisse der Protestwoche in Hamburg ausführlich schildert und die dortige Atmosphäre lebendig werden lässt. Es folgen kürzere Beiträge, die sich, unmittelbar aus dem Eindruck des Geschehens heraus entstanden, mit dem riot beschäftigen, und weitere, die ihn aus unterschiedlichen Blickwinkeln thematisieren. Enthalten sind identitäts- bzw. ideologiekritische medientheoretische, diskursanalytische, politische, soziale, subjektive und philosophische Ansätze und Herangehensweisen. Anschließend folgen zwei längere Texte, die den riot im Kontext der politökonomischen Entwicklung analysieren, indem sie insbesondere auf seine Beziehung zu den Produktions- und Arbeitsverhältnissen in der kapitalistischen Ökonomie hinweisen und ihn auch sozialgeschichtlich verorten. Der Artikel von Joshua Clover wurde eigens für dieses Buch übersetzt und liegt damit erstmals in deutscher Sprache vor. Achim Szepanski folgt der Sichtweise Clovers und untersucht den riot als Teil der globalen Zirkulationskämpfe. Den letzten Teil des Buches nehmen Beiträge ein, die die andere Seite der Barrikade analysieren, das staatliche Vorgehen gegen den Protest. Abgeschlossen wird das Buch durch den Versuch, die staatliche Repression, welche wir in Hamburg deutlich beobachten konnten, als Teil einer umfassenden, aber weniger sichtbaren Tendenz zu begreifen, sie in in einen breiteren Kontext von technologischen, gesellschaftlichen und politischen Prozessen einzuordnen sowie geeignete theoretische Begrifflichkeiten zu finden, welche die Vorgänge und Entwicklungen möglichst adäquat erfassen können.

For the last two decades, my sexual-emotional relationships have happened within what has come to be known as non-monogamy, a field in which I am an activist, theorist, consultant and who knows what else. And despite all that, and despite... more

For the last two decades, my sexual-emotional relationships have happened within what has come to be known as non-monogamy, a field in which I am an activist, theorist, consultant and who knows what else. And despite all that, and despite dedicating body, mind, emotional networks and a great deal of my energy to the matter, I still come up against repeated difficulties in trying to sustain relationships that are plural and healthy for everybody involved. And it’s not just me. The same thing happens to other people in the social circles I’m involved in: anguish, guilt, jealousy, lack of comprehension by those around us… all the psychological horrors get going.
It’s not me and it’s not us: it’s the system.

The Catholic Worker movement's fusion of anarchism and Catholicism is one of the most unusual hybrids in the history of the anarchist tradition and is sometimes dismissed as paradoxical or contradictory. In arguing that the pairing of... more

The Catholic Worker movement's fusion of anarchism and Catholicism is one of the most unusual hybrids in the history of the anarchist tradition and is sometimes dismissed as paradoxical or contradictory. In arguing that the pairing of these influences is not as counter-intuitive as it appears at first glance, this chapter seeks to explain the elective affinity of anarchism and Catholicism through the concept of exemplarity. The vision for the Catholic Worker devised by its founders Peter Maurin and Dorothy Day was, I argue, informed by interpretations of central Christian figures like Christ, the saints, and the " holy fool " that placed special emphasis on their exemplary qualities. Maurin and Day saw in the Catholic tradition of exemplarity a means of exercising leadership and authority through the power of examples and voluntary emulation rather than coercion, and within the context of the Catholic Worker movement the exemplary influence of Day in particular helped to reconcile the movement's need for coherence and direction with the autonomy and dignity of its members. In highlighting the Catholic Worker's " exemplary anarchism, " this chapter not only reveals one of the ways in which the Worker's Catholicism actually enhanced its anarchism, but also points to the broader relevance of the concept of exemplarity to anarchist theory.

Stephen E Hunt has produced the definitive account of Street Farm (Graham Caine, Peter Crump and Bruce Haggart), a London-based collective of anarchist architects working in the early 1970s. The three friends put together Street Farmer,... more

Stephen E Hunt has produced the definitive account of Street Farm (Graham Caine, Peter Crump and
Bruce Haggart), a London-based collective of anarchist architects working in the early 1970s.
The three friends put together Street Farmer, an underground paper that, alongside mutating tower
blocks, cosmic tractors and sprouting one-way signs, propagated ideas for the radical transformation
of urban living which they called ‘revolutionary urbanism’.
Taking inspiration from Situationism and social ecology, Street Farm offered a powerful vision of
green cities in the control of ordinary people. As well as writing and drawing, the group took part in
street activism and squatting, were exponents of autonomous housing and radical technology and
became rock ’n’ roll architects, going on the road with multimedia slideshow presentations to a
recorded soundtrack of music by the likes of John Lennon and Jefferson Airplane.
In 1972 Caine built and designed ‘Street Farmhouse’ with Haggart and other friends. It hit national and
international headlines as the first structure intentionally constructed as an ecological house,
appearing on an early BBC documentary introduced by a youthful Melvin Bragg. While their fame was
brief, their ongoing influence on prominent green architects including Howard Liddell, Brenda Vale and Robert Vale and Paul Downton has been more enduring.

Yep, fuck it. Neoliberalism sucks. We don't need it.

Im Interview kommt Jacques Rancière auf die Genese seines egalitären Denkens, auf seine Methoden, auf die Rolle des ›Intellektuellen‹ sowie auf prägende politische Momente der Vergangenheit und der Gegenwart zu sprechen.

The commodification of art is just as in evidence in the ‘art’ of architecture. Architecture is perhaps the most obviously commodified and the most essential to western capitalism of all the arts. Is architecture an art? Can it ever be... more

The commodification of art is just as in evidence in the ‘art’ of architecture. Architecture is perhaps the most obviously commodified and the most essential to western capitalism of all the arts. Is architecture an art? Can it ever be de-commodified? I will argue that mass housing is a key example of the commodification of culture in architecture, also however that the self-build form of housing is a potential example of architecture breaking away from this commodification. A return to what N. John Habraken called, in an echo of Read, the natural relationship. This form of architecture and the historic example of The Architects’ Revolutionary Council, as a rebellion from within the profession, will form the basis of my argument.
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ANARCHIST STUDIES Volume 23 Number 2

Benjamin Franks’ recent contribution to the field of anarchist political philosophy, what he calls ‘prefigurative or practical anarchism’, is introduced partly in response to the critique of ‘meta-narratives’ made by writers such as Todd... more

Benjamin Franks’ recent contribution to the field of anarchist political philosophy, what he calls ‘prefigurative or practical anarchism’, is introduced partly in response to the critique of ‘meta-narratives’ made by writers such as Todd May and Saul Newman. Meta-narratives, they argue, are both, in theory, epistemologically suspect and, in practice, repressive of alternative conceptions of the good. This is because meta-narratives assert the validity of one goal or end for human society and/or individuals and one morally justifiable mode of acting to achieve this, thus risking the exclusion of other goals and forms of moral agency. Framing social and political action within meta-narratives of human nature is regarded by May and Newman, the founders of ‘postanarchist’ theory, as an essential characteristic of the classical anarchisms of the nineteenth century. While Franks, along with many others, is critical of the postanarchist attack on classical anarchisms, he nonetheless shares their rejection of meta-narratives and teleology. The practical anarchism he proposes aims to be sympathetic to this concern and does so by adopting and modifying the social practice theory found in the work of Alasdair MacInture. This may come as a surprise given MacIntyre’s position as one of the strongest contemporary defenders of the notion of a telos of human life (i.e., that human life has a natural and right end), but it is this exact feature that Franks’ account of social practices eliminates. The purpose of this paper, therefore, is to assess the consequences of the rejection of meta-narratives and telos for Franks’ practical anarchism. Ultimately, I will show that without a teleological approach, practical anarchism collapses into moral relativism and weakens the definition of ‘anarchism’ to such an extent that it becomes useless.

Teixint la història en roig i negre és un recorregut per la història rebel i revolucionària de les comarques de l'Alt Llobregat i el Cardener. L'obra se centra en els dos últims segles de lluites populars i moviments socials d'aquests... more

Teixint la història en roig i negre és un recorregut per la història rebel i revolucionària de les comarques de l'Alt Llobregat i el Cardener. L'obra se centra en els dos últims segles de lluites populars i moviments socials d'aquests territoris posant l'èmfasi en tot allò que ha esdevingut anarquismes, en plural. D'aquest estudi es dedueix la continuïtat històrica entre moviments, organitzacions i col·lectius que comparteixen un mateix imaginari. Vet aquí un llibre d'història social que recorre el moviment obrer, l'anarquisme, el lliurepensament, el sindicalisme i la contracultura des dels seus orígens fins a l'actualitat a les comarques del Bages i el Berguedà.

A radikálisan decentralizált szerveződésű kriptovaluták sikerei a 2010-es években felkeltették a politikai szféra érdeklődését is. Jelen tanulmány keretei között azt tételezzük fel, hogy a kriptovaluta mint technológia egy eredendően... more

A radikálisan decentralizált szerveződésű kriptovaluták sikerei a 2010-es években felkeltették a politikai szféra érdeklődését is. Jelen tanulmány keretei között azt tételezzük fel, hogy a kriptovaluta mint technológia egy eredendően politikai jellegű igényre való technopolitikai válaszkísérletként értelmezhető. A decentralizált, bármilyen központi monetáris hatóság je-lenlétét nélkülöző privatizált pénzrendszer igénye megjelenik a libertárius politikai filozófiá-ban évtizedekkel a kriptovaluták feltalálását megelőzően. Friedrich August Hayek a Denatio-nalisation of Money című 1976-os tanulmányában a központi bankok szerepét háttérbeszorító, magánkibocsátású pénzformák mellett érvel. Méltán nevezhetjük a korai huszonegyedik századi kriptovaluták egyik legkorábbi elméleti előzményeként. Az 1990-es évek információs forradalma új lendületet adott a libertárius és anarchista elgondolásoknak, ekkor jelentek meg a "kriptoanarchisták." Ezen irányzatok képviselői szerint a kibernetika, különösen robbanékony politikai lehetőséget kínál a radikális mozgalmak hívei számára. 2008-ban dolgozta ki egy Satoshi Nakamoto álnevű programozó a Bitcoin elméleti alapjait egy ta-nulmányban, majd ugyanebben az évben tette közzé a Bitcoin szoftver forráskódját. Ezt köve-tően robbanásszerű fejlődésnek indultak a kriptovaluták. Fontos elem a kriptovaluták esetében a titkosított jelleg, a harmadik felek és központi hatalmi szereplők lehetőség szerinti kizárása a rendszerből a közvetlen kereskedelem megvalósítása révén. "Kriptoutópikus"-nak is jellemez-hetjük a kibernetikai termelési módba mint emancipációs tényezőbe vetett anarchista ideoló-giai bizalmat, tanulmányunkban pedig igyekszünk felvázolni ezen szerteágazó irányzatnak egy lehetséges genealógiáját.

Introduzione: ogni sera, una pillola contro la paura Cosa fare se da un giorno all'altro ti rinchiudono in casa e ti chiudono biblioteche, librerie e sale di lettura? Si può rimediare con la tecnologia, certo, ma non tutti i libri si... more

Introduzione: ogni sera, una pillola contro la paura Cosa fare se da un giorno all'altro ti rinchiudono in casa e ti chiudono biblioteche, librerie e sale di lettura? Si può rimediare con la tecnologia, certo, ma non tutti i libri si trovano negli archivi online o sotto forma di e-book, e un libro digitale non dà lo stesso gusto di una lettura serale cartacea, specialmente se hai già passato tutta la giornata su uno schermo per fare quello che chiamano smart working. Qual è stata dunque l'idea di Gianandrea, libraio militante, autore tra le altre cose di pionieristici cataloghi tematici sull'Anarchismo, sul Sindacalismo Rivoluzionario, sul Sessantotto, sui Mazziniani, sul Movimento Federalista Europeo, sul Liberalsocialismo? Usare la tecnologia per socializzare i contenuti dei libri che per lavoro e passione aveva sottomano. Perché bisogna ricordare che questo lavoro non nasce solo in un contesto librario, ma anche in un contesto libertario. Le prime di queste "pillole" vengono inviate nel gruppo Signal dell' Area Libertaria Reggiana: ogni sera una citazione da un classico dell'anarchismo accompagnata da un breve profilo dell'autrice o dell'autore. Ben presto l'iniziativa si allarga, raggiungendo tutti quei compagni e compagne, soprattutto giovani, che avevano l'abitudine di vedersi tutti i giorni al Circolo "Berneri" di via Don Minzoni. Se ci pensiamo questa è stata la prima volta che la nostra generazione si è confrontata con il divieto formale di riunione e di manifestazione, e con degli arresti domiciliari di fatto, che per chi studia la storia dell'anarchismo e dei movimenti sociali richiama alla mente le limitazioni alla libertà sofferte sotto i regimi totalitari. Anche se per ragioni (e con modalità) molto diverse, abbiamo assaggiato un po' delle biografie da quelle nostre compagne e compagni che tra il diciannovesimo e il ventesimo secolo hanno vissuto il carcere, l'esilio, il confino, la lotta clandestina nella resistenza antifascista. Ma rispetto a loro, nel 2020 abbiamo un'arma in più: la tecnologia. Da Signal, il gruppo passa a Whatsapp e si è propagato in maniera virale (è il caso di dirlo) a più gruppi e liste, tanto che non si riesce più a sapere quanta gente direttamente o indirettamente ha ricevuto queste pillole. Chiusi in casa durante il lockdown, in momenti in cui il morale effettivamente si abbassava molto, ogni sera arrivava un messaggio con questi stralci anarchici di vita e di pensiero. Ed eravamo tutte e tutti un po' meno sole e soli.

Análisis de la historiografía anarquista desde la perpectiva de construcción del discurso historiográfico. Ello implica la distinción entre la historiografía del anarquismo y la historiografía anarquista, así como la de los historiadores... more

Análisis de la historiografía anarquista desde la perpectiva de construcción del discurso historiográfico. Ello implica la distinción entre la historiografía del anarquismo y la historiografía anarquista, así como la de los historiadores anarquistas militantes.

Field notes from Aarey forest in Mumbai, 18th May 2018.

German language manuscript (for citation, consult the published book). A short lexicon article on Kropotkin's life and thought. Peter Seyferth: "Kropotkin, Pjotr Aleksejewitsch Fürst", in Rüdiger Voigt/Ulrich Weiß (Hrsg.): Handbuch... more

German language manuscript (for citation, consult the published book).
A short lexicon article on Kropotkin's life and thought.
Peter Seyferth: "Kropotkin, Pjotr Aleksejewitsch Fürst", in Rüdiger Voigt/Ulrich Weiß (Hrsg.): Handbuch Staatsdenker. Stuttgart: Franz Steiner Verlag, 2010. S. 217–219.

The totalitarianism inherent in corporate structures is defined and preserved by the hierarchy, and these structures stretch far beyond for-profit, private enterprises. In an attempt to justify arbitrary positions of power, organizations... more

The totalitarianism inherent in corporate structures is defined and preserved by the hierarchy, and these structures stretch far beyond for-profit, private enterprises. In an attempt to justify arbitrary positions of power, organizations often portray them as "leadership" positions, deploying corporate doublespeak like "team leaders" or "officers" in their hierarchical arrangement. The problem with this is that leadership, in any true sense, is an absolute contradiction from power; and especially from arbitrary power. The acquisition of money and idleness that becomes synonymous with climbing the ladder makes leadership roles impossible for those who fill these positions to obtain.

Simon Springer (Department of Geography, University of Victoria, Canada) contributes this short essay about his visit to Moscow and Domitrov. He organized a session titled “For Kropotkin” with Anthony Ince for the IGU Moscow Regional... more

Simon Springer (Department of Geography, University of Victoria, Canada) contributes this short essay about his visit to Moscow and Domitrov. He organized a session titled “For Kropotkin” with Anthony Ince for the IGU Moscow Regional Conference and made a trip to the Kropotkin museum in Dmitrov.

In this chapter, we argue that there are three important micro cohorts--different social movement threads--of antiauthoritarian activists engaged in self-organization at the grassroots level in Quebec today: (1) radical feminists, (2)... more

In this chapter, we argue that there are three important micro cohorts--different social movement threads--of antiauthoritarian activists engaged in self-organization at the grassroots level in Quebec today: (1) radical feminists, (2) radical queers, and (3) feminists and profeminists organizing in antiracist and anticolonial groups and networks. Furthermore, these micro cohorts have played a role in developing radical analysis, strategy, and organizational modes in a variety of spaces inside, overlapping with, and external to the broader antiauthoritarian movement they/we are part of

The fact is that ideas about 'management' and ideas about 'anarchism' emerged at the same time, in the context of the rise of industrial capitalism. So perhaps we need to understand the two as somehow related. This chapter will suggest... more

The fact is that ideas about 'management' and ideas about 'anarchism' emerged at the same time, in the context of the rise of industrial capitalism. So perhaps we need to understand the two as somehow related. This chapter will suggest that we can write a different history of management, one in which choices about who controls and benefts from industrial production are actively discussed.

This article was published in 2009 as the result of my student activities and research. It focuses on the Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin´s participation at the Slavic assembly in Prague in 1848. Bakunin influenced its developement and... more

This article was published in 2009 as the result of my student activities and research. It focuses on the Mikhail Alexandrovich Bakunin´s participation at the Slavic assembly in Prague in 1848. Bakunin influenced its developement and results. Similarly, his stay in Prague brought him a lot of experience, which influenced the future development of his intelectual thought. Bakunin participated on the assembly as delegate of polish-ruthenian department. He mainly commented on formal questions, but also concetrated on background activities and tried to turn other delegates (e.g. Ľudovít Štúr) for his revolutionary thoughts. He, however, failed. He tried to disprove the illusions about russian tzar Mikuláš I. and was in fierce oppostion to austroslavism. He came out with the idea of democratic slavic federation, but he failed again in enforcing this. After the assembly, he participated in unsuccessful June uprising and had to flee to Dresden. He then tried to organize uprising in Prague from Dresden, but was exposed, arrested and in 1851 extradited to russian authorities.

En este capítulo de libro, los autores exponen a partir de 4 casos de estudio y trabajo de campo la forma en que se han configurado los centros sociales dentro de la Ciudad de México. Cuáles han sido los fundamentos ideológicos y los... more

En este capítulo de libro, los autores exponen a partir de 4 casos de estudio y trabajo de campo la forma en que se han configurado los centros sociales dentro de la Ciudad de México. Cuáles han sido los fundamentos ideológicos y los objetivos detrás de su creación y la integración, incluso su anulación, dentro del espacio urbano de una de las ciudades más importantes de Latinoamérica.

Kuşkusuz, işçi devletinin yaşadığı zorluklarda sorunu öncelikle nesnel koşullarda aramak gerekir (ve bu koşullar aşağıda daha ayrıntılı şekilde ele alınacaktır). Fakat öznel etken de yabana atılmayacak derecede sorunlu olduğunu... more

Kuşkusuz, işçi devletinin yaşadığı zorluklarda sorunu öncelikle nesnel koşullarda aramak gerekir (ve bu koşullar aşağıda daha ayrıntılı şekilde ele alınacaktır). Fakat öznel etken de yabana atılmayacak derecede sorunlu olduğunu göstermiştir. Partinin ileri doğru gittiği (“saldırdığı”) her durumda Bolşevik örgütlenme modelinin kazandırdığı kaynaşmış ve ideolojik açıdan ortaklaşmış nitelik yeterince güçlü olduğunu göstermiş ve zaten tam da bu nedenle Lenin’in partisi bir devrime önderlik edebilmişti. Fakat saldırı ânında, suların yükseldiği dönemde görülmeyen ya da etkisizleştirilebilen eksiklikler, suların geri çekildiği koşullarda kendisini çok çarpıcı bir şekilde göstermiştir. Lenin bir partinin esas gücünün tıpkı bir orduda olduğu gibi geri çekilirken görülebileceğini ve saldırırken gösterilen azim, kararlılık ve birlikteliğin ricat halindeyken de gösterilmesi gerektiğini söyler.
Bu açıdan bakıldığında, partinin bazı sınavları alnının akıyla geçtiğini, bazılarındaysa aynı başarıyı gösteremediğini söylemek gerekir. Parti içindeki tartışmalarda ortaya çıkan yanlış görüşler, partinin yönetici kademesindeki insanların (Buharin, Şlyapnikov, Kollontay, Stalin) devrimin üzerinden birkaç yıl geçtikten sonra en temel konularda büyük ilkesel yanlışlara düşüyor olmaları, tüm bunları toparlayan isim sıfatıyla Lenin’in ölümünden sonra partinin içinde yaşanacakların, yani bir nesnellikten beslenen bürokratik karşıdevrime partinin içindeki ileri gelenlerin önderlik etmesinin habercisi olarak alınmalıdır.