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Ideas about how an Anarchist society might work vary considerably, especially with respect to economics. There are also disagreements about how such a society might be brought about, with some anarchists being committed to a strategy of nonviolence, while others advocate armed struggle. CAPITALISM See Also: Anarchism and capitalism Throughout most of its history, anarchism has been defined by its proponents in opposition to in opposing ownership of workplaces by capitalists and aim to replace Wage Labour with workers' associations. These anarchists agree with Kropotkin's comment that ''"the origin of the anarchist inception of society… in the criticism… of the hierarchical organisations and the authoritarian conceptions of society"'' rather than in simple opposition to the state or government.Anarchism, p. 158 They argue that the wage system is hierarchical and authoritarian in nature and, consequently, capitalism cannot be anarchist.Morris, Brian, ''Anthropology and Anarchism,'' '''Anarchy: A Journal of Desire Armed''' (no. 45)"; Mckay, Iain, ''The legacy of Voltairine De Cleyre'', '''Anarcho-Syndicalist Review''', no. 44; L. Susan Brown, '''The Politics of Individualism''' and Homesteading .12 Many non-capitalist market anarchists support private ''possession'' along Warren's, Proudhon's, or similar lines. In contrast, most anarcho-capitalists support private property along Lockean or similar lines. Their descendentsBrown, Susan Love, The Free Market as Salvation from Government: The Anarcho-Capitalist View, Meanings of the Market: The Free Market in Western Culture, edited by James G. Carrier, Berg/Oxford, 1997, p. 107 and p. 103), sometimes called anarcho-capitalists, free-market anarchists, or simply individualist anarchists, support laissez-faire free market capitalism. Historically, anarchists considered themselves socialists and opposed to capitalism. Thus, anarcho-capitalism is considered by many anarchists today as not being "true" anarchism. As Peter Marshall notes in his history of anarchism ''"few anarchists would accept the 'anarcho-capitalists' into the anarchist camp since they do not share a concern for economic equality and social justice."'' - Demanding the Impossible, p. 565 Some anarchist organisations, for example the , Richard. ''Anarchism''. A Companion to Contemporary Political Philosophy, editors Goodin, Robert E. and Pettit, Philip. Blackwell Publishing, 1995, p.231. Anarcho-capitalism (1926-1995)]] See Also: Anarcho-capitalism Anarchism and anarcho-capitalism Anarcho-capitalism is a predominantly United States -based theoretical tradition that promotes an economic system of Free Market Capitalism . In such a society no authority would prohibit anyone from providing, via the Free Market , ''any'' service - even those services traditionally provided by state Monopoly such as police, courts, and defense against invasion. Anarcho-capitalism does not oppose Profit , rent, interest, or employment. 2005 While Rothbard bases anarcho-capitalism on Natural Rights (specifically, his theory of the Non-aggression Principle ), others such as David D. Friedman , author of The Machinery Of Freedom , prefer to justify it on a Utilitarian basis. Some Minarchists , such as Ayn Rand and Robert Nozick , have also influenced anarcho-capitalism. Globalization Many anarchists are actively involved in the Anti-globalization movement, seeing corporate Globalization as a Neocolonialist attempt to use economic coercion on a global scale, carried out through state institutions such as the World Bank , World Trade Organization , Group Of Eight , and the World Economic Forum . Globalization is an ambiguous term that has different meanings to different anarchist factions. Many anarchists use the term to mean neocolonialism and/or Cultural Imperialism (which they may see as related). Others, particularly anarcho-capitalists, use "globalization" to mean the worldwide expansion of the division of labor and trade, which they see as beneficial so long as governments do not intervene. Market anarchists and anarcho-capitalists see the worldwide expansion of the division of labor through trade ("globalization") as a boon, but oppose the regulation and cartelization imposed by the World Bank, WTO, etc. and "managed trade" agreements such as NAFTA and CAFTA . Many also object to Fiat Money issued by central banks and resulting debasement of money and confiscation of wealth. Groups such as 2006 '' ENDS AND MEANS See Also: propaganda of the deed direct action Among anarchists, there is no consensus on the legitimacy or utility of violence in revolutionary struggle. , Dorothy Day and Henry David Thoreau have been advocates of Pacifism . Anarchists have often been portrayed as dangerous and violent, possibly due to a number of high-profile violent actions, including 2006 Late 19th-century Revolution aries encouraged acts of political violence, called " Propaganda Of The Deed ", such as Bomb ings and the Assassination s of Heads Of State to further anarchism. However, the term originally referred to exemplary forms of direct action meant to inspire the masses to revolution. Propaganda of the deed may be violent or nonviolent. While all anarchists consider take this further, following Tolstoy's belief in Pacifism . Although numerous anarchist initiatives have been based on the Tactic of Nonviolence ( Earth First! , Food Not Bombs , etc), many anarchists reject pacifism as an ideology, instead supporting a "diversity of tactics." Authors Ward Churchill ('' Pacifism As Pathology '', 1986) and Peter Gelderloos (''How Nonviolence Protects the State'', 2005) have published influential books critical of pacifist doctrine, which they view as ineffectual and hypocritical. As a result of Anarchism's Critical View of certain types of Private Property , many anarchists see the destruction of property as an acceptable form of violence or argue that it is not, in fact, violence at all. In her widely cited 1912 essay, ''Direct Action'', Voltairine De Cleyre drew on American historical events, including the destroying of revenue stamps and the Boston Tea Party , as a defense of such activities.de Cleyre, Voltairine. '' Direct Action '', 1912. Many anarchists participate in subversive organizations as a means to undermine the establishment, such as Food Not Bombs , Radical Labor Unions , Alternative Media , and Radical Social Centers . This is in accordance with the anarchist concept of Dual Power : creating the structures for a new anti-authoritarian society in the shell of the old, hierarchical one. Elections in the state See Also: criticisms of electoralism voluntaryism
The individualist anarchist Lysander Spooner argued that voting was a legitimate means of self-defense against the state, and noted that many supporters of the state consider ''both'' voting and abstention to be acknowledgments of the state's legitimacy.Lysander Spooner, ''No Treason'', no. 2, part 1. Lysander Spooner's essay "No Treason"http://www.lysanderspooner.org/notreason.htm No Treason, Lysander Spooner, 1867 offers an individualist anarchist rebuttal to the argument that existing democratic governments are justified by majority consent. Democracy in anarchism For individualist anarchists, "the system of democracy, of majority decision, is held null and void. Any impingement upon the natural rights of the person is unjust and a symbol of majority tyranny."Horowitz, Irving Louis. The Anarchists. Aldine Transaction 2005, p. 49 Anarcho-ecologist Murray Bookchin criticizes individualist anarchists for opposing democracy,Bookchin, Murray. The Democratic Dimensions of Anarchism and says "majority rule" is consistent with anarchism,Bookchin, Murray. Social Anarchism or Lifestyle Anarchism: An Unbridgeable Chasm but he also preferred the term assembly rather than democracy. Bookchin has in turn been accused of "municipal statism"; i.e., non-anarchism.http://lemming.mahost.org/library/municipalstatist.htm Anarchy after Leftism (chapter 5), Bob Black GENDER ]] See Also: Anarcha-feminism Ecofeminism Early French Feminists such as Jenny D'Héricourt and Juliette Adam criticised the Misogyny in the anarchism of Proudhon during the 1850s. Anarcha-feminism is a kind of feminist movement. Anarcha-feminism, views Patriarchy as the first manifestation of hierarchy in human history; thus, the first form of oppression occurred in the dominance of male over female. Anarcha-feminists then conclude that if feminists are against patriarchy, they must also be against all forms of Hierarchy , and therefore must reject the authoritarian nature of the state and capitalism. Early first-wave feminist and Voltairine De Cleyre . In the Spanish Civil War , an anarcha-feminist group, "Free Women", organized to defend both anarchist and feminist ideas. Unlike Marxist Feminism and Socialist Feminism , anarcha-feminism does not necessarily adopt the historical model of patriarchy put across by Engels in The Origin Of The Family, Private Property, And The State . Rather, anarcha-feminists are likely to view patriarchy as a component and symptom of interconnected systems of oppression. In such a model, opposition to patriarchy is not the sole means of opposing authoritarian repression, but instead becomes a key component of a movement opposing all interconnected forms of oppression. Anarcho-primitivists see the creation of gender roles and patriarchy as a creation of the start of Civilization , and therefore consider Primitivism to also be an anarchist school of thought that addresses feminist concerns. Eco-feminism , although not exclusively anarchist, is often considered a feminist variant of green anarchist feminist thought. In anarcha-feminist circles in the United States, the slang term "manarchist" is sometimes used, pejoratively, to describe male anarchists who are either inattentive to or dismissive of (anarcha)feminist concerns. RACE Black Anarchism opposes the existence of a state, capitalism, and subjugation and domination of people of color, and favors a non-hierarchical organization of society. Theorists include Ashanti Alston , Lorenzo Komboa Ervin , and Sam Mbah . Some of these theorists have had past experiences with the Black Panther Party , and came to anarchism after they became critical of the Black Panther Party's brand of Marxist-Leninism. Anarchist People Of Color , (or APOC), was created as a forum for non-Caucasian anarchists to express their thoughts about racial issues within the anarchist movement, particularly within the United States. Anti-Racist Action is not an anarchist group, but many anarchists are involved. It focuses on publicly confronting racist agitators, such as the KKK , Neo-Nazi groups, etc. Most modern and historical anarchists describe themselves as anti-racists. Many early Anarchists, notably Lucy Parsons - formerly an Enslaved American and person of color - viewed Racism as one of many negative side-effects of Capitalism and expected that it would vanish in a post-capitalist world. Among modern Anarchists, however, anti-racism plays a more prominent role and is typically viewed as one of several forms of social hierarchy and stratification which must be destroyed. No anarchist organizations has ever included racism as part of its platform, and many, particularly modern formations, include explicit anti-racism. Since the late 1970s anarchists have been involved in fighting the rise of (US), Anti-Fascist Action (UK/Europe), Antifa '' Anti-Racist Action is one of the largest grassroots anti-fascist and anti-racist organizations in North America today and counts many anarchists among its members. Their tactics, centered around directly confronting Neo-fascist and White-supremacist groups, are considered controversial both within the anarchist movement (where they are sometimes portrayed as well-intentioned but ineffective) and in mainstream society (where they are often portrayed as violent and disruptive). Many anarchists are also involved in the New Abolitionist movement, which seeks to abolish the concept of race itself on that basis that it has no biological basis and is a social construction designed to divide the working class and preserve capitalism. Black Anarchism opposes the existence of a state, capitalism, and subjugation and domination of people of African descent, and favours a non-hierarchical organization of society. Theorists include Ashanti Alston , Lorenzo Komboa Ervin , Sam Mbah and Martin Sostre . Anarchist People Of Color emerged in the United States as a tendency which theorized anarchism in the broader context of race. Founded by writer and organizer Ernesto Aguilar , an APOC email list became the basis for collectives composed of people of colour to form in several American cities. APOC held a conference in Detroit, Michigan in 2003. In 2005, the first APOC journal, Wildfire, was launched, but folded a few months later. In 2007, Roger White and the Oakland , California APOC group founded Jailbreak Press. {Link without Title} A minority of historically prominent anarchists have been accused of racism: e.g. Proudhon3 and Bakunin.Bakunin, quoted by Shlomo Avineri , in ''Radical Theology, the New Left, and Israel'', p. 245-246 article in Auschwitz. Beginning of a New Era? Reflections on the Holocaust, edited by Eva Fleishner , KTAV Publishing House, Inc.; The Cathedral Church of St. John Divine; Anti-Defamation League of B'nai B'rith, 1977, p. 241-254 NATIONALISM See Also: Nationalism and anarchism Anarchism has a long history of opposing Imperialism , both in the core nations (the colonizers) and the periphery nations (the colonized). In general, anarchists have preferred to focus on building revolutions at home and doing solidarity work for comrades in other countries, e.g. Guy Aldred was jailed for printing Shyamji Krishnavarma 's''' The Indian Sociologist ''. One example of this was Rudolf Rocker , a prominent German anarchist and Anti-fascist , who was particularly active amongst Jewish workers. In his ''Nationalism and Culture'' he argued for a "federation of European peoples" which would include Jews. Rejecting biological theories of race, and rejecting the concept of nation, he argued that since it was European States that had conquered and colonized the rest of the world, successful libertarian organization amongst Europeans was "the first condition for the creation of a world federation, which will also secure the so-called Colonial peoples the same rights for the pursuit of happiness" (p554). Many modern anarchists and other anti-imperialists share this approach. Daily Kos , Euromayday website accessed 3 May 2007. Chinese Anarchists were very active in the early Chinese nationalist movement and in the resistance to British and later Japanese colonization of China . Anarchists were also deeply involved in anti-imperialist nationalist movements in Vietnam , Korea , Cuba , Ukraine , Ireland , Mexico , and all over Africa . Anarchism is also an influence in the modern Indigenist movement. THE ENVIRONMENT See Also: Green anarchism Eco-anarchism Social ecology Anarcho-primitivism Ecofeminism Green syndicalism The environment and sustainability have been an issue for anarchists from at least as far back as Kropotkin's " Fields, Factories And Workshops ", but since the late 1970s anarchists in Anglosphere and European countries have been agitating for the natural environment. Eco-anarchists or Green Anarchists believe in Deep Ecology . This is a worldview that embraces Biodiversity and Sustainability . Eco-anarchists often use Direct Action against what they see as earth-destroying institutions. Of particular importance is the Earth First! movement, that takes action such as Tree Sitting . The more militant Earth Liberation Front , which grew out of Earth First!, also has connections with the anarchist movement. Another important component is Ecofeminism , which sees the domination of nature as a metaphor for the domination of women. Murray Bookchin 's work on Social Ecology , David Watson 's work with Fifth Estate magazine, Steve Booth 's work in the UK publication '' Green Anarchist '', and Graham Purchase 's writings on Green Syndicalism have all contributed to the broad variety and scope of green anarchist/eco-anarchist thought and action. Green anarchism also involves a critique of industrial capitalism, and, for some green anarchists, civilization itself. Most Anarchist s see Class Society as being the root cause of pollution. They argue that a small Class of owners or controllers have the wealth to avoid the worst repercussions of pollution while a very much larger class of workers without such wealth have no say in the running of the workplace. Thus under capitalism and other class societies those who control Workplaces are also those with the least interest in minimising pollution - indeed as most anti-pollution measures add to costs that class will have an interest in minimising such measures. Under capitalism pollution is often a product of externalising costs - that is a transfer of a pollutant from the property of the owner to a public river transfers the cost from the capitalist to Society at large. The anarchist communist solution is to ensure that all those working and living within the Ecosystem of a plant have control over all its outputs, including pollutants. Primitivism is a predominantly Western philosophy that advocates a return to a pre-industrial and usually pre-agricultural society. It develops a critique of industrial civilization. In this critique Technology and Development have Alienated people from the natural world. This philosophy develops themes present in the political action of the Luddites and the writings of Jean-Jacques Rousseau . Primitivism developed in the context of the Reclaim The Streets , Earth First! and the Earth Liberation Front movements. John Zerzan wrote that Civilization — not just the state — would need to fall for anarchy to be achieved. Anarcho-primitivists point to the anti-authoritarian nature of many 'primitive' or hunter-gatherer societies throughout the world's history as examples of anarchist societies. RELIGION Leo Tolstoy ]] See Also: Anarchism and religion Buddhist anarchism Christian anarchism Jewish anarchism Islam and anarchism From Proudhon and Bakunin to the Spanish anarcho-syndicalists, most anarchists have questioned or opposed Organized Religion , believing that most organized religions are Hierarchical or Authoritarian and, more often than not, aligned with contemporary power structures like State and Capital . Nonetheless, others reconcile anarchism with religion. Christian Anarchists believe that there is no higher authority than God , and oppose earthly authority such as Government and established churches. They believe that Jesus' teachings and the practice of the Early Church were clearly anarchistic. Some of them feel that the teachings of the Nazarene s and other early groups of followers were corrupted by contemporary religious views - most notably when Constantine declared "Christianity" to be the official religion of Rome. Christian anarchists, who follow Jesus' directive to "turn the other cheek", are strict Pacifists . The most famous advocate of Christian anarchism was Leo Tolstoy , author of '' The Kingdom Of God Is Within You '', who called for a society based on compassion, nonviolent principles and freedom. Christian anarchists tend to form experimental communities (such as the Catholic Worker ). They also occasionally Resist Taxation . Buddhist Anarchism originated in the influential Chinese Anarchist movement of the 1920s. Taixu , one of the leading thinkers and writers of this school, was deeply influenced by the work of Christian anarchists like Tolstoy and by the ancient Chinese Well-field System . Buddhist anarchism was later revived in the 1960s by writers such as Gary Snyder ; an incarnation of this school of thought was popularized by Jack Kerouac in his book '' The Dharma Bums ''. Neopaganism , with its focus on the environment and equality, along with its often decentralized nature, has led to a number of neopagan anarchists. One of the most prominent is Starhawk , who writes extensively about both Spirituality and Activism . In the late 1800s the , referencing ''The Social Conquest of the Hindu Race and Meaning of Equality''. Discussing the anarchist movement in Britain in 2002, Adam K. has argued that it "has an especially ignorant and hegemonistic perception of the Muslim community", which he attributed to "the anglo-centric nature of the movement". Quoting the statement that " Islam is an enemy of all freedom loving people" from an anarchist magazine, he argues that this is "no different to the bigoted rhetoric of George Bush or even BNP leader Nick Griffin ." Anarchist Orientalism and the Muslim Community in Britain Accessed 3 May 2007. RELATIONS WITH THE LEFT See Also: Anarchism and Marxism While many anarchists (especially those involved in the anti-globalization movement) continue to see themselves as a leftist movement, some thinkers and activists believe it is necessary to re-evaluate anarchism's relationship with the traditional Left . Like many radical ideologies, most anarchist schools of thought are, to some degree, Sectarian . There is often a difference of opinion ''within'' each school about how to react to, or interact with, other schools. Many anarchists however, draw from a wide range of political perspectives, such as the Zapatista Army Of National Liberation , the Situationists , " Ultra Leftists ", the Autonomen , Autonomist Marxism , various Indigenous Culture s. A movement called The term Some activists, calling themselves "insurrectionary anarchists", are critical of formal anarchist labor unions and federations, and advocate informal organization, carrying out acts of resistance in various struggles. Proponents include Communism While communism is proposed as a form of social and economic organisation by many anarchists, other anarchists consider it a danger to the liberty and free development of the individual.'' Communism and Anarchy '' by Peter Kropotkin Most schools of anarchism have recognized a distinction between libertarian and authoritarian forms of communism.Liberty (Not the Daughter but the Mother of Order) (1881-1908); stated:
It should be noted that Bakunin was speaking of 'state communism' (authoritarian Marxism) as verified by the last line which mentions state property. Anarcho-communists explicitly reject state property and authority, especially centralized authority. Although 1886 , Whole No. 81 Anarcho-communists reject the criticism, pointing to the principle of Voluntary Association that underpins their theory and differentiates it from state communism. ''An Anarchist FAQ: A.3.1 What are the differences between individualist and social anarchists?'' Some individualist anarchists are also willing to recognize anarchist communism as a legitimate form. Kevin Carson writes: Free market, libertarian communist, syndicalism, and other kinds of collectivist anarchists must learn to coexist in peace and mutual respect today, in our fight against the corporate state, and tomorrow, in the Panarchy that is likely to succeed it. ''Mutualist FAQ: Getting There'' NOTES AND REFERENCES |
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