Anarchism

1
Anarchism
2
A definition

• Political authority in all its forms and
  especially in the form of the state is both evil
  and unnecessary.
• Anarchists look to a stateless society through
  abolition of law and government.
• The state is evil because as repository of
  sovereign ,compulsory and coercive authority it
  is an offence against principles freedom and
  equality.
• Core value of anarchism is unrestricted personal
  autonomy..
• State is unnecessary because order and social
  harmony can arise naturally and spontaneously
  requiring no direction from above.
• It is utopian and has highly optimistic
  assumptions regarding human behaviour but draws
  on two different ideological traditions-
  liberalism and socialism hence rival
  individualist and collective forms of anarchism.
• First classic statement anarchist principles
  William Godwin Enquiry Concerning Political
  Justice (1793).
• C19 anarchism significant component growing
  socialist movement..
• Late C19 anarchists sought support amongst
  landless peasants Russia and southern Europe but
  more successfully through anarcho-syndicalism
  industrial working classes. Syndicalism is a
  form of revolutionary trades unionism based on
  class war and emphasises use direct action and
  general strike..
• Syndicalism popular France, Italy and Spain and a
  genuine mass movement early C20 CGT union France
  and CNT Spain and anarcho syndicalism movements
  spread to South America.
• However, undermined both South America and Europe
  by repressive authoritarianism and by influence
  and success of Bolsheviks in Russia.
• The one ideology which has never achieved power
  at a national level hence anarchists look to
  historical societies that reflect their
  principles such as cities Ancient Greece,
  Medieval Europe traditional peasant communes
  Russian Mir or egalitarian nature many
  traditional societies.
• Anarchism undermine by fact its goal of overthrow
  state and dismantle all forms political authority
  considered unrealistic.
• Anarchists reject as corrupting conventional
  means exercise political influence- forming
  political parties standing for elections-
  depriving themselves in this way advantages
  political organisation and strategic planning
  placing faith in mass spontaneity

3
Anti statism

• Sebastien Faure in Encyclopedie anarchiste
  defined anarchism as the negation of the
  principle of Authority
• Why do anarchists oppose authority?
• An offence against principles of freedom and
  equality.
• Anarchism unique as it endorses principles
  absolute freedom and political equality.
• Authority is based on political inequality as it
  gives the alleged right of one person to dominate
  another and in the process corrupts and damages
  both authority and those under it.
• Since humans are free and autonomous creatures,
  being subject to authority diminishes the subject
  and suppresses their essential nature and forces
  them to succumb to debilitating dependency.
• To be in authority gives rise to a psychology of
  power based on a pattern dominance and
  submission. The US anarchist Paul Goodman
  (1911-1972) described such society many are
  ruthless and most live in fear .
• Anarchism defined by rejection of state power.
• Anarchists reject liberal notion that political
  authority arises from voluntary agreement . The
  state is a coercive body enforcing obedience to
  its laws on fear punishment. Emma Goldman
  (1869-1940) government symbolised by the club,
  the gun, the handcuff or the prison.
• The state is exploitative in that it robs
  individuals of property via taxation. The state
  in alliance with wealthy and privileged serves to
  oppress poor and weak.
• The state is destructive, Randolph Bourne
  (1886-1918) war is the health of the state
  individuals required to ght in wars invariably
  about territorial expansion, plunder, national
  glory.
• Anarchist view of state also triggered by concern
  of corrupting influence political authority and
  economic inequality- Circumstances in which they
  live. Power in any shape or form will corrupt
  absolutely

4
Natural order

• Anarchists believe the state unnecessary William
  Godwin (1756-1836) in Enquiry Concerning
  political Justice (1773) argued that via
  education and social conditioning humans capable
  genuinely disinterested benevolence. As rational
  beings, humans inclined by education and
  enlightenment to live in accordance with truth
  and universal moral laws. In his view, it is
  corrupting influence of government and unnatural
  laws rather than original sin that creates
  injustice, greed and aggression- government is
  the cause and not the solution.
• At heart of anarchism is utopianism- social order
  arises naturally and requires no machinery of
  law and order. Collectivist anarchists stress
  human capacity for sociable cooperative behaviour
  whilst individualist anarchists highlight
  importance of enlightened reason.
• Proudhon, Bakunin and Kropotkin accept that a
  capacity for corruption lurks within each
  individual.
• Human nature is plastic. Opponents of anarchism
  have argued that however socially enlightened
  institutions may be, if selfish or negative
  impulses are basic to human nature the prospect
  of natural order is utopian dream.

5
Anti clericalism

• Historically, anarchists expressed as much
  bitterness towrds the church as the state-
  prospered therefore in countries with strong
  religious traditions such as Spain, France and
  Italy.
• Idea of God represents the notion of a supreme
  being who commands absolute obedience. For
  Proudhon and Bakunin only with rejection of
  Christianity could human beings be free and
  independent. Also earthly rulers often look to
  religion to legitimise power.
• Religion seeks to impose set moral principles on
  individual robbing the individual of moral
  autonomy.
• However, anarchists do not reject religious
  impulse entirely- holding essentially spiritual
  conception human nature a utopian belief in
  virtual unlimited possibilities human self
  development. Early anarchists sometimes
  influenced by millenarianism a sudden and
  complete emancipation from misery and oppression.

6
Economic freedom

• Aim of anarchism is not just overthrow of state
  but social/economic transformation.
• Bakunin (1814-1876) political power and wealth
  are inseparable.
• Capitalism was understood in terms of class-
  ruling class exploits and oppresses however
  Bakunin defined it more broadly- anyone who
  exercised wealth, privilege and power so included
  Kings, police and judges etc
• According to Bakunin society was divided into an
  exploited class which exploited others, a ruling
  elite at the top and the vast majority who were
  exploited.
• All anarchists opposed managed capitalism of post
  1945 as propping up a system class exploitation.
  Individualist anarchists suggest state
  intervention distort competitive market creating
  public and private monopolies. Both
  individualist and collectivist anarchists oppose
  state socialism of Soviet model as a
  contradiction as the state replaces capitalism as
  the means of exploitation.
• Anarchists of all kinds preference for an economy
  where free individuals manage affairs without
  state regulation but this does not preclude very
  different economic models under anarchism.

7
Collectivist (social) anarchism

• Philosophical roots of this lie in socialism.
• At heart humans are sociable, gregarious and
  cooperative- when people are linked together by
  recognition of common humanity they do not
  require regulation by government.. Bakunin
  Social solidarity is the first human law freedom
  is the second law.
• Government only makes social solidarity
  impossible by replacing freedom with oppression.
• Like Marxism, anarchism rejection of capitalism
  as system class exploitation and structural
  injustice. Also believe in revolution as means
  to bring about political change, a preference for
  collective ownership, a communist society would
  be anarchic, humans have no need for political
  authority.
• Anarchism differs from socialism on dismissal
  parliamentary socialism as a contradiction in
  terms. It is impossible to humanise capitalism
  and any expansion of role of the state will
  entrench oppression. Anarchists reject
  proletarian dictatorship as another form of evil
  and oppression. The state cannot be allowed to
  wither away, it must be abolished.

8
Mutualism

• A system of fair and equitable exchange in which
  individuals/ groups bargain with one another,
  trading goods and services without
  profit/exploitation.
• Pierre-Joseph Proudhon (1809-65) in What is
  Property? (1840) rejected traditional property
  rights and communism ( not opposed to all forms
  private property admired independence and
  initiative small holding peasants, craftsmen and
  artisans- admired the watchmakers of Switzerland
  who managed their affairs on basis mutual
  cooperation), arguing for mutualism a cooperative
  productive system geared towrds need not profit
  and organised in self governing communities.
  Also Property is theft.
• Mutualism would produce social interaction in a
  system which was voluntary, mutually beneficial
  and harmonious requiring no government
  intervention

9
Anarcho-syndicalism

• Anarcho syndicalism was the only way anarchism
  developed into a mass movement C19 and C20.
• Syndicalism is a form of revolutionary trades
  unionism from French syndicat.
• First emerge in France CGT pre 1924 and spread
  to Italy, S. America, USA and Spain
• Workers and peasants oppressed and
  industrialists, landlords, politicians, judges,
  police as exploiters. Workers would from
  syndicats which would act in same way as trades
  unions but were revolutionary. Georges Sorel
  (1847-1922) in Reflections on Violence (1908) a
  revolution would come via general strike
  revolution of empty hands. For Sorel the general
  strike was a myth a symbol of working class
  power.
• Two features inspired anarchists about
  syndicalism- reject conventional politics as
  corrupting and pointless, working class power
  exerted through direct action- ultimately the
  general strike. Secondly, the syndicates a model
  for democratic, grass roots decentralised
  society of the future.
• Anarcho syndicalism had genuine mass support e.g.
  pre SCW but failed to develop a clear political
  theory of revolution relying on spontaneous
  uprising of the masses. It was also criticised
  for over concentrate on short term trade union
  goals.

10
Anarcho-Communism

• In most radical form a belief in social
  solidarity leads to full communism (common
  ownership of wealth). All forms of private
  property is theft as it represents exploitation
  of the workers who produce the wealth, and
  encourages selfishness and promotes conflict.
• Anarcho-Communism is highly optimistic about
  human capacity for cooperation or mutual aid
  Peter Kropotkin (1842-1921)- drawing on theory of
  evolution he saw mutual aid as principal means of
  human and animal development i.e. challenges
  Darwin.
• Arguing against social Darwinist theory of
  Herbert Spencer (1820-1903) who saw humans as
  naturally competitive and aggressive, successful
  species must have a propensity for mutual aid.
  Mutual aid flourished in Ancient Greece and city
  states Medieval Europe but was subverted by
  capitalism.
• Proudhon argued that communism could only be
  brought about by authoritarian state anarchists
  like Kropotkin argue that true communism
  requires the abolition of the state, a collection
  of self sufficient communes.
• For anarcho communist the communal organisation
  of social and economic life has three key
  advantages communes are based on principle
  sharing and collective endeavour, strengthen
  bonds compassion/solidarity, keep greed and
  selfishness at bay, Secondly, decisions are made
  via process participatory or direct democracy
  which guarantees high level popular participation
  and political equality. Third they are small
  scale communities allowing humans to manage
  affairs via face to face interaction.
  Centralisation always asscoaited with
  depersoanlised bureaucratic social process.

11
Individualistic anarchism

• Philosophical basis of individualist anarchism
  lies in liberal idea of the sovereign individual
  but pushes it to logical extreme- i.e. individual
  sovereignty- absolute and unlimited sovereignty.
• Any constraint on the individual is evil, the
  individual cannot be sovereign in a society ruled
  by law and government.
• Unlike anarchists liberals believe that
  individual liberty cannot be guaranteed in
  stateless society. However anarchists believe
  that individuals can conduct themselves
  peacefully, harmoniously and prosperously without
  government individuals are rational and moral
  creatures.
• Unlike liberals who believe that government can
  be tamed by development of representative
  institutions, constitutions which limit
  government power, checks and balances, regular
  elections which anarchists see all this as façade
  as all laws infringe liberty and all states an
  offence against individual liberty.

12
Egoism

• Max Stirner (1806-56) in The Ego and His Own
  (1845).
• Egoism can mean all individuals are self seeking-
  this was accepted by Hobbes and Locke and because
  it can generate conflict amongst individuals can
  justify existence of state
• Or
• In Stirner view individual self is at centre of
  moral universe who can act as he chooses
  without consideration for law, social
  conventions, religious/moral principles. It
  points towrds nihilism or a belief in nothing.
  It also points to atheism and extreme form of
  individualist anarchism

13
Libertarianism

• The belief that the individual should enjoy
  widest possible realm of freedom. David Thoreau
  (1817-62) adapted Tho. Jefferson motto that
  government is best which governs least to that
  government is best which governs not at all. The
  individual has to be faithful only to his
  conscience and do what he believes right
  irrespective of social demands or laws and can
  lead to a justification for civil disobedience.
• Benjamin Tucker (1854-1939) believed that
  autonomous individuals could live and work
  together without danger of conflict or disorder.
  Godwin argued that human rationality meant that
  disagreement could be resolved by reasoned
  discussion. Extreme individualists such as
  Tucker op cit and Josiah Warren argued some sort
  of mechanism through which independent actions of
  free individuals could be harmonised. Tucker and
  Warren said this could be done via system market
  exchange. Warren said whilst individuals a
  sovereign right to property they produce by logic
  are forced to work with others to gain advantages
  of division of labour- labour for labour
  exchange and creation time stores through which
  one persons labour exchanged for promise for
  labour in kind. Tucker said genuine anarchism is
  consistent anarchism referring to C19 free
  market principles Cobden/Bright

14
Anarcho-capitalism

• Murray Rothbard (1926-95) and Ayn Rand (1905-82)
  and David Friedman pushing free market principles
  to the limit have developed a form of anarcho
  capitalism, government should be abolished and
  replaced by unregulated market competition.
• Property should be owned by private individuals
  who may choose to enter into contracts in pursuit
  of self interest. The market beyond control of
  any individual or group regulates all social
  interaction.
• Free market liberals argue that some services
  maintenance domestic order, protection against
  external attack, enforcement contracts are
  public goods cannot be supplied via market
  competition but by the state.
• Rothbard however recognised that individuals will
  seek protection from one another and can be
  delivered competitively by privately owned
  protection associations or private courts.
• Profit making protection agencies better service
  than present police because competition provides
  consumers with choice forcing agencies to be
  cheap, efficient and responsive to consumer
  needs. Private courts would develop a reputation
  for fairness to attract custom from individuals
  to resolve conflict. Unlike the state, contracts
  made with private agencies would be entirely
  voluntary regulated only by impersonal market
  forces. In the USA several states use private
  prisons, in UK private prisons and use of
  private protection agencies. Schemes such as
  Neighbourhood Watch transfer responsibility for
  public order from police to neighbourhood.

15
Anarchism

• Individualist
• Ultra-liberalism
• Extreme Individualism
• Sovereign individual
• Civil disobedience
• Atomism
• Egoism
• Contractual obligation
• Market mechanism
• Private property
• Anarcho-capitalism

• Collectivist
• Ultra-socialism
• Extreme collectivism
• Common humanity
• Social revolution
• Class politics
• Cooperation/mutualism
• Social duty
• Communal organization
• Common ownership
• Anarcho-communism

16
Roads to anarchy

• Traditionally turned away from active politics
  concentrating on writing or experiments in
  communal living.
• As state regarded as evil anarchists reject
  attempts to win power.
• Anarchists also reject political parties as
  bureaucratic and hierarchic

17
Revolutionary violence

• C19 anarchist leaders try to induce oppressed
  masses to revolt. Bakunin led The Alliance for
  Social democracy took part in risings France,
  Italy. Others such as Malatesta in Italy,
  Populists (Russia) and Zapata in Mexico worked
  for peasant revolution- however filed as the
  uprisings having faith in spontaneous uprising
  lack organisation- instead turn towrds
  syndicalist and more disciplined communist
  movement.
• Late 1890s and 1970s peak in terrorist violence
  (clandestine violence). Terrorism designed to
  induce climate of fear for political ends.
  Typical anarchist terrorist lone or small group-
  Peoples Will in Russia. 1970s Baader-Meinhof
  West Germany, Italian Red Brigades, Japanese Red
  Army, Angry Brigade in UK.
• Why? Violence is a form of revenge or
  retribution originating in oppression by state
  against oppressed masses, therefore a form of
  revolutionary justice. Also aims to demoralise
  ruling classes and a way of stimulate masses to
  revolt.
• It has failed because anarchist violence is
  counterproductive provoking public horror and
  outrage and failed to persuade ruling class to
  relinquish power. Violence challenge the state
  on the territory on which its superiority is
  clearly overwhelming. In 1890s and 1970s only
  encouraged state to expand and strengthen
  repressive machinery generally with public
  backing.

18
Direct Action

• Political action taken outside the constitutional
  and legal framework- can be passive resistance or
  terrorism.
• Anarcho syndicalists refusing to take part in
  conventional representative politics, pressure
  their employers by boycott products, industrial
  sabotage, strike action. Modern anti
  globalisation movement strategy mass popular
  protest and direct political engagement. For
  anarchist such action has two advantages
• Firstly uncontaminated by processes of government
  and machinery of state therefore opposition can
  be expressed openly and honestly rather than be
  diverted in constitutional direction or managed
  by professional politicians.
• Secondly, it can be organised on basis
  decentralisation and participatory decision
  making. This is sometimes seen as new politics
  turning away from more conventional politics of
  established parties/pressure groups,
  representative institutions towrds
  innovative/theatrical forms protest examples new
  social movements.
• However it may damage public reputation by
  opening it to charge of extremism, and while
  attract media attention may restrict political
  influence because leads to group being defined as
  outsider.

19
Non-violence

• Most anarchists see violence as tactically
  misguided. Godwin and Proudhon condemn it in
  principle
• Non violence reflects a respect for human beings
  as moral and autonomous creatures. Optimistic
  view of human nature therefore dictates other
  people are treated with compassion and respect.
• To refrain from force especially when subjected
  to intimidation and provocation demonstrates
  strength and moral purity of ones convictions.
  However, anarchists who attracted to principles
  pacifism and non-violence shy away from mass
  political activism, preferring to build model
  communities which reflect principles cooperation
  and mutual respect. They hope that anarchist
  ideas will be spread not by political campaigns
  and demonstrations but via contrast between peace
  and contentment in such communities and the quiet
  desperation (Thoreau) that typifies life in
  conventional society.

20
The 21st Century

• Anarchism has challenged and thereby fertilised
  other political creeds.
• Anarchists have highlighted coercive and
  destructive nature of political power thereby
  countering statist tendencies within other
  ideologies e.g. liberalism, socialism
  ,conservatism.
• Anarchism a growing influence on modern political
  thought- left and right exhibited libertarian
  tendencies which bear imprint anarchist thought.
• New left encompassed wide range movements
  1960s/70s e.g. student activism, anti
  colonialism, feminism, environmentalism.
  Unifying theme new left was goal of liberation
  to mean personal fulfilment, endorsing an
  activist style of politics based on popular
  protest and direct action.
• New right also emphasise importance individual
  freedom but via market competition.
  Anarcho-capitalists sought to highlight what they
  see as evils state intervention.
• Anarchists have addressed issues such as
  pollution, environmental destruction, consumerism
  ( personal happiness equated with material
  possessions) urban development, gender, global
  inequality. Many of these concerns expressed via
  modern social movements such as anti-capitalist
  or anti-globalisation. T argue that anarchism is
  over because no longer a mass movement is to
  forget that as world becomes more complex and
  fragmented mass politics is over. By association
  with values such as individualism, participation,
  decentralisation and equality anarchism may be
  better equipped than other political creeds to
  respond to challenges post modernity.