project update

The wheels are spinning!

We got our first contribution today, titled "What is the continuing appeal of the black bloc?"

We've gotten some productive feedback and forum discussion on
Anarchist Black Cat
Anarchist News
Infoshop

The conversation on ABC especially seems to have taken on some collaborative developing and discussion of ideas. It's been made clear that we need to clarify our critique of the strategy of militant mass actions rather than the tactic of mass demonstrations. Of course every tactic deserves a respectful look inward, yet the scope of our discussion is to establish the counter-productiveness of relying on militant mass actions as a central anarchist strategy, while outlining its redeeming potential as a tactic if implemented differently.

Yay!
- Alicia

what we mean by "Mass Mobilization" or "Mass Action"

A general and broad definition of 'Mass Mobilization' is when an organization or group of organizations put out a national or international call for participants in a massive demonstration in the group's locality. For example, any of the many protests numbering in the hundreds or thousands that happen in DC on an almost weekly basis.

For the purposes of this discussion, the term 'Mass Mobilization' refers to a specific variety of that tactic. Very romanticized language is used in the calls to action, placing all systems of oppression as embodied in the target for bricks and black-bloc. The language implies a critical and climactic moment in society's desperation, and provides a Now-Or-Never ultimatum in language like "It's time to decide - bow our heads in submission or raise our fists to fight." Throwing that brick and blocking that intersection are absolute imperatives for fighting for our freedom from dominance, and we're told that if we don't do them we will never become free. If we don't fight now, we are weak and selfish.

Because these are feelings that many of us get when frustrated with the bullshit around us, many go into these actions with their entire hearts, laying their personal risk aside because they feel that in a true battle one must not be afraid to sacrifice for the victory of freedom.

The problem is, these brick-throwings aren't happening at our climactic moment. We don't have the entire working class throwing these bricks together in solidarity, so resistance becomes an anarchist club. The folks participating end up going to jail and court, pouring days and months into a jail cell, thousands of dollars from the movement into the pockets of court officials and out of the pockets of common unwealthy people who oppose capitalism and prisons and silenced dissent. We end up drained, tired, frustrated, fearful, paranoid, defeated. Participation in organizing drops due to burn-out. Having placed our passions into the momentum of that brick, we experience ultimate disappointment when capitalism does not crumble under its blow. We lose faith in anarchist values. We give up. We divide.

This is the kind of Mass Mobilization we reference.

- Alicia

Cause/Effect

wtf do you mean by 'anarcho-anarchy'?

We realized we had begun to discuss things we didn't have our own terminology for, so we created some of our own literary devices.

You've heard of anarcho-syndicalism, anarcho-feminism, anarcho-communism, and anarcho-primitivism. The formula is ideology dash strategy. An anarcho-feminist fights for social anarchy through the destruction of patriarchy. An anarcho-primitivist may believe that only once we rewild can we be completely free from hierarchy.

In this vein, anarcho-anarchy is a condition in which those who desire cooperation in the absence of systems of dominance in fact create networks that experiment to find a way to cooperate without maintaining systems of dominance.

Call for Contributions

Help us create a zine by and for radical, anti-capitalist social organizers - a forum for those who feel threatened or concerned by the consequences of mass mobilizations. These mobilizations all too often decimate radical communities by demonizing them and alienating the general population. They thrive by exploiting the impressionable dreamers, impatient for change, who want to "belong", angry at the system which has entrapped them. The are often higher for these young kids, trans folk, people with few resources, people with mental or physical health issues who all too frequently have too little support. Speaking out about this problematic organizing is discouraged, viewed as security betrayal and ineffectual weakness.

Organizers who share the goals and direct-action values of the anti-globalization, anti-capitalist, an(ti-heir)archy set, who simultaneously question the effectiveness and ethical inconsistencies of the controversial mass mobilization tactics, are invited to expose those critiques here.

Our vision for this zine is that it be available online and at infoshops, and that it be handed out at convergence spaces. It should provide the counterpoint to all the glamorous war stories and riot porn we are barraged with. When someone we love talks about going down to smash a social relationship somewhere, we can point them in the direction of this zine, or hand them a copy.

Share your contributions or comments with us at

anarcho_anarchy@riseup.net


-Alicia & Elie



::Criteria to consider while writing a submission::
While never censoring our sense of humor, phrasing should be sensitive to the fact that insulting the competency of anarcho-molotovists is counter-productive and creates divisions rather than unity and collective critique. Abstain from too much inundation of obvious existing anarchist identities, for example citations of, "the IWW gets it right, the rest of you numnucks take a dagflabbin hint already!" Instead, try to bring more universal critiques.

Please do not submit anything that will incriminate anyone, or put yourself or others at legal liability. If you want to talk about details you could change names, change places and use words like 'allegedly', 'may have' or 'was charged/accused with.' Don't tell us the name of your group, or the city. These these things don't matter; they are universal. What matters is the context. What themes were troubling; which were productive? We can identify these problems without identifying the participants.

We've been discussing the potential value of submissions of jail trauma personal accounts, examples of mass mobilization's effects on local organizing and solutions both theoretical and practical.

Preferred submission length is under 1000 words, though we're open to convincing.
(For reference, this entire post was 425 words, but now it's 437)

Anonymous submission is fine, however some form of contact will facilitate communication on editing. If anonymity is a major concern, consider guerillamail.com.