What's Your Anarchy?
We at the Nor'Easter recognize
that there are as many definitions
of anarchy as there are
anarchists. With this in mind,
respecting a diversity of opinion,
we would like to introduce
the series "What's Your Anarchy?"
in which anarchists can
describe what anarchy means
to them, why they became anarchists,
or what their view of
an anarchist future may be.
A quick bite of ANARCHISM
By Luke Romano
Fear and freedom can not comply with one another. If you are looking to understand anarchism, that is a great place to start. Anarchism is the one theory that does not rely on fear or threats, in any way, to uphold its ideas. Any form of statism - any kind of government - must, by definition, rely on threats and violence, and therefore, fear. Anarchists recognize that a person who is afraid is not free.
Anarchists, with the goal of a society completely free from institutional fear, reject government in all of its forms. And by logical extension, anarchists reject authority in all of its forms. Anarchists view freedom as a natural reality, not something graciously "granted" to us by government. Freedom is 100 percent free, contrary to the popular slogan, and the only power that government has is to limit such natural freedom.
As social beings, anarchists see that once human beings are accustomed to taking responsibility for their own actions, a society based on mutual aid, trust, and cooperation is a very real possibility. A society with no authority. No bosses. Why?
It is the natural aim of authority
to enlarge itself. Governments are
constantly making more laws, creating
more intricate ways to control their
populations. Whether it be a CEO, a police
officer, a boss at work, a president,
a parent, a teacher, or any other figure
of authority - anarchists recognize that
abuse of power is natural and necessary
to maintain any form of authority.
This is because these social relationships,
these relationships based on an
authoritarian social model, all share the
common link of the division between
the bosses and those being bossed. This
relationship is not voluntary. This relationship
is forced. Anarchists oppose
force as a means to uphold anything.
Therefore, authority must be abolished.
But what to replace it with?
There is nothing in society
to replace authoritarianism with that
doesn't already exist. Cooperation - we
all cooperate as a necessary form of
survival, do we not? Mutual aid - it is
always beneficial to exchange services
and aid in any way and to somehow receive
it back. With no power whatsoever,
society can exist in a completely
de-centralized fashion. No nations, no
governments, no borders - just independent,
self-sustainable communities
networking with one another as a
means of survival. This is the only way
that freedom can exist - when it's not
"given" to us by authority - when it exists
in its natural state.
Do you want to work on your
own terms? Are you tired of being
bossed around? Do you hate being
stricken with fear every time a cop car
passes you on the street? Do you see the
advantage to working with your neighbors
rather than competing with them?
Do you love a sense of equality in your
social and personal relationships? Do
you see freedom for what it really is? If
so, then anarchism is a wonderful idea
for you to explore and apply to your everyday
life. Enough with the corrupting
power and insatiable greed they've instilled
in us! It's time to work towards
an anti-authoritarian world.
Luke Romano publishes Cracks in the
Concrete - a small anarchist journal based
in Southern New Jersey. Learn more here.