Author: AnarchistStudies.Blog

An overview of the history of anarchism in Indonesia, available in both English and Bahasa Indonesia.

Co-authored by Gloria Truly Estrelita, Jim Donaghey, Sarah Andrieu and Gabriel Facal, this article discusses the early roots of anarchist movements in the archipelago in the context of anti-colonialism and nationalism in the late 1800s and early 1900s; details the abolition of leftist movements, including anarchism, in the 1960s; traces the re-emergence of anarchism as part of protest and counter-cultural movements in the 1990s; highlights the shifting forms of state repression in the 2010s; and points to the importance of anarchist critique for the contemporary Indonesian context.

English: A Brief History of Anarchism in Indonesia

Indonesian: Sejarah Singkat Anarkisme Di Indonesia

Also available as an audio podcast in both languages at Anarchist Essays.

There are plenty of people who are dismissive of punk’s association with anarchism, and even see it as damaging. But for those of us who are bound up in the punk/anarchism interrelationship, it’s clearly the case that anarchism has been revitalised by punk, worldwide. Ask yourself, what would the anarchist movement be like today without punk’s resuscitating influence?

‘Smash All Systems! (an introduction to punk anarchism as a culture of resistance)’

Despite its prominence, the punk/anarchist intertwinement has been repeatedly underappreciated, either through taken-for-grantedness, bemused misunderstanding, or outright hostility. The Anarchism and Punk Book Project series sets out to redress that – this article is an excerpt from the first volume in the series: Smash The System! Punk Anarchism as a Culture of Resistance (edited by Jim Donaghey, Will Boisseau and Caroline Kaltefleiter, and published by Active Distribution in December 2022).

[Also available as a podcast on Anarchist Essays].

‘Smash All Systems! (an introduction to punk anarchism as a culture of resistance)’

The most famous utterance of Spain’s most famous anarchist is a fabrication!

With the aid of some historical sleuthing, Danny Evans makes a convincing case that the oft-repeated Buenaventura Durruti quotation from 1936, containing the phrase ‘We are not in the least afraid of ruins’, was in fact made up by an ethically dubious journalist. However, the invented interview succeeded in encapsulating Durruti’s real practice, and van Paassen (however unintentionally) contributed to the creation of a romantic and celebrated figure.

A Pile of Ruins? Pierre van Paassen and the Mythical Durruti

 

The editors of AnarchistStudies.Blog are running a workshop that will provide practical advice on getting your ideas published with us, with the aim of demystifying the process and opening access to a wider pool of potential writers.

The workshop is part of AntiUniversity Now 2022 and will be held at:

MayDay Rooms, 88 Fleet Street
EC4Y 1DH, London, UK.

On:

Friday 16th September 2022, 2pm to 4pm.

It’s free, but capacity is limited, please register here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/antiuniversity-festival-2022-anarchist-studies-blog-writing-workshop-tickets-398556251477

Why are we doing this?

Many sites that publish research put up a number of barriers to entry, such as application fees or strict academic requirements. This all works to prevent a true reflection of the diversity of ideas and approaches that exist within and outside of universities.

We want to help break down those barriers and meet with anyone who has ideas and a desire to get them heard.

While we’re keen to welcome new writers and thoughts to AnarchistStudies.Blog in particular, the knowledge shared will be transferable to approaching other outlets, and self-published blogs too.

What will you need?

If you have an idea you’d like to discuss and develop, please feel free to bring it along. This isn’t a requirement though, there will be time to chat about potential topics as a group. No one will be put on the spot to share unless they’re comfortable to.

You can also send us questions in advance if there’s something you’d like to hear covered.

What is AnarchistStudies.Blog?

An online, rapid publication format featuring anarchist comment and critique, partnered with Anarchist Studies journal. It brings you bursts of informed opinion and critical debate on anarchist activism, anarchist academia, and the wider world as viewed through an anarchist lens.

Editors Jim Donaghey and Cassidy Ferrari will be facilitating the workshop.

Workshop accessibility

Standard measures will include:

• Accessible formatting of written material
• Avoiding or defining academic jargon
• Pauses for questions
• No forced engagement

If you have any access needs we can adapt to, please feel free to get in touch and we’ll accommodate as best we can.

MayDay Rooms accessibility

88 Fleet Street was built in 1902 and, due to the physical constraints of the building, has limited access. It is compliant with ‘ambulant disabled’ and provision for broader access is currently under review.

This article takes a personal and reflective view of forms of activism that have come to prominence in recent years in the UK, such as Extinction Rebellion and Just Stop Oil. Nora Ziegler critiques the ways in which unequal distributions of power create barriers to participation, and the limitations of deploying concepts rooted in misanthropy or individualism as a means of overcoming apathy and climate denial. The article is informed by several years as a live-in volunteer at the London Catholic Worker, which operated as a house of hospitality for refugees and migrants, while also hosting activists and engaging in activism.

Herd Mentality, Deathbed Radicalism and Other Things On My Not-To-Do List

Registration for the 7th international Anarchist Studies Network conference is now OPEN! Full programme and abstracts available at the ASN webpage.

REGISTER HERE

Like last time, the conference costs a minimum amount for security reasons. If you would rather not pay, please let us know and we can send you a free ticket code. This time we have also introduced a supporter ticket. Please feel free to choose this option if you can afford it and wish to do so. The funds we gather will be used to fund low-waged participants during the conference or during other ASN projects.

Please send any questions, funding requests, accessibility needs and feedback to asn.conference@protonmail.com

In the meantime, check out the Anarchist Studies blog, the Anarchist Studies journal and the Anarchist Research Group (ARG) on Twitter and YouTube. Please also read our Code of Conduct.

Look forward to seeing you there!

The near-inevitability of error is a perpetual thorn in the side of historians. Of particular interest to anarchists, the Makhnovist movement provides numerous examples of historiographical myth production – a key example is the famous black flag displaying the skull-and-crossbones and the slogan in white Ukrainian lettering, ‘Death to all who stand in the way of freedom for the working people’ [‘Smertʹ vsim, khto na pereshkodi dobut’ia vilʹnosti trudovomu liudu’].

The flag has cycled through a multitude of meanings, from Bolshevik attempts to associate it with anti-Semitic pogroms, to an international source of inspiration for anarchist resistance, to a symbol of regional pride in Makhno’s hometown, and a declaration of defiance against Russian invasion. But, as Sean Patterson explains in this article, despite its near-universal reputation as the primary symbol of Ukrainian anarchism, the flag is not Makhnovist. Even so, the flag and its slogan will surely survive and continue its march through time.

“Death to All Who Stand in the Way of Freedom for the Working People”: Anarchy’s False Flag

The Dispossessed (1974) may be the best-known anarchist fiction of the twentieth century. This essay by Frankie Hines charts a new path around it by looking in depth at the novel’s politics of logistics, revealing a space in which the contradictions of Anarres’ anarchist society are especially pronounced.

Ursula K. Le Guin’s Logistics Revolution – The Dispossessed and the Supply Chain

‘We will do it ourselves, because the government won’t do it for us.

But we must do it together, because we are stronger as a collective than we are as individuals.’

Elise Imray Papineau compares the mutual aid responses to the Covid 19 pandemic in Australia, Indonesia and the Philippines, arguing that the proliferation and consistency of mutual aid initiatives is affected not only by need, but also by the reach of the state and the pervasiveness of political apathy.

Doing-It-Together: Mutual aid and grassroots activism in Australia, Indonesia, and the Philippines