Category: Feminism

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20th century 21st century Analytic theory Anarchism Books Direct democracy Feminism Global Patriarchy Statism - Representationism Strategic theory

Quiet Rumours : An anarcha-feminist Reader (2012)

Author(s)

Dark Star Collective (editors)

Contents

“The current women’s movement and a radical feminist analysis of society have contributed much to libertarian thought. In fact, it is my contention that feminists have been unconscious anarchists in both theory and practice for years. We now need to become consciously aware of the connections between anarchism and feminism and use that framework for our thoughts and actions.

[…] We believe that a Women’s Revolutionary Movement must not mimic, but destroy, all vestiges of the male-dominated powerstructure, the State itself—with its whole ancient and dismal apparatus of jails, armies, and armed robbery (taxation); with all its murder; with all of its grotesque and repressive legislation and military attempts, internal and external, to interfere with people’s private lives and freely-chosen co-operative ventures.

The world obviously cannot survive many more decades of rule by gangs of armed males calling themselves governments. The situation is insane, ridiculous and even suicidal. Whatever its varying forms of justifications, the armed State is what is threatening all of our lives at present. The State, by its inherent nature, is really incapable of reform.

True socialism, peace and plenty for all, can be achieved only by people themselves, not by representatives ready and able to turn guns on all who do not comply with State directives.

As to how we proceed against the pathological State structure, perhaps the best word is to outgrow rather than overthrow. This process entails, among other things, a tremendous thrust of education and communication among all peoples.

The intelligence of womankind has at last been brought to bear on such oppressive male inventions as the church and the legal family; it must now be brought to re-evaluate the ultimate strong-hold of male domination, the State.”

Dark Star Collective ; Red Rosa and Black Maria Black Rose Anarcho-Feminists

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20th century 21st century Analytic theory Books Capitalism Direct democracy Feminism Futures theory Longue durée Middle East Patriarchy Social Ecology Statism - Representationism Strategic theory Values theory

Democratic Confederalism (2011)

Author(s)

Abdullah Öcalan

Contents

“In contrast to a centralist and bureaucratic understanding of administration and exercise of power, confederalism poses a type of political self-administration where all groups of the society and all cultural identities can express themselves in local meetings, general conventions and councils. This understanding of democracy opens the political space to all strata of the society and allows for the formation of different and diverse political groups. In this way it also advances the political integration of the society as a whole.

Politics becomes a part of everyday life.

Without politics the crisis of the state cannot be solved since the crisis is fuelled by a lack of representation of the political society. Terms like federalism or self administration as they can be found in liberal democracies need to be conceived anew.
Essentially, they should not be conceived as hierarchical levels of the administration of the nation-state but rather as central tools of social expression and participation. This, in turn, will advance the politicization of the society. We do not need big theories here, what we need is the will to lend expression to the social needs by strengthening the autonomy of the social actors structurally and by creating the conditions for the organization of the society as a whole.

The creation of an operational level where all kinds of social and political groups, religious communities, or intellectual tendencies can express themselves directly in all local decision-making processes can also be called participative democracy. The stronger the participation the more powerful is this kind of democracy.

While the nation-state is in contrast to democracy, and even denies it, democratic confederalism constitutes a continuous democratic process.”

Abdullah Öcalan

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20th century Analytic theory Anarchism Books Europe Feminism Patriarchy

Free Women of Spain (1991)

Author(s)

Martha Ackelsberg

Contents

“In 1936, groups of women in Madrid and Barcelona founded Mujeres Libres, an organization dedicated to the liberation of women from their ‘triple enslavement to ignorance, as women, and as producers’. Although it lasted for less than three years (its activities in Spain were brought to an abrupt halt by the victory of Franco’s forces in February 1939), Mujeres Libres mobilized over 20,000 women and developed an extensive network of activities designed to empower individual women while building a sense of community.

Like the Spanish anarcho-syndicalist movement in which these women were rooted, Mujeres Libres insisted that the full develop­ment of women’s individuality was dependent upon the development of a strong sense of connection with others.

In this respect, as in a number of others, Mujeres Libres represents an alternative to the individualistic per­spectives characterizing mainstream feminist movements of that time and of our own.”

Martha Ackelsberg

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20th century 21st century Analytic theory Anarchism Books Europe Feminism Global Heteronormativity LGBTQI+ rights North America Patriarchy

Queering Anarchism : Addressing and undressing power and desire (2012)

Author(s)

Abbey Volcano (editor)

C. B. Daring (editor)

Martha Ackelsberg (editor)

Jen Rogue (editor)

Deric Shannon (editor)

Contents

“We think queer politics and anarchism have a lot to offer each other and we’re excited by some of the connections being drawn between the two by people in their writing, organizing, struggling, and daily lives.

So we want to suggest that an introduction to the overlaps between anarchist and queer politics could be useful at this juncture. […] We think the strong connections between anarchist and queer politics are striking. But, as they say, the proof of the pudding is in the eating.

We hope this collection serves as a smorgasbord of sorts, providing insights into how we might alter the landscape of this often miserable, violent, and boring world and bring into being different ones.

We think the case here is supported quite well that there are many more fruitful engagements to emerge from this meeting of queer and anarchism—and a variety of other partnerships along the way.”

Editors

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21st century Analytic theory Anti-racism Books Feminism Global Heteronormativity LGBTQI+ rights Patriarchy White supremacy

Intersectionality (2016)

Author(s)

Sirma Bilge and Patricia Hill Collins

Contents

“Intersectionality is a way of understanding and analyzing the complexity in the world, in people, and in human experiences.

The events and conditions of social and political life and the self can seldom be understood as shaped by one factor. They are generally shaped by many factors in diverse and mutually influencing ways.

When it comes to social inequality, people’s lives and the organization of power in a given society are better understood as being shaped not by a single axis of social division, be it race or gender or class, but by many axes that work together and influence each other.

Intersectionality as an analytic tool gives people better access to the complexity of the world and of themselves.”

Patricia H. Collins & Sirma Bilge

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