“Anarchism is grounded in a rather definite proposition: that valuable behavior occurs only by the free and direct response by individuals or voluntary groups to the conditions presented by the historical environment. It claims that in most human affairs, whether political, economic, military, religious, moral, pedagogic, or cultural, more harm than good results from coercion, top-down direction, central authority, bureaucracy, jails, conscription, states, pre-ordained standardization, excessive planning, etc.” So writes Paul Goodman, one of the most important social critics as well as anarchist thinkers of the 1960s, in “The Black Flag of Anarchism.” His work, whether in the form of social and political criticism, fiction, poetry, literary criticism, or psychology, always stressed how modern society and its institutions hindered human creativity, freedom and non-violence. His 1960 best-selling book Growing up Absurd was one of the major philosophical works of the decade that critiqued the absurdity of American society and which influenced and justified youth rebellion.

While most of his many dozens of books have been out of print for some time, it is very exciting to see some of the them return to circulation including two new books by PM press which have just been published. First is Drawing the Line Once Again: Paul Goodman's Anarchist Writings edited by Taylor Stoehr. Stoehr is well situated to introduce and edit Goodman’s work as he is a writer who has produced numerous works about Goodman as well as other important radical works. He was also a friend, the literary executor and long time editor of Goodman’s work. Stoehr gathers together nine core texts including the important and influential “Utopian essays and practical proposals.” Referring to this book, Colin Ward writes that, “Paul Goodman brought a new invigorating stream into American anarchism, simply through his insistence that in all the problems of daily life we are faced with the possibility of choice between authoritarian and libertarian solutions. Taylor Stoehr’s sympathetic editing introduces Goodman’s social criticism to a new generation.” (PM Press, 2009).

The other book by Paul Goodman recently republished is New Reformation: Notes of a Neolithic Conservative and introduced by Michael Fisher. New Reformation was Paul Goodman’s last book of social criticism whereby he re-assesses the results of what he considered a moral and spiritual upheaval comparable to the Protestant Reformation--“the breakdown of belief, and the emergence of new belief, in sciences and professions, education, and civil legitimacy.” Michael Fisher’s introduction situates Goodman in his era and traces the development of his characteristic insights, now the common wisdom of every radical critique of American society (PM press, 2010).

Across the pond, Europeans in the early 1970’s were producing responses to the absurdity of everyday life in unique ways. The self-described “Angry Brigade” sought to ferment revolution by any means necessary. The Angry Brigade: A History of Britain's First Urban Guerilla Group by Gordon Carr (with prefaces by John Barker and Stuart Christie), details how the group used guns and bombs in a series of symbolic attacks against property. A series of communiqués accompanied the actions, explaining the choice of targets and the Angry Brigade philosophy: autonomous organization and attacks on property alongside other forms of militant working class action. Targets included the embassies of repressive regimes, police stations and army barracks, boutiques and factories, government departments and the homes of Cabinet ministers, the Attorney General and the Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police. The attacks on the homes of senior political figures increased the pressure for results and brought an avalanche of police raids. From the start the police were faced with the difficulty of getting to grips with a section of society they found totally alien. And were they facing an organization—or an idea? Written after extensive research—among both the libertarian opposition and the police—it remains the essential study of Britain's first urban guerilla group (PM press, 2009).

Anarchism in History

Edited by Gabriel Kuhn is Revolution and Other Writings: A Political Reader by Gustav Landauer. Landauer was a key figure in the history of 20th-century German anarchism who died at the hands of German forces after the failed Bavarian revolution. His writings influenced philosophers from Martin Buber to Walter Benjamin. For Landauer, government was not identical to “the state.” Rather, "The State is a condition, a certain relationship between human beings, a mode of behavior; we destroy it by contracting other relationships, by behaving differently toward one another… We are the State and we shall continue to be the State until we have created the institutions that form a real community." Few of Landauer’s works have been translated to English, so it is exciting that the first comprehensive collection of his writings was published in March, 2010. This valuable addition to the history of anarchism gathers more than 40 influential works that cover Landauer’s entire political biography, from his early anarchism of the 1890s and his philosophical reflections at the turn of the century to the subsequent establishment of the Socialist Bund and his tireless agitation against the coming Great War. Additional chapters on war and nationalism, the United States and Mexico, and opinion pieces and personal letters reveal the further scope of Landauer’s thinking with pieces on corporate capital, education, language, and Judaism (PM press, 2010).

The Anarchist Collectives: Workers' Self-management in the Spanish Revolution 1936-1939 by Sam Dolgoff has just been reprinted by Black Rose books. Originally written in 1974, anarchist scholars such as Paul Avrich believed this to be an excellent documentary history of the Anarchist collectives in Spain. The book is devoted to the experiments in workers' self-management, both urban and rural, which constituted one of the most remarkable social revolutions in modern history. Libertarian communism was truly the creation of workers and peasants- a "spontaneous" creation, for which the groundwork had been laid by decades of struggle and education, experiment and thought (Black Rose Books, 2009).

Nunzio Pernicone’s Italian Anarchism: 1864–1892 originally published by Princeton University Press has been reprinted in a more affordable format by AK press. The book critically examines the anarchist practices across three decades of Italian history. Nurtured by Michael Bakunin, and expanded and refined by Errico Malatesta, Carlo Cafiero, Andrea Costa, and Francesco Saverio Merlino, among others, anarchist ideas and modes of action played a central role in the development of Italian socialism, at times reigning triumphant over Marxism and all other revolutionary doctrines. On the basis of his own extensive research, Pernicone explores questions of strategy and tactics, anarchism's uneasy relationship with the Left, government repression, internal dissension, and the role of leadership in revolutionary movements—drawing out lessons that are sure to be of interest to contemporary readers. In fact, Pernicone's book may well tell us as much about our own age as it does those three decades long since past (AK press, 2009).

Another history of radical movements of interest to anarchists is detailed in For All the People: Uncovering the Hidden History of Cooperation, Cooperative Movements, and Communalism in America. The book seeks to reclaim a history that has remained largely ignored by most historians. This dramatic and stirring account examines each of the definitive American cooperative movements for social change—farmer, union, consumer, and communalist—that have been all but erased from collective memory. Focusing far beyond one particular era, organization, leader, or form of cooperation, For All the People documents the multigenerational struggle of the American working people for social justice. With an expansive sweep and breathtaking detail, the chronicle follows the American worker from the colonial workshop to the modern mass-assembly line. (PM press, 2009)

For anarchist researchers and writers, Anarchist Periodicals in English Published in the United States (1833-1955): An Annotated Guide by Ernesto A. Longa will be a useful addition to their libraries. Published by The Scarecrow Press in 2009, the 350 page volume highlights the articles, reports, manifestos, and creative works of anarchists and left libertarians who were dedicated to propagandizing against authoritarianism, sham democracy, wage and sex slavery, and race prejudice. In the survey are nearly 100 newspapers produced throughout North America. For each entry, the following information is provided: title, issues examined, subtitle, editor, publication information, including location and frequency of publication, contributors, features and subjects.

Rethinking Contemporary Anarchism

Following the work of Todd May and others who propose a re-reading of anarchism in light of post-structuralism, Saul Newman’s book The Politics of Post Anarchism ( Edinburgh University Press, 2010) is welcome. Indeed, as May says himself of this book, “Newman is one of the pioneers in redeeming the promise of anarchist thought with the resources of contemporary continental philosophy. In this work, at once philosophical and political, Newman engages such thinkers as Foucault, Badiou and Ranciere alongside classical and contemporary anarchist thought as well as struggles such as the anti-globalization movement. The Politics of Postanarchism offers a compelling framework for progressive political thought and intervention”.

Another book that seeks to look at contemporary anarchism is Nathan Jun and Shane Wahl’s New Perspectives on Anarchism (Lexington books, 2009). The book is comprised of 26 essays by anarchist scholars and activists from around the globe who view anarchism from a variety of disciplinary perspectives, including philosophy, political science, religion, sociology, and ecology. Together, they attest to the vibrancy, intrepidity, and diversity of contemporary anarchist studies both within and without the academy. New Perspectives on Anarchism's broad approach to anarchism will make it appealing to scholars and political activists from a variety of disciplinary backgrounds. Contributors include Harold Barclay, Jesse Cohn, Uri Gordan, James Horrox, Sandra Jeppesen, Todd May, Stevphen Shukaitis, Dana Ward and many more.

The third and final volume of Anarchism: A Documentary History of Libertarian Ideas: The New Anarchism (1974-2008) has been published (Black Rose Books, 2009). Graham is a recipient of an IAS grant in 2002, before the publication of the first volume. The trilogy, nearly seven years in the making, ends with the new anarchism, which deals with the exciting developments in anarchist theory since the reemergence of social movements in the 1960s and 1970s. Anarchism: A Documentary History of Libertarian Ideas documents various currents in anarchist thought, from eco-anarchism on, as well as the spread of anarchist social movements around the world. This volume features selections from many prominent writers, including Murray Bookchin, Noam Chomsky, Carole Pateman, Peter Marshall, David Graeber, Luce Fabbri, Mark Leier, C.George Benello, Daniel Colson, Rosella Di Leo, Todd May, Alan Carter, Ed Herman, Richard Sonn, Ashanti Alston, Ba Jin, Saul Newman, Jesse Cohn, Richard Day, Amedeo Bertolo, Chaia Heller, Brian Tokar, Uri Gordon, Howard J. Ehrlich, Mok Chiu Yo, Sharif Gemie, Luis Andrés Edo, and many others. In the afterword, Robert Graham surveys the many different currents in anarchist thought documented in all three volumes of this outstanding and definitive anthology, discussing the continuity and changes in anarchist ideas as they have evolved in their historical context and the importance of these ideas for the future.

Anarchism and Utopianism edited by Laurence Davis and Ruth Kinna is another collection of original essays that examines the relationship between anarchism and utopianism. The book opens with an historical and philosophical survey of the subject matter and goes on to examine antecedents of the anarchist literary utopia, anti-capitalism and the anarchist utopian literary imagination, free love as an expression of anarchist politics and utopian desire, and revolutionary practice. Contributors explore the creative interchange of anarchism and utopianism in both theory and modern political practice and uncover the anarchistic influences active in the history of utopian thought (Manchester University Press, 2010).

Living Anarchy: Theory and Practice in Anarchist Movements by anarchist activist Jeffrey Shantz provides an examination of some of the constructive anarchist projects around today. The book provides examples of politics grounded in everyday resistance, and offers insights into real world attempts to radically transform social relations in the here and now of everyday life. Shantz shows how in order to bring their ideas to life, anarchists create working examples. Further, it critically examines the possibilities and problems facing attempts to build DIY community-based social and political movements, which seek radically to transform social relations. The work also engages theoretical developments around these emerging political practices. The text is organized to illustrate the development of the diversity of anarchist strategies and tactics over time beginning with shorter term or temporary (often more dramatic, practices such as black blocs and street reclaiming) before moving to a discussion of more durable projects such as alternative media projects, free spaces and infoshops (Academica Press, 2009).

The great political critic Noam Chomsky is the subject of Carlos Otero’s latest work. Whereas Chomsky has had both a fruitful career as political critic and Linguist, the connections between these seemingly disparate categories is explored in Otero’s book Chomsky's Revolution: Cognitivism and Anarchism. Drawing together the coherence of Chomsky’s linguistics, philosophy and politics, the book discusses Chomsky’s ideas of cultural anthropology and his writing on specifically political topics as well as illuminating his naturalist philosophy of mind and Chomsky’s work on language, thought and formal linguistics. (Blackwell, 2009).

Cool Reprints

One of the most sought after books on anarchism over the past decade in the U.S. has been Peter Marshall’s Demanding the Impossible: A History of Anarchism. The book had the sad and unfortunate plight of only having publication rights in Great Britain. But now thanks to our good friends at PM press, this long sought after book will be widely available. Navigating the broad 'river of anarchy', from Taoism to Situationism, from Ranters to Punk rockers, from individualists to communists, from anarcho-syndicalists to anarcha-feminists, Demanding the Impossible is an authoritative and lively study of a widely misunderstood subject. It explores the key anarchist concepts of society and the state, freedom and equality, authority and power and investigates the successes and failure of the anarchist movements throughout the world. While remaining sympathetic to anarchism, it presents a balanced and critical account. It covers not only the classic anarchist thinkers, such as Godwin, Proudhon, Bakunin, Kropotkin, Reclus and Emma Goldman, but also other libertarian figures, such as Nietzsche, Camus, Gandhi, Foucault and Chomsky. In this new updated edition a new epilogue by Marshall examines recent developments such as ‘post-anarchism’ and anarcho-primitivism’ as well as the anarchist contribution to the peace, green and ‘global justice’ movements. (PM press, 2009)

Originally published in 1972, Social Anarchism by Giovanni Baldelli has also just been republished (Aldine Transaction, 2009). "Social Anarchism" is one anarchist's outlook that offers solutions to difficulties in traditional anarchist thought. Baldelli differs from many other anarchists on certain issues - especially with regard to economic theory. For him, the exploitation of ethical capital is far more relevant to anarchism than the exploitation of labor. He also advances a new theory of value, reexamines the concept of authority and contrasts it with that of power, and provides answers to the question of how to oppose power effectively without perpetuating it. Throughout the book, Baldelli underscores his contention that many paths can lead to an anarchist society and that the respect of those who choose one way versus those who choose another is already anarchism put into practice.

The Coming Revolution, Jolly Pirates and the Wonderful World of Glenn Beck

A book published by the tiny, though important, publisher semiotexte this year was reviewed live by Fox News’ Glenn Beck show. Beck is one of the most hilariously terrible right-wing political commentators in the U.S. today. Many people, myself included, tune in if one wants to laugh themselves into a stupor by his bizarre accusations of left-wing conspiracies, the take over of America by immoral athiests, and the Marxist-Leninist agenda of the Obama administration. While, in one sense, it is not a surprise that Beck would review semiotext(e)’s The Coming Insurrection on television and in print (after all, it is a revolutionary left-wing work), the irony is that most of us on the left know that sadly the book will not have wide circulation nor a major impact on “middle America” as Beck suggests.
The book is a call to arms from the recent waves of social contestation in France and Europe. Written by the anonymous “Invisible Committee” in the vein of Guy Debord, it was proclaimed to be a manual for terrorism by the French government (who recently arrested its alleged authors). One of its members more adequately described the group as "the name given to a collective voice bent on denouncing contemporary cynicism and reality." The Coming Insurrection is a strategic prescription for an emergent war-machine to "spread anarchy and live communism."
The book was written in the wake of the riots that erupted throughout the Paris suburbs in the fall of 2005 and presaging more recent riots and general strikes in France and Greece. The Coming Insurrection articulates a rejection of the official Left and its reformist agenda, aligning itself instead with the younger, wilder forms of resistance that have emerged in Europe around recent struggles against immigration control and the "war on terror."

There are few fleeting moments in life that I can recall being hopeful that the psychologically unstable Glenn Beck might be right about something. Beck deeply fears that so-called “ordinary people” will read the book and join the left-wing revolution to undermine America and the world. Sadly, I suspect, few “ordinary” people will even hear of the book and fewer will be influenced by it. Anarchists and other revolutionaries, however, may find the book both interesting and intriguing.

While contemporary piracy probably is not influenced by any form of idealism or romanticism, the claim can be made that 19th century pirates were not devoid of such. Numerous recent scholarship have contested traditional historical writings on the subject and put forth interesting, novel ways of understanding the sometimes radical nature of these groups (such as Peter Lamborn Wilson’s Pirate Utopias: Moorish Corsairs & European Renegadoes. Two new books dealing with 19th century Piracy from a radical perspective have just been published. Women Pirates and the Politics of the Jolly Roger by Ulrike Klaismann, Marian Meinzerin and Gabriel Kuhn is one such book. Published by Black Rose books in 2009, the book is an account of piracy through three millennia, in histories of women and men sailing on four seas: the Chinese Straits, the Mediterranean, the Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean. Writing with passion and humor, but without romanticizing, or ignoring the unsavoury side of some of their heroines, the authors turn history on its head. Of particular note is the introductory essay by Kuhn's on anarchism and piracy entitled "Under the Death's Head." Considering the history of Caribbean piracy and drawing on Stirner and Foucault among others, Kuhn describes a breaking out of structured obedience, an escape from perpetual supervision, a plunge into unpredictability, danger, "everything that makes strong, free action."

Life Under the Jolly Roger: Reflections on Golden Age Piracy by Gabriel Kuhn examines the political and cultural significance of these nomadic outlaws by relating historical accounts to a wide range of theoretical concepts--reaching from Marshall Sahlins and Pierre Clastres to Mao-Tse Tung and Eric J. Hobsbawm via Friedrich Nietzsche and Michel Foucault. The meanings of race, gender, sexuality and disability in golden age pirate communities are analyzed and contextualized, as are the pirates’ forms of organization, economy and ethics. (PM press, 2009).

Anarchism and Anthropology

James Scott, anthropologist and the author of the excellent Seeing like the State: How Certain Schemes to Improve the Human Condition Have Failed (1999) and Domination and the Arts of Resistance: Hidden Transcripts has produced a new work entitled The Art of Not Being Governed: An Anarchist History of Upland Southeast Asia (Yale Univ., 2009). The book describes how for two thousand years the disparate groups that now reside in Zomia (a mountainous region the size of Europe that consists of portions of seven Asian countries) have fled the projects of the organized state societies that surround them—slavery, conscription, taxes, corvée labor, epidemics, and warfare. This book, essentially an “anarchist history,” is the first-ever examination of the huge literature on state-making whose author evaluates why people would deliberately and reactively remain stateless. Among the strategies employed by the people of Zomia to remain stateless are physical dispersion in rugged terrain, agricultural practices that enhance mobility, pliable ethnic identities, devotion to prophetic millenarian leaders, and maintenance of a largely oral culture that allows them to reinvent their histories and genealogies as they move between and around states.

Another anthropologist David Graeber has released Direct Action: An Ethnography. Not just an anthropologist, but an active participant in direct action movements, Graeber undertakes a detailed ethnographic study of the global justice movement. Starting from the assumption that, when dealing with possibilities of global transformation and emerging political forms, a disinterested, "objective" perspective is impossible, he writes as both scholar and activist. At the same time, his experiment in the application of ethnographic methods to important ongoing political events is a serious and unique contribution to the field of anthropology, as well as an inquiry into anthropology's political implications.

The case study at the center of Direct Action is the organizing and events that led to the dramatic protest against the Summit of the Americas in Québec City in 2001. Written in a clear, accessible style (with a minimum of academic jargon), this study brings readers behind the scenes of a movement that has changed the terms of debate about world power relations. From informal conversations in coffee shops to large "spokescouncil" planning meetings and teargas-drenched street actions, Graeber paints a vivid and fascinating picture. Along the way, he addresses matters of deep interest to anthropologists: meeting structure and process, language, symbolism, representation, the specific rituals of activist culture, and much more. (AK, 2009)

While most contemporary anarchists would probably consider themselves rabid godless athiests, there has been a long and rich history of anarchist thought that were based around religious doctrine or influenced by religious thought. Within all major religions including Taoism, Buddhism, Judaism, and Christianity, there have been those who find anarchism through these ideas. A new book by Alexandre Christoyannopoulos looks specifically at Christian Anarchism: A Political Commentary on the Gospel (Imprint Academic, 2010). Whereas Christian anarchism usually cites Leo Tolstoy as its most famous proponent, there are many others, such as Jacques Ellul, Vernard Eller, Dave Andrews or the people associated with the Catholic Worker movement. Both individually and collectively, these Christian anarchists offer a critique of the state, the church and the economy based on numerous passages from the New Testament.