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How do you help move Anarchism forward?

Discussion in 'Anarchism and radical activism' started by LaLucha, Jan 7, 2013.

  1. LaLucha

    LaLucha Active Member Forum Member


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    Jan 2, 2013
     
    Just curious how you all take part in activism, if you do at all. Do you put flyers up? hand out leaflets? post up stickers? spray graffiti? organize meetings? spark riots? I have recently found a joy in posting stickers in corporate buildings, but would like to become a little more active.
     

  2. AlexTubes

    AlexTubes Member New Member


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    Jan 5, 2013
     
    I use to love spray painting, but then I lost my above 18 friend so no more spray paint for me ( Since you have to be 18 and older to purchase spray paint in Texas :ecouteurs: ) .
     
  3. Imjustassickasyoubelieve

    Imjustassickasyoubelieve Member Forum Member


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    Jan 6, 2013
     
    Everything you've suggested is fine, but it does little to change people's minds or get closer to the ultimate goal. Organize meetings with other anarchists in your community (if any) and talk to your friends, and tell them to do the same. Every person you convince makes the cause that much stronger. Progress WILL be slow, the establishment is just too... established, the main thing is to help people see through all the bullshit and understand that they are SLAVES, the rest will follow
     
  4. Ammon

    Ammon Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Mar 6, 2012
     
    Yes, i took me a while to get organizing, trying the convinnce people has always seemed to be a lost cause for me, but uniting anrchist in your community is great, meetings are good
     
  5. snookams

    snookams Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Feb 7, 2010
     
    build a community. police always have difficulty targeting radical groups when there are numbers, and a good way to get numbers is to start a group and collude with other groups or organizations.

    a group or organization doesn't have to be big at all to get off the ground. but before you hand out leaflets, demonstrate or take similar above ground actions it would be good to have an organization that can be representing the information being presented. plus, the more organized and credible a group becomes, the more that group will have the chance to speak with other groups and eventually begin the process of factional organization.

    there's a lot to it to be honest, but it's very possible. start talking with like-minded people. go to anarchist book fairs and other events and speak with organizations to get some advice or ideas as to how to start your own. this website is a good start, but face to face interactions with other radicals cannot be beat.

    oh, and never forget security culture! don't talk with police, FBI, ATF, etc. ever. never ever. keep in mind when you say or do things in public forums (i.e. the internet) that the words you use cannot be used against you by the state. if you feel like something you or your group is about to do is illegal, keep it quiet! once an organization gets started, you might want to talk with an attorney or someone who is familiar with laws and court to get advice. you'd be surprised what bullshit charges can be put on us for stupid shit that you'd never think was a legal offense.

    there's lots of groups out there who need support and help too! and they'd love to have someone who is interested in helping do what they can to further the cause.

    individual actions can be powerful, but when the kids are united they will never be divided ;)
     
  6. LaLucha

    LaLucha Active Member Forum Member


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    Jan 2, 2013
     
    Snookams, thank you for that inspirational post! I wish I knew where to look around here for support and like-minded individuals. I know that there is an anarchist book fair here in Boston at some point, I also found how willing and easy going Newbury Comics is about leaving "free publications" and zines in their store. I walked in to two of their stores, and both places let me leave a stack of zines at the front of their stores next to some newspapers. So for all of you here that are looking for a FREE distro or some kind of jumping off point if you have some sort of radical zine, i'd suggest Newbury Comics.
     
  7. IamMe

    IamMe Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Dec 29, 2012
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    Quit MONEY !!!!!!!!!!
     
  8. PoshyX

    PoshyX Experienced Member Experienced member


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    Nov 17, 2012
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    i so desperately want to join the local scene, but i'm pretty sure there isn't one. i know there's a punk scene, i suppose i ought to start there.
    if i can't find a local anarchist community nearby, how would i go about creating my own? keep in mind i'm 17 in high school with limited resources if you reply...
     
  9. snookams

    snookams Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Feb 7, 2010
     
    yeah i know some of you all here are pretty young. but honestly, age makes a difference in terms of resources but not thought. the fact that you all are even thinking about organizing at a younger age is more than most punk kids will ever do.

    that first step is pretty difficult. you'll find that one friend that'll give you that opportunity to get your foot in the door and to be able to start organizing or work within a community/group. or you may be that one friend, who knows. just keep your eyes out for events in your area. keep an open mind. listen to what others have done or what help others may need. there is so much work to be done, and i know there's infoshops, cafes, orgs, etc. in your areas that are great resource centers.

    i.e., PoshyX, New Jersey has the St. George Co-Op in New Brunswick. and LaLucha i know there's a few anarchist/radical libraries in MA. infoshops are a great place to start. anarcho shows that have organizations or speakers are another great start. unfortunately your typical punk show is mostly filled with drunk punx....
     
  10. dickxcarmichael

    dickxcarmichael Member Forum Member


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    Jan 9, 2013
     
    snookams you're dead on.
    organize and build a community. in essence, the old adage "think globally, act locally" is very fitting.

    when i was a teenager i was very much an in your face PC animal rights/anarchist.whether it was a spraypainted slogan or a longwinded diatribe- i was constantly telling everyone what (I thought) they should do/think and why.
    which i believed was righteous, cos i was merely "waking them up to the facts"
    but no one wanted to hear it. AT ALL. i grew disenfranchised and, after awhile, straight up apathetic.
    the very term i once used against other people! my life went on a selfish destructive path for awhile...but eventually i got it together and came back...and when i came back i brought humility and tolerance back with me. that was the cornerstone.
    i realized real revolution starts at a very personal level. i had to conduct my life in the image of my ideals as much as possible before a single word i said carried any weight. paradoxically, now i speak MUCH less and do MUCH more today.
    hook up with like-minded people and through the sharing of thoughts and ideas actions will come and through these-actions others see that you're really about what you say you're about. and the community grows and strengthens
    do local outreach and you'll realize that many of your far less radical neighbors feel the same way you do about many key things. through this the stigma of anarchism is lessened and real dialogue can take place.
    be the change you want to see, and others will see the change they want in you and be drawn to it. and visa versa/ im rambling and foods done.
     
  11. snookams

    snookams Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Feb 7, 2010
     
    haha yeah i hear that carmichael.

    i used to think i knew a lot. i met some people who knew TONS more. and it wasn't just that they knew facts or figures about politics but that they had experiences and feelings to go along with these politics. they had life experiences that went beyond reading theory and hearing the rhetoric but had actually lived the oppression that the system (and individuals) commit. they had actually taken part in volunteering and speaking as well as helping to build this strange, abstract thing we can call a community.

    really, anarchism, in my humble opinion, is building a new culture with the best of what we have, and tossing out the worst.
     
  12. dickxcarmichael

    dickxcarmichael Member Forum Member


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    Jan 9, 2013
     
    lalucha. goto the lucy parsons center. its a collectively run infoshop in boston. sweet place. they put on book groups and other such things where you can meet the kinda people you may share common ground with...
    lucyparsons.org
     
  13. dickxcarmichael

    dickxcarmichael Member Forum Member


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    Jan 9, 2013
     
    i can definitely agree with that. but it can be very subjective as to "whats the best and whats the worst"
    that line of questioning gets very hairy very quickly.
    even amongst my closest most radically progressive friends. lines are immediately drawn upon the "speciesm question"
     
  14. LaLucha

    LaLucha Active Member Forum Member


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    Jan 2, 2013
     
    Thanks for the info! Really good resource
     
  15. snookams

    snookams Experienced Member Experienced member Forum Member


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    Feb 7, 2010
     
    that's true. which is why its hard to find that sense of political unity amongst anarchists sometimes. i think those arguments can be beneficial to gaining a better understanding of theory, but often times they get in the way of praxis. there are obvious things that are disagreeable with anarchism, such as sexism, homophobia, speciesm, etc. but i think arguments regarding those social issues can be over-analyzed into absurdity. we shouldn't jump into action without knowing what we're doing, but we also shouldn't endlessly debate issues.
     
  16. fubarista

    fubarista Experienced Member Experienced member


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    Nov 13, 2011
     
    I explain to people why they shouldn't vote. Mostly online, but sometimes speaking when I get a chance. When I started I didn't know I was moving anarchism forward, I just wanted to end tyranny, but ending tyranny turns out to be a fairly good working definition of anarchy. I've been reading lots of anarchist books and the more I read, the more I see that anarchism has been thwarted by elections as much as by state violence. As long as a substantial number of people think that they have a stake in the system or can change the system by voting, revolutions, as far as I can tell, cannot succeed.
     
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