Australia, Melburn, Statement: Endorsing Anarkismo Editorial
Statement by Anarchist Affinity (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
Adopted at the Anarchist Affinity general meeting of 6 September 2015. ---- 1. Anarchist
Affinity endorses the Anarkismo editorial statement. The editorial statement is consistent
with our politics, strategy and stated principles. ---- 2. Anarchist Affinity endorses and
supports the concrete goals of the Anarkismo project. ---- Appendix – Editoral statement
---- We identify ourselves as anarchists and with the “platformist”, anarchist-communist
or especifista tradition of anarchism. We broadly identify with the theoretical base of
this tradition and the organisational practice it argues for, but not necessarily
everything else it has done or said, so it is a starting point for our politics and not an
end point. ---- The core ideas of this tradition that we identify with are the need for
anarchist political organisations that seek to develop:
Theoretical Unity
Tactical Unity
Collective Action and Discipline
Federalism
Anarchism will be created by the class struggle between the vast majority of society (the
working class) and the tiny minority that currently rule. A successful revolution will
require that anarchist ideas become the leading ideas within the working class. This will
not happen spontaneously. Our role is to make anarchist ideas the leading ideas or, as it
is sometimes expressed, to become a “leadership of ideas”.
A major focus of our activity is our work within the economic organizations of the working
class (labour organizations, trade unions, syndicates) where this is a possibility. We
therefore reject views that dismiss activity in the unions because as members of the
working class it is only natural that we should also be members of these mass
organizations. Within them we fight for the democratic structures typical of
anarcho-syndicalist unions like the 1930’s CNT. However, the unions no matter how
revolutionary cannot replace the need for anarchist political organisation(s).
We also see it as vital to work in struggles that happen outside the unions and the
workplace. These include struggles against particular oppressions, imperialism and indeed
the struggles of the working class for a decent place and environment in which to live.
Our general approach to these, like our approach to the unions, is to involve ourselves
with mass movements and within these movements, in order to promote anarchist methods of
organisation involving direct democracy and direct action.
We actively oppose all manifestations of prejudice within the workers’ movement and
society in general and we work alongside those struggling against racism, sexism,
[religious] sectarianism and homophobia as a priority. We see the success of a revolution
and the successful elimination of these oppressions after the revolution being determined
by the building of such struggles in the pre-revolutionary period. The methods of struggle
that we promote are a preparation for the running of society along anarchist and communist
lines after the revolution.
We oppose imperialism but put forward anarchism as an alternative goal to nationalism. We
defend grassroots anti-imperialist movements while arguing for an anarchist rather than
nationalist strategy.
We recognise a need for anarchist organisations who agree with these principles to
federate on an international basis. However, we believe the degree of federation possible
and the amount of effort put into it must be determined by success at building national or
regional organisations capable of making such international work a reality, rather than a
matter of slogans.
