Today's Topics:
1. [Italy] Anarchists participate in "Remilia Pride" By ANA
(pt) [machine translation] (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
2. Britain, freedom news: John Bull believers face a rude
awakening (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
3. Indian Anarchist Federation: The Anarchist Revolt Against
the Ideology of Not Voting Is Finally Taking Shape in 2017 By Tim
Hjersted / filmsforaction.org (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
4. Australia, abc melb: June 11th international day of
solidarity with maruis mason and all long term anarchist ...Narrm
/Melbourne action flinders st station 2017 (a-infos-en@ainfos.ca)
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Message: 1
The Reggio Emilia Anglican Federation (FAI) and the Italian Trade Union Union (USI) -
Reggio Emilia Section, as previously announced, participated in the "Remilia Pride"
(03/06), taking the streets[of Reggio Emilia]with its own content. The Libertarian
companions and companions of reggians were about thirty behind the black and red flags of
the Union and the Federation. An intense pamphlet and sale of materials of the anarchist
press was carried out. ---- After the event an anticlerical dinner was held in the Berneri
Circle, with a typical menu based on strozzapreti, "roasted nuns" and "stewed clerics", as
well as other forbidden foods from all religions in the world, all washed down with
lambrusco and cabernet sauvignon . ---- Neither God nor State, Proudly Anticlerical! ----
Source: http://www.umanitanova.org/2017/06/04/remiliapride/
Translation> Liberto
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Message: 2
Iain McKay writes on the collapse of the Tory economic plan and its dire "solutions" to
the looming troubles of Brexit ---- On every level Thatcherism is recognised to have
failed, from the broken housing market, to railways unfit for purpose, a dysfunctional
labour market etc. Or more correctly, the reality is being admitted but the root causes
are being carefully avoided. ---- But how have the electorate acted? Though there has been
a swing to Labour, ultimately they have re-installed the very party which caused the
problems to be begin with. In spite of - most recently - stifling a recovery from the 2008
global recession and producing years of stagnation by imposing austerity, the Tories are
rated as being more economically competent than Labour. ---- As for "tackling Labour's
deficit," well they may have a plan but Osborne's was to eliminate it in one Parliament -
and we are facing a lost decade, at the end of which we shall still have one. Truly, that
will be their deficit, as their policies have ensured we need to borrow not to invest but
to fill the holes they created.
It was somewhat surreal to see Theresa May proclaim that other parties "put their own
political interests ahead of the national and local interest" when the Brexit vote itself
was the product of infighting within the Conservatives and that all sections of her party
place the interests of the few ahead of all others.
For the rich have got richer while the poor have been punished. May seemingly loves the
"just about managing," as she and her party have created the conditions by which so many
are created. Unique amongst developed nations, Britain saw a combination of economic
growth and falling wages since the 2008 financial crisis. But May was right in one way, as
the facts are indeed "contrary to the stereotype which is sometimes promoted"about the
Tories. They have always believed "in the good that government can do," for the few.
Anti-union laws do not "just happen" - they need to be passed by a government and
implemented. Council housing does not get sold off by itself, nor do local councils ban
themselves from building more. Privatisation of key industries at knock-down prices
doesn't happen as if by magic, nor do corporation tax and benefits cuts just happen at the
same time. These, and so much more, need a government to do it - and as anarchists have
always argued, being the defender of the wealthy is a prime role of the State.
May says Brexit creates an opportunity to create "a stronger, fairer, better Britain" but
it was not the EU which stopped that happening before. It was the Tory party and its
policies which made Britain unfair, worse and weaker - at least for working class people.
She proclaims that the Tories are "the party of people who work hard and play by the
rules." But who makes those rules? As the famed economist Adam Smith once noted: "Whenever
the legislature attempts to regulate the differences between masters and their workmen,
its counsellors are always the masters."
The net effect of these Tory (and Labour) policies are clear even to May when she
proclaims that "we must and will ensure that hard work is decently rewarded" but
simultaneously proclaims "that the rules are properly adhered to by everyone, without fear
or favour" - the very rules urged by the master class and implemented by her party which
produce the situation she pays lip-service denouncing.
The reason is obvious enough. Labour produces all wealth but the product is monopolised by
those to whom we sell our labour and liberty. How much of our product remains in our own
hands is not set by natural laws but rather by struggle. If workers stand up, organise,
strike, then wages will rise. If they do not because "the rules" are such to make this
difficult then hard work will only reward the owning class. If you regulate strikes you
regulate the labour market and as Smith recognised: "Whenever the law has attempted to
regulate the wages of workmen, it has always been rather to lower them than to raise them."
The Tories have never been against the State - just against it helping anyone bar the
masters. Thus May proclaimed that the Tories "want ambitious local councils" and
"effective local councillors elected" yet her party did more to centralise government
power than any other. Still, remember that "local government account[s]for a quarter of
all public spending" and that money can and must be given to capitalist companies ( "in
collaboration with other important local institutions") by means of outsourcing. The
public purse has not been fully funnelled into private hands yet.
Similarly with Brexit. Before the vote, numerous experts said leaving the EU would be such
a huge undertaking that it would empower the executive and State bureaucracy, for
Parliament would be unable to oversee it all. The so-called "great repeal act" being
mooted - which would convert all EU law into UK law - legalises this power grab. For a
vote which was meant to be about Parliamentary sovereignty, its supporters are less than
happy at letting that Parliament, or the people, have any kind of say.
But then, as the anarchist philosopher Pierre Joseph Proudhon pointed out long ago,
referendums empower the government, not the people. For it is the government which both
sets the question and, more importantly, interprets the result. May did just that to try
and keep the rabid-right of her party happy, the right-wing media on board and herself and
her party in office. Now that the people "have spoken," those politicians and media barons
seek to ensure we do not get the chance to speak again - nor, apparently, the very
Parliament whose sovereignty they demanded.
Brexit was never truly about the EU, but rather securing a right-wing coup. The notion of
a progressive-minded "Lexit" proclaimed by some (even the "revolutionary" left) was always
delusional given the balance of class forces. The choice in the vote was between which
section of the ruling class would predominate. Which flavour of neo-liberalism would
continue to be imposed.
By 37% to 36%, fuelled by decades of lies which reached a frenzy last year, the
English-nationalist ultra-reactionary section won. What they could never have achieved by
Parliamentary means they can now do under "Red, White and Blue" Brexit and other
meaningless platitudes.
Ultimately, if the Tories gave a toss for Wales, the Midlands, etc then these regions
would not need to receive EU funds. And only those who have not been paying attention
will be surprised when, as with North Sea Oil in the 1980s, a Tory government decides to
use the monies no longer going to the EU to fund tax cuts for corporations and the top 5%.
Putting "£350 million a week" on the side of a bus does not translate into policy
decisions - for it is the government, not the people, which determines what Brexit
actually means.
Brexit did have two possible benefits. First, Nigel Farage (alas, only temporarily)
disappearing back into his hole. Second, the rabid-right would lose the scapegoat they
have blamed for the problems caused by the politics they championed and implemented.
Sadly, Farage has decided not to get his life back but the latter may still come to pass.
Perhaps people will realise that the real reason their pay has not risen is not due to
immigration but rather British anti-union laws. Perhaps they will realise that they are
being squeezed is due to British polices ensuring more and more income flooding to the top
to reward those who do nothing but own it.
Perhaps they will realise "playing by the rules" means being an obedient little servant to
a British ruling class who will always seek their own enrichment first and shape the rules
accordingly? And that their vote has resulted in a power-grab by the rabid-right of the
British Tory Party to increase the policies which produced the "left behind" in the first
place?
So where does that leave us? Well, if all we do is vote then we will continue to be
ignored by those in power. Real power lies outside the ballot box - but only if it is
organised in our workplaces and communities. It is there were we must challenge the
scapegoats and point to the real causes of our problems while building real alternatives.
The Tories know this, which is why we have the most draconian anti-union laws outside of
dictatorships and why they have aimed to outlaw all forms of effective direct action. Laws
can and do remain dead letters in the face of popular protest, and that is what must be
organised if anything is to change for the better.
This article first appeared in the Summer issue of Freedom anarchist journal
:
https://freedomnews.org.uk/john-bull-believers-face-a-rude-awakening/
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Message: 3
Anarchists have traditionally opposed voting for a variety of ideological reasons. For
many, not voting is held as a badge of honor - a way of signaling one's commitment to
anarchist theory. I've often thought that this belief in not voting almost represents a
sort of religion for some anarchists, due to how they uphold "not voting" as the *one
true* anarchist position. ---- If you vote, then you can't possibly be "a true anarchist."
Not voting is essentially a purity test among the anarchist faithful, and this hegemony
over the spectrum of acceptable thought is often reinforced by other anarchists, who make
sure that anyone that disagrees understands that they are not "one of us." ---- A couple
years ago, I was banned from Infoshop News for simply posting pro-voting arguments on
their Facebook page. The idea of not voting as a tenant of the anarchist religion was
cemented to me in that moment, seeing how utterly intolerable such views were to at least
one of the admins of that page. After writing about that experience, I found out many
other followers of that page had been banned for similar disagreements. But Infoshop's
stance is not uncommon.
This tradition of promoting ideology from hundreds of years ago to explain why they're not
voting continues today in 2017.
But recently, when I came across the two posts below, I was heartened to see that a
full-on revolt against this type of thinking is starting to take shape among the anarchist
peasant class. I say that lightheartedly, but by that I mean ordinary anarchists who
follow anarchist pages, rather than the admins of anarchist pages, who most often promote
the official line, either out of obligation or sincere commitment.
Seeing this sea change in attitude gives me hope for a fresh, non-dogmatic anarchism in
2017 and beyond.
I've often said that true anarchism (to me) also includes freedom from dogma and rigid
rules about what tactics are and are not deemed acceptable if you're an anarchist. Rather
than adhering to the same ideology, tactics and strategies decade after decade, I believe
anarchism is at its best when we are free to employ a variety of tactics, experiment with
new strategies, and form new holistic approaches based on the present political terrain.
Direct action and voting are not jealous lovers, and it's high time we stopped treating
them as such.
Reading the comments below, it's wonderful to see that more and more anarchists agree.
Eoin O'Connor: How do you defend them yourself when you're disabled and the Tories have
you living a subhuman existence?
Reclus' specific alternative to voting was armed insurrection. Unless you're actively
planning one of those in Britain, I'd say do what little you can to make peoples lives
more tolerable.
I agree that direct action is more important than electoral action, but it's downright
delusional to pretend that (1) there'd be no difference at all between a Corbyn government
and a May government, and (2) that not taking the few minutes it takes to cast a ballot
once every few years is somehow a waste of time, or, worse, taking time away from other
more anarchistic activities.
Like what? Ranting about the Tories in Facebook chat groups? Get real.
---
Jehiel Lomaz: I feel like I have to really stress how flawed the anarchist position is on
elections, because Libcom's position on relating to reformist workers seems to be
dismissive, elitist, and generally shite. It's like the crap with "revolutionary"
unionism. The British election represents so much more than just ‘4 years of Corbyn' in
itself, and failing to see that is a real shame.
------------
This kind of elitist dismissal of the most significant political phenomenon for the
british left is what you get if you have no intention of trying to relate to and mobilise
the working class.
Yes, Corbyn being for only "fairly controlled" immigration is a thing we should be openly
against. Yes, his reformism has stunted his capacity to shove off the blairites. Yes, the
fact that he supports increasing police presence is a bad thing. But to miss out on the
opportunities that the rise of Corbyn presents to the far-left by simply turning away from
the whole situation is far worse.
The rise and potential fall of Corbyn is about so much more than just his policies being
implemented; it's about the rise and potential fall of a future in which we actually have
left-wing policies being put forward by a major party that can give people something to
fight for. If Labour was to revert to being Blairite, we would just be returning to a
situation in which the major parties both pushed for or capitulated to neoliberalism,
racism, imperialism, etc.
The fact is that in Britain today, the vast majority of people look to electoralism as the
centre of politics. This doesn't mean that Corbyn can't inspire ordinary people to
organise in workplaces and in demonstrations to defend the good policies that Corbyn
holds, putting them into positions that give them a better sense of their potential power
as workers. To see Corbyn torn down at this point in history is not going to inspire the
vast majority of people to be revolutionary socialists; it's going to instill
hopelessness, and that puts us as the far-left in a much worse situation than simply
having Tory legislation being passed through parliament.
The job of revolutionary socialists is to see how the political climate we face today can
inspire people to engage in activity that brings about an awareness of class, and of their
potential power in society, that brings people a step closer to our kind of politics,
while also not compromising our capacity to maintain a revolutionary-socialist perspective
and organisation. We have to figure out what can be done today so that the political
situation we face now can be a step forward towards better things, centred around the
activity of workers and ordinary people more generally. No, this doesn't mean embracing
opportunistic political positions or liquidating into the Labour Party, but it also
doesn't mean being a complete elitist and outright dismissing the people who support
Corbyn but aren't actually socialists. You have to stand as the far-left differentiated
from everyone to your right, but be willing to stand with those workers who aren't
socialists yet to prove the supremacy of revolutionary politics in being able to actually
form a better society. This can be done for many political questions, and it can still be
done in a way that left reformism encourages people who hold those views to become active;
refugee rights, anti-racism, anti-fascism, workers rights in and outside of unions,
whatever else.
This is obviously still done while having a far-left that exists as an independent
organisation, but still tries to mobilise and relate to people who are inspired by a
left-wing break from Blairite Labourism. Telling people to not vote, when there is an
option that will clearly put the left on a better footing for fighting against
demoralisation and for better demands, is fucking ridiculous
Publishing the cynical crap that libcom.org does is completely counterposed to inspiring
non-revolutionaries to become politically active.
Lukáš Kuchta: So glad that comment section is full of radical leftists who are able to
think beyond old dogmatic ‘truths'. From my anarchist point of view I'd say let's not give
the ruling class the legitimacy, however as of now we don't have any viable parallel
structures, revolution is not around the corner nor will really low voting turnout change
the state-people relationship.
Still no avant-guarde is justifiable and not a single party will change the game. But much
can be done towards the poor with a vote. Who says you can't do both organizing yourself
with a radical group and cast a bloody vote?
Justin Ward: Emma Goldman said "If voting were effective, they would make it illegal,"
which is kind of ironic because, in her day women couldn't vote and white people in the
South used violence, intimidation, poll taxes and literacy tests to prevent black people
from voting up until the end of Jim Crow. While I don't think voting is a panacea, it does
have its usefulness, and some anarchists have argued that it was a form of defense against
the state. Voting should be seen as a means to an end, not an end in and of itself. You
shouldn't vote and just expect the candidate to protect your interests, but on the other
hand elected office does serve as a "bully pulpit." Also, if a movement can get an
official elected, it can serve to legitimize it.
This kind of cynicism is a luxury the poor can't afford.
J.M. Nejtek: As a revolutionary socialist, I think it's important to try and both raise
people's horizons about what's possible and also to exacerbate the contradictions within
the capitalist system. In the present moment, a Corbyn win or near-win is the obvious goal
for anyone who desires a heightened state of class struggle in the UK.
That's the same way I felt about Sanders in the US. It's not that I thought he was gonna
"save" my class, or that I thought his policies where all just swell...it's that I want to
see my class raise its head, move into a sharper confrontation with the bosses, and draw
revolutionary conclusions in the course of combat.
Instead, here in the states we have a situation where the Democrats are repairing their
image as "opposition" to Trump, instead of a party that can't/won't deliver.
Don't let this opportunity slip by!
Phil Pope: "Corbyn, rather than being the saviour of the working class in Britain..." I
don't think I have heard anyone claim that he is the saviour - just different enough from
the Tories to justify 5 minutes at the polling station. After going wrong in the very
first sentence, the rest of this article is a brain fart. Well done for finding a lame way
to be edgy and different you utter bell-ends.
"Don't vote in bourgeois elections. The labour party is just another bourgeois party.
Change is impossible without revolution. But you leftists will never understand this."
Tim Hjersted: This comment is a great example of how ideology can prevent a clear-thinking
assessment of the political moment in 2017. Some anarchists would rather lose ground their
entire lives and pontificate about how ‘only revolution' can save us than spend 5 minutes
working on the material realities which might improve the political terrain on which
actual, real revolutions are built. It's very sad. But actually, all of the comments in
this thread challenging centuries-old dogma is quite heartening.
Chris Lowe: We've a choice to finally change direction from 40 years of a strengthening
Thatcherite consensus. Put that before feeling all intellectual while doing nothing.
Rowan Thomas: I'm about to be guilty of commenting based on click bait without reading the
article. What a fucking stupid position. Take whatever moral high ground you want...
America fucked it up and France got it right. You vote to keep the terrible people out.
The lesser of two evils is a reality.
Rachel Broady: I'm a socialist. I entirely understand the Marxist recognition of the
limitations of democracy in capitalism. Also, the Tories want to sell my social housing
home from under me because I can't afford a mortgage. I'll be homeless. Thanks for the
solidarity, comrades.
Get back to us when you're forming an armed struggle not writing snotty articles few
workers will read.
Marco Böhm: Are you aware that part of labour's new manifesto is to democratize the
workplace? Like supoorting workers cooperatives. Jacobin Magazine had a good article about it.
James Boultbee: You can't just will a mass movement into existence. It has to form around
something. It's not about Corbyn it's about all these people. I'd rather be standing with
them and hoping to push this into more radical waters than standing on the sidelines.
Aimée Fung: Actively doing nothing at a very crucial and desperate time in Britain doesn't
win you any extra captain anarchy points. I'd rather vote for Corbyn in hopes of
protecting the NHS and the welfare state, instead of sitting at home writing articles
about being apathetic.
Hana Lein: Refusing to vote in such a crucial election is rank selfishness. This isn't
about deifying a politician or "voting Corbyn", it's about rebalancing the reality we live
in. I agree with some of the points made in the article but pontificating about the flaws
in our system (which most thinking voters are well aware of) isn't changing anything at
this point. It's a privileged position that people being sanctioned by the DWP, nurses
going to food banks, children living in abject poverty in one of the richest countries in
the world, don't and will never have the opportunity of occupying. This election is not
about you, it's about an attempt to wrest some semblance of humanity and equality back for
the general population. Get over this intellectual masturbation.
Baldwin Maximillian Strong: It's not some binary either / or equation. You don't have to
believe party politics are the be-all and end-all to have the elementary common sense not
to want to inflict on the populace 5 more years of the Tories siphoning off every penny
they possibly can to the wealthiest and rejecting the possibility of some policies that
just maybe will put the brakes on somewhat.
Robin French: People on the right will do anything to move things closer to the way they
want them, regardless of principles. They're lucky so many on the left have their heads in
the clouds. It's why they get their way so often.
Merlin Hogarth: The disabled people who'll die because of cuts won't thank you for your
ideological purity.
Andreas Wittel: It's a position that ignores how change happens. Often slowly. It's a
position of luxury. Of someone who wants all or nothing. Ultimately it's a childish position.
Alex Barrientos: Article should be titled "Why anarchists' opinions are still irrelevant."
Felix Fiedler: Voting is about picking your opponent, not your "saviour."
Even some anarchist pages are making a break with established tradition, a sight that
brings a tear to my jaded anarchist eyes...
MESSAGE FOR BRITISH SOCIAL ANARCHISTS
You're probably not going to like this post ...
But if you're able to vote tomorrow, we'd recommend voting against the Conservative Party,
which means voting for Jeremy Corbyn's Labour Party in each constituency where it's got
the best chance of beating a Tory.
You may be asking us to hand in our anarchist cards for such a treasonous position, in
which case a few explanations are in order.
The main reason social anarchists historically recommended not voting was that it made
little difference. Direct action, not state action, is what really produces results. This
is true.
However, events such as the Iraq War and the Tory Party's undeclared war on the disabled
have shown that sometimes "little differences" can add up to a lot for many people.
This does NOT mean we are under any illusion about the New-Old Labour Party being little
more than a pitiful attempt to recapture the managerial capitalism of the mid 20th
century, and won't be able to significantly pose a threat to global capital, even in the
unlikely event they form the next British government.
We remain committed to direct action and grassroots self-organising as our primary mode of
strategy for accomplishing anarchist goals. But we can no longer fool ourselves into
believing there's no difference at all between a potential centre-left government and a
right-wing government, in political, economic, and societal terms.
The fact is, it would be easier for anarchists to push change on a Labour government than
a Tory one.
If anarchists can support joining a trade union as a form of self-defence against
capitalism, then it doesn't make sense to not use their votes to pick the "least worst"
government as a form of self-defence against the state.
That doesn't mean supporting the Labour Party. It just means accepting the obvious reality
that things would be more tolerable under them.
The choice between 40 lashes and 80 lashes is still lashes either way, though you'd have
to be the most puritanical ideologue to refuse to choose 40 lashes on principle alone.
For these reasons and others, be an ethical consequentialist and use what little formal
political power you have to destroy the possibility of another Tory government. It won't
get us closer to social anarchy, but it may give us more elbow-room to achieve more of our
aims outside the state system.
https://thecominganarchy.wordpress.com/2017/06/11/the-anarchist-revolt-against-the-ideology-of-not-voting-is-finally-taking-shape-in-2017/
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Message: 4
june 11th international day of solidarity with maruis mason and all long lerm anarchist
prisoners flinders street station steps narrm/melbourne australia we acknowledge that we
are standing of stolenland and respect tradional owners and sovereignty never ceded
,aboriginal deaths in custody in so called austalia must stop as Aboriginal prison
rates soar despite recommendations in to the royal commision in to aboriginal deaths in
custody since 1987 ,as in recommendation, 92. Imprisonment should be utilised only as a
sanction of last resort. ---- solidality to long term anarchist prisoners there inside
for us we are outside for them but we can not forget about the prison industrial complex
with in australia that is part of the colonisation of so called australia solidality to
all long term anarchist prisoners got to: june11.org http://nationalunitygovernment.org/
supportmariusmason.org
https://abcmelb.wordpress.com/2017/06/11/june-11th-narrm-melbourne-action-flinders-st-station-2017/?preview_id=574&preview_nonce=812c9f19df
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