Contemporary Anarchist Studies: an introductory anthology - Libcom

335 Pages·2011·2.13 MB·English

Contemporary Anarchist Studies
This volume of collected essays by some of the most prominent academics studying
anarchism bridges the gap between anarchist activism on the streets and anarchist theory in
the academy. Focusing on anarchist theory, pedagogy, methodologies, praxis, and the
future, this edition will strike a chord for anyone interested in radical social change.
This interdisciplinary work highlights connections between anarchism and other
perspectives such as feminism, queer theory, critical race theory, disability studies, post-
modernism and post-structuralism, animal liberation, and environmental justice. Featuring
original articles, this volume brings together a wide variety of anarchist voices whilst
stressing anarchism’s tradition of dissent. This book is a must buy for the critical teacher,
student, and activist interested in the state of the art of anarchism studies.
Randall Amster,J.D., Ph.D., professor of Peace Studies at Prescott College, publishes
widely in areas including anarchism, ecology, and social movements, and is the author of
Lost in Space: The Criminalization, Globalization,and Urban Ecology of Homelessness
(LFB Scholarly, 2008).
Abraham DeLeon,Ph.D., is an assistant professor at the University of Rochester in the
Margaret Warner Graduate School of Education and Human Development. His areas of
interest include critical theory, anarchism, social studies education, critical pedagogy, and
cultural studies.
Luis A. Fernandez is the author of Policing Dissent: Social Control and the Anti-
Globalization Movement (Rutgers University Press, 2008). His interests include protest
policing, social movements, and the social control of late modernity. He is a professor of
Criminology and Criminal Justice at Northern Arizona University.
Anthony J. Nocella, II,is a doctoral student at Syracuse University and a professor at Le
Moyne College. He has published more than twenty academic articles and is now working
on his eleventh book. He also teaches Life Skills at a New York youth detention facility.
Deric Shannonis a PhD. candidate at the University of Connecticut who currently studies
Food Not Bombs activism, prefigurative politics, and contemporary anarchisms. He is a
long time anarchist activist, owner of Wooden Man Records, and an author of numerous
book chapters and articles, dealing especially with radical politics.
“Contemporary Anarchist Studieshas been needed ever since the Battle in Seattle; it is odd
that it took so long. This is an amazing collection and I am proud of being part of an
amazing text.”
-Dr. Richard Kahn, University of North Dakota, Education
“This book is a must read for anyone that wants to understand current activist movements.”
-Dr.Steve Best, University of Texas, El Paso, Philosophy
“This is an outstanding collection of articles from some of the most prominent academics
in the field and I am honoured to be part of this powerful and useful project. I recommend
this book to everyone and anyone interested in social change. Finally a book that is diverse
in topic and thought on anarchist studies.”
-Dr. Lisa Kemmerer, Montana State University, Billings
“For anyone wishing to study anarchism, this ought to be required reading. For anyone
wishing to practice anarchism, and engage with the theory, this is, indeed, recommended
reading.”
-Ramsey Kanaan, PM Press
“It's refreshing to see community level issues being dealt with on the academic level. This
book offers a rare and important glimpse into grassroots ideas and actions that struggle to
change our world from the perspectives of both activists and academics.”
-Leslie James Pickering, Former Earth Liberation Press Officer
“A timely and stimulating book that forces us to reconsider both the status quo and funda-
mental questions pertinent to our cherished notions of democracy. This book will challenge
you to think in new ways about age-old issues and is to be highly recommended to anyone
who has even a passing interest in the future of humanity.”
-Dr. Nicola Taylor, Central Queensland University, Australia
“In a culture bent on the manufacture of an expedient internalized domestication of both the
human and non-human and the eradication of anything that might still hint of wildness, this
unique and original book is essential reading for anyone interested in radical change.”
-Dr. Carol Gigliotti, Emily Carr Institute, Canada
“When I taught Sociology I would ask an auditorium of 300-500 students how many studied
or discussed anarchism as part of their education in high school or in college. Often no
hands went up – sometimes one or two. Most students admitted they had not read anything
by an anarchist or about anarchism. Now, as an academic dean, I am shocked and dismayed
at how invisible anarchism is to university curricula. Contemporary Anarchist Studiesis a
book long over due. It debunks anarchism stereotypes perpetrated by popular media and
political/corporate zealots. This book shows the theoretical logic and the empirical use-
fulness of an anarchist view of the world. If adopted for university classes, it will represent
an important step toward expanding the theoretical parameters of what is now a very narrow
view of history and socio-political thought.”
-Dr. John Alessio, St. Cloud State University, Sociology
“Contemporary Anarchist Studiesis an urgently needed text at this current historical junc-
ture when powerful arguments for anarchism are needed that are capable of loosening the
death grip of capitalist ideology. This book contains important essays by some of the world's
leading anarchist scholars; it's a necessary instrument in today's anti-capitalist toolkit.”
-Dr. Peter McLaren, Graduate School of Education and
Information Studies, University of California, Los Angeles
“In a world where the leaders are, at best, delusional, we need to rethink what leadership
is. When politicians are more interested in preserving profit, than people, and where a
$1600.00 television is considered a 'steal of a deal', we need to realize that our government
and political parties do not deserve to lead. They have left the real Americans well behind.”
-Dr. Maury Harris, Chair, Environmental Studies,
University of St. Thomas, Houston, TX
“Too often we treat activists and academics as opposed groups. These authors not only show
us how to bridge the divide but also insist that we must see activism and academia as
collaborative forces in the fight against oppression. This is a timely and necessary book.”
-Matthew J. Walton, composer of Sundance, an opera
about Native American political prisoner Leonard Peltier
“Contemporary Anarchist Studies comes at precisely the right moment in history. While
governments and corporations continue to consolidate political and economic power,
individuals are actively subverting totalitarianism in a variety of ways. From Anarchist
theory and pedagogy in the academy, to the practices of anarchists in the streets, this book
collects the insights of many of the most well known names in the field, and provides both
acogent analysis of our present as well as a hopeful direction for our future.”
-Dr. Corey Lewis, Humboldt State University, English
“A first of its kind, this groundbreaking book explores the intimate details of anarchism
from wide and academically sound perspectives. Edited and written by some of the fore-
most scholars in the field, this book breaks through the barriers of prejudice, assumptions,
and misunderstandings. Anarchism is a complex and thorough philosophy that is impacting
more and more communities worldwide. Understanding its principles and scope is essential
for all activists, academics, and anyone interested in human organization. This book is
required reading for anyone wanting to gain a better understanding of anarchism and its
impacts on the world.”
-Adam Wilson, CEO, www.Downbound.com
“Over the last decade or so, anarchism has been rapidly eclipsing Marxism as the most
productive and perceptive framework through which activists might understand and, more
importantly, change the world. Academic acceptance has taken much longer: not because
there aren't plenty of anarchist intellectuals out there, but as the effect of an entrenched
and increasingly outmoded culture of scholarly inquiry. Contemporary Anarchist Studies
promises to change all that. This impressive and comprehensive collection includes some
of today's most exciting anarchist thinkers working in a broad range of disciplines. Tackling
questions of theory, praxis, pedagogy, methodology, and much more, this timely volume
breathes new life into engaged social theory. Highly recommended!”
-Charles Weigl, AK Press
“At a time when corporate, government, and military power has grown more concentrated
than ever, not only in the United States but globally, this volume will provide the reader
with urgently-needed critical perspectives. It will be of enormous value to critical scholars,
journalists, politicians, and activists in both the cultural and political arenas.”
-Carl Boggs, Professor of Social Sciences, National University, Los Angeles

Contemporary
Anarchist Studies
An introductory anthology
of anarchy in the academy
Edited by Randall Amster,
Abraham DeLeon,
Luis A. Fernandez,
Anthony J. Nocella, II,
and Deric Shannon
First published 2009
by Routledge
2Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX144RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
270 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
This edition published in the Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2009.
“To purchase your own copy of this or any of Taylor & Francis or Routledge’s
collection of thousands of eBooks please go to www.eBookstore.tandf.co.uk.”
©2009 Randall Amster, Abraham DeLeon, Luis A. Fernandez, Anthony
J. Nocella, II, and Deric Shannon
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Acatalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Acatalog record for this book has been requested
ISBN 0-203-89173-2 Master e-book ISBN
ISBN13: 978–0–415–47401–6 (hbk)
ISBN13: 978–0–415–47402–3 (pbk)
ISBN13:978–0–203–89173–5 (ebk)
ISBN10:0–415–47401–9 (hbk)
ISBN10: 0–415–47402–7 (pbk)
ISBN10: 0–203–89173–2 (ebk)
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Notes on contributors xi
Introduction 1
SECTION ONE: THEORY 9
1 Anarchism from Foucault to Rancière 11
TODD MAY
2 Anarchism, postmodernity, and poststructuralism 18
GABRIEL KUHN
3 Two undecidable questions for thinking in which anything goes 26
ALEJANDRO DE ACOSTA
4 The problem with infoshops and insurrection: US anarchism,
movement building, and the racial order 35
JOEL OLSON
5 Addressing violence against women: alternatives to state-based
law and punishment 46
EMILY GAARDER
6 The flow of experiencing in anarchic economies 57
ERIC BUCK
SECTION TWO: METHODOLOGIES 71
7 Against method, against authority ... for anarchy 73
JEFF FERRELL
viii Contents
8 Toward a relational ethics of struggle: embodiment, affinity,
and affect 82
PAUL ROUTLEDGE
9 Being there: thoughts on anarchism and participatory observation 93
LUIS A FERNANDEZ
10 Anarchism, academia, and the avant-garde 103
DAVID GRAEBER
11 Dis-ablingcapitalism and an anarchism of “radical equality”
in resistance to ideologies of normalcy 113
LIAT BEN-MOSHE, DAVE HILL, ANTHONY J NOCELLA, II, AND
BILL TEMPLER
SECTION THREE: PEDAGOGY 123
12 Anarchic epimetheanism: the pedagogy of Ivan Illich 125
RICHARD KAHN
13 Thoughts on anarchist pedagogy and epistemology 136
WILLIAM T ARMALINE
14 Accessible artifact for community discussion about anarchy
and education 147
MAXWELL SCHNURER AND LAURA K HAHN
15 Anarchist theory as radical critique: challenging hierarchies
and domination in the social and “hard” sciences 159
ABRAHAM DELEON AND KURT LOVE
16 Infrapolitics and the nomadic educational machine 166
STEVPHEN SHUKAITIS
17 Anarchism, education, and the road to peace 175
COLMAN MCCARTHY
SECTION FOUR: PRAXIS 181
18 As beautiful as a brick through a bank window: anarchism,
the academy, and resisting domestication 183
DERIC SHANNON
Contents ix
19 Rethinking revolution: total liberation, alliance politics, and a
prolegomena to resistance movements in the twenty-first century 189
STEVEN BEST
20 Anarchy: foundations in faith 200
LISA KEMMERER
21 Anarchism, or the cultural logic of networking 213
JEFFREY S JURIS
22 Anarchy girl style now: riot grrrl actions and practices 224
CAROLINE K KALTEFLEITER
23 Free as a bird: natural anarchism in action 236
PATTRICE JONES
SECTION FIVE: THE FUTURE 247
24 Dark tidings: anarchist politics in the age of collapse 249
URI GORDON
25 Personal identities and collective visions: reflections on identity,
community, and difference 259
MARTHA A ACKELSBERG
26 Anarchism: past, present, and utopia 270
RUTH KINNA AND ALEX PRICHARD
27 Anarchism and utopia 280
PETER SEYFERTH
28 Anarchy, utopia, and the state of things to come 290
RANDALL AMSTER
Notes 302
Index 313