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==Contact==
==Contact==
In general, please email questions, suggestions, and feedback to [mailto:dfischer@riseup.net Dan].


In general, please email questions, suggestions, and feedback to [mailto:dfischer@riseup.net Dan]. Technical issues concerning this website (e.g. broken links) should be directed to [mailto:me@seandiggity.com Diggity].
If you see a mistake or misrepresentation, please contact us right away so that we can either correct it or set you up with an account so you can edit it yourself.
 
== About This Website ==
 
This website is a resource for anyone to research and write about how and when anarchy can work. Anarchy, coming from the Greek words an (without) and archos (ruler) refers to a situation without domination, without coercive hierarchy.
 
We sort the examples by their scale and focus. The list of '''[[Main_Page#Societies|societies]] ''' encompasses federations of residential communities. The list of '''[[Main_Page#Communities|communities]] ''' includes communes, towns and neighborhoods small enough for people to make decisions at face-to-face meetings. The '''[[Main_Page#Movements and Uprisings|movements and uprisings]]''' category includes large-scale movements, rebellions, campaigns and mobilizations. The '''[[Main_Page#Organizations|organizations]]''' category includes groups and their federations. '''[[Main_Page#Everyday Anarchy|Everyday anarchy]]''' lists anarchic projects and phenomena that exist all around us even in capitalist societies. Somewhat playfully, we add two further categories. In a nod to the naturalist Peter Kropotkin who saw cooperative activity as a factor of evolution, we add '''[[Main_Page#Nonhuman Anarchy|nonhuman anarchy]]''' to explore power relations in nonhuman animal and ecological communities. Lastly, we add the category of '''[[Main_Page#Fictional Anarchy|fictional anarchy]]''', which includes, for example, the planet Anarres from Ursula K. LeGuin's novel ''The Dispossessed''.
 
[[File:Types of anarchy2.png|thumbnail|Types of anarchy. '''''Anarchism''''' refers to a political theory and practice that arose in the 19th century, aimed at abolishing coercive hierarchy. '''''Anti-authoritarianism''''' (also known as libertarianism, libertarian socialism, or small-a anarchism) refers to a broader category of politics including Anarchists but also groups such as the Wobblies and Zapatistas that eliminate coercive hierarchy in their practice and in the world they're trying to build. . None of the Anarchist or anti-authoritarian experiments in our study have fully succeeded in abolishing coercive hierarchy; what makes them anti-authoritarian according to our definition is their attempt to extend anarchy to everyone, through horizontal means. Third, a '''''participatory''''' category includes examples such as the classical Athenian polis where anarchy is extended to many but not to all or even necessarily to most of society. Participatory politics encompasses anti-authoritarianism, which encompasses Anarchism (with the important caveat that Anarchists don't always succeed in living up to their ideals). Finally, the '''''autonomous''''' category refers to self-governed entities that have liberatory features but fall short of fully participatory decision-making, such as the Paris Commune.]]
 
We also sort these examples into four main organizational categories: '''''Anarchism''''', '''''Anti-authoritarianism''''', '''''Participatory''''', and '''''Autonomous'''''. See the "Types of Anarchy" sidebar for definitions and explanations of how these categories overlap and relate to each other.  Also see the [[Definitions]] page. By looking for anarchy beyond "big-A" Anarchist projects (although we're interested in those too!), we respond to Maia Ramnath's call in ''Decolonizing Anarchism'' to ''"locate the Western anarchist tradition as one contextually specific manifestation among a larger-indeed global-tradition of antiauthoritarian, egal­itarian thought/praxis"''.<ref>Maia Ramnath, ''Decolonizing Anarchism: An Antiauthoritarian History of India's Liberation Struggle'' (AK Press, 2011), 6.</ref>
 
In our articles, we try to explore how horizontal societies and communities deal with ''culture'', ''decisions'', ''economy'',  ''environment'', ''crime'', ''revolution'', and ''neighboring societies''. We do not claim or attempt to present evidence that anarchy is possible in all situations. Nor do we deny humans' innate potential for hierarchy and indeed for extreme cruelty. We present this resource for open-minded people to collaboratively explore the question of whether a horizontally-run world is possible and what this world might look like.
 
Many of the examples come from the following books:
 
<blockquote>
[[An Anarchist FAQ]] (excerpt)
 
[[Anarchy in Action]] by Colin Ward
 
[[Anarchy Works]] by Peter Gelderloos
 
[[Cartography of Revolutionary Anarchism]] by Michael Schmidt
 
[[Demanding the Impossible: A History of Anarchism]] by Peter Marshall
 
[[Mutual Aid: A Factor of Evolution]] by Peter Kropotkin
 
[[People_Without_Government:_An_Anthropology_of_Anarchy|People Without Government: An Anthropology of Anarchy]] by Harold Barclay
 
[[The Politics of Social Ecology: Libertarian Municipalism]] by Janet Biehl with Murray Bookchin (excerpt)
</blockquote>
 
 
The website started as a project by Dan Fischer and Capitalism vs. the Climate, now known as [http://capitalismvsclimate.org Dragonfly Climate Collective], with web development assistance from Diggity and [http://getlibre.org getlibre.org].
 
This wiki is done entirely by volunteers, and we encourage you to check our work and help us to constantly improve it. If you see misinformation, please contact us right away so that we can either fix it or assist you in setting up an account so you can edit the page directly. Additionally, if you are a member of an organization or another group described on this website, please feel free to send us information on current campaigns, and we will include it so that our readers will know how to get involved or participate in solidarity efforts.  
 


==Note on colonialism and representation==
==Note on colonialism and representation==


Part of our goal with this website is to challenge Eurocentric conceptions of anarchy by situating the European-derived practice of Anarchism within a much broader global set of anti-authoritarian, participatory and autonomous practices. Much is missed by ignoring the multitude of anarchies that have existed outside of the Anarchist tradition. There are several dangers, however.
Part of our goal with this website is to challenge Eurocentric conceptions of anarchy. Thus, we try to show that the European-derived anarchist tradition sits within a much broader set of anti-authoritarian, participatory and autonomous practices around the world and throughout human history.


First, we run the risk of misrepresenting non-European groups and/or exploiting them as a means for our preconceived political ends. As Peter Gelderloos puts it, "we could easily fall into the accustomed eurocentric pattern of manipulating and exploiting these other cultures for our own ideological capital." To counteract this tendency, we aim to always quote and cite voices from the groups we study, and we make note of the inevitable biases that European authors carry when they/we write about colonized cultures. Moreover, we acknowledge that many of the non-European cultures we're studying still carry on vital struggles against domination, and we try to provide information on how readers can get involved in solidarity efforts. As Gelderloos writes, " After all, if we are inspired by certain other societies, shouldn’t we do more to recognize and aid their ongoing struggles?" See [[Editing_Guide#The_Tricky_Topic_of_Representation|"The_Tricky_Topic_of_Representation"]].
There are several dangers, however. First, we run a risk of misrepresenting non-European groups, of trying to fit them into categories where they may not belong or want to belong. As Peter Gelderloos puts it, "we could easily fall into the accustomed eurocentric pattern of manipulating and exploiting these other cultures for our own ideological capital." To try to avoid this pattern, we aim to quote and cite voices from the groups we study, and we make note of the biases that European authors carry when they/we write about colonized cultures. Moreover, we try pointing out that many of the groups we study are still involved in struggles against domination, and we include links for where readers can learn more and get involved in solidarity work. As Gelderloos writes, " After all, if we are inspired by certain other societies, shouldn’t we do more to recognize and aid their ongoing struggles?" See [[Editing_Guide#The_Tricky_Topic_of_Representation|"The_Tricky_Topic_of_Representation"]].


A second trap involves our inclusion on this website of "participatory" and "autonomous" examples that practiced and/or practice slavery, sexism, and settler-colonialism. Some could argue that to classical Athens, the New England town meetings, and the Zionist kibbutzim on this website is to whitewash what they did. We think their inclusion is extremely important, however, since such examples offer important insights into when anarchy can and cannot work. One of our working theses is that colonial attitudes and practices have been a primary reason for the failure of many of the examples included on this website.
A second trap involves our inclusion on this website of "participatory" and "autonomous" examples that practiced and/or practice slavery, patriarchy, and even genocide. Some could argue that this website's inclusion of classical Athens, the New England town meetings, and the Zionist kibbutzim on this website is to whitewash these societies' violence against people they did not consider citizens. We respond, however, that including those examples is important if we are to understand how horizontality can sometimes be put in the service of exclusivity and atrocity.


=== Our Culture is [http://freedomdefined.org Free Culture] ===
= Our '''[[Culture|Culture]]''' is [http://freedomdefined.org Free Culture] =
* When we say "free" we mean freedom. [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Libre Libre], not simply [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gratis gratis].  Think [https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html free software], not the watered-down term, "open-source".
* When we say "free" we mean freedom. [[wikipedia:Libre|Libre]], not simply [[wikipedia:Gratis|gratis]].  Think [https://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html free software], not the watered-down term, "open-source".
* We're proud [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hacker_%28programmer_subculture%29 hackers], people who enjoy "playful cleverness".  If you see that term here, [http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html#what_is know what it means before you criticize].
* We're proud [[wikipedia:Hacker_culture|hackers]], people who enjoy "playful cleverness".  If you see that term here, [http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/hacker-howto.html#what_is know what it means before you criticize].
* <strong>Our Equation: [[Project:Community_portal|You + Your Computer(s) == Empowerment &amp; Self-Defense]].</strong>
* <strong>Our Equation: [[Project:Community_portal|You + Your Computer(s) == Empowerment &amp; Self-Defense]].</strong>


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== Privacy ==
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== Development ==
== Development ==
This website is developed and maintained by:
This website is maintained by:
* [mailto:me@seandiggity.com Diggity]
* [mailto:sean@cyberclear.cc Diggity]
* [mailto:danfischer@riseup.net Dan]


== Copyright and Licensing ==
== Copyright and Licensing ==
This website is powered by [http://mediawiki.org MediaWiki] and features icons based upon the [http://tango.freedesktop.org/Tango_Icon_Library Tango Icon Library]. The skin(template) is based upon [http://sourceforge.net/projects/cavendishmw/ Cavendish-MW].
This website is powered by [http://mediawiki.org MediaWiki] and features icons based upon the [http://tango.freedesktop.org/Tango_Icon_Library Tango Icon Library].


MediaWiki is [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Free_software free software] available under the [http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/gpl.html GNU General Public License]. Tango icons and the Cavendish-MW skin are available under the [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike license].
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All other content on this site is available under the [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike license], unless otherwise stated. Please contact [mailto:me@seandiggity.com Diggity] for copyright and licensing inquiries.
All other content on this site is available under the [http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/ Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike license], unless otherwise stated. Please contact [mailto:sean@cyberclear.cc Diggity] for copyright and licensing inquiries.


=== Submissions ===
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Latest revision as of 14:23, 23 October 2024

Community Portal
(Symbol Disambiguation)

Contact

In general, please email questions, suggestions, and feedback to Dan.

If you see a mistake or misrepresentation, please contact us right away so that we can either correct it or set you up with an account so you can edit it yourself.

Note on colonialism and representation

Part of our goal with this website is to challenge Eurocentric conceptions of anarchy. Thus, we try to show that the European-derived anarchist tradition sits within a much broader set of anti-authoritarian, participatory and autonomous practices around the world and throughout human history.

There are several dangers, however. First, we run a risk of misrepresenting non-European groups, of trying to fit them into categories where they may not belong or want to belong. As Peter Gelderloos puts it, "we could easily fall into the accustomed eurocentric pattern of manipulating and exploiting these other cultures for our own ideological capital." To try to avoid this pattern, we aim to quote and cite voices from the groups we study, and we make note of the biases that European authors carry when they/we write about colonized cultures. Moreover, we try pointing out that many of the groups we study are still involved in struggles against domination, and we include links for where readers can learn more and get involved in solidarity work. As Gelderloos writes, " After all, if we are inspired by certain other societies, shouldn’t we do more to recognize and aid their ongoing struggles?" See "The_Tricky_Topic_of_Representation".

A second trap involves our inclusion on this website of "participatory" and "autonomous" examples that practiced and/or practice slavery, patriarchy, and even genocide. Some could argue that this website's inclusion of classical Athens, the New England town meetings, and the Zionist kibbutzim on this website is to whitewash these societies' violence against people they did not consider citizens. We respond, however, that including those examples is important if we are to understand how horizontality can sometimes be put in the service of exclusivity and atrocity.

Our Culture is Free Culture

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