What Is Anarchism?
Anarchism is a longstanding political, economic, and social tradition based in struggle against top-down systems and institutions, such as states, capitalism, and racial and gender domination.
Anarchists aim to build an ecologically sustainable and deeply participatory society in which all people have access to the things they need, decisions are made by those most directly affected by them, and all people are free and equal.
Some of the core tenets of anarchism are mutual aid, direct action, voluntary association, decentralization, and self determination.
“Anarchy” is often attributed to Greek words meaning “without rulers.”
To learn more information about anarchism and anarchist ideas check out some of these introductory materials from others in the movement:
- To Change Everything (CrimethInc.)
- Anarchy 101 (Bob Black)
- A Brief History of Anarchism (Noam Chomsky, In These Times)
- An Anarchist FAQ (Infoshop)
- What I Believe (Emma Goldman)
- Black Anarchism Reader (Black Rose Anarchist Federation)
- Fighting for Our Lives (CrimethInc.)
- Autonomy: Creating Spaces for Freedom
- Love And Freedom: A Gentle Introduction to Anarchy (Jamie Heckert)
- Are You an Anarchist? The Answer May Surprise You (David Graeber)
- Anarchy: What It Is and Why Pop Culture Loves It (Kim Kelly)
- Anarchism: A Documentary
- Life Without Law (Strangers in a Tangled Wilderness)
- Noam Chomsky: The Kind of Anarchism I Believe in, and What’s Wrong with Libertarians
- Anarchism (Wikipedia)
- About Anarchism (Nicolas Walter)
- What is Anarchism? (Donald Rooum et al)
- Anarchy (Errico Malatesta)
- Who Are the Anarchists and What is Anarchism? (Thomas Giovanni)
Books
- Demanding the Impossible: A History of Anarchism – Peter Marshall
- Anarchism: A Very Short Introduction – Colin Ward
- Anarchism and Syndicalism in the Colonial and Postcolonial World, 1870-1940 – Steven Hirsch and Lucien van der Walt
- ABC of Anarchist Communism – Alexander Berkman
- Black Flame: The Revolutionary Class Politics of Anarchism and Syndicalism – Lucien van der Walt
- The Dispossessed – Ursula K Leguin
- The Operating System: An Anarchist Theory of the Modern State – Eric Laursen
- Against the Day – Thomas Pynchon
- The Fifth Sacred Thing – Starhawk
- Anarchy Alive – Uri Gordon
We also welcome the participation and feedback of other anarchists in a variety of ways:
- We track mentions of anarchists and anarchism in the mainstream media, and encourage anarchists to respond to these mentions by commenting online and sending letters to the editor. You can follow this coverage in our Anarchists in the News section, here, or suggest stories for this section by contacting us here.
- We reprint and circulate commentary by anarchists on current events. We also solicit new commentary. You can read our commentary here, and contact us about reprinting something or writing a new piece here.
- We create press briefs and press releases for members of the media and the public on a variety of issue topics. You can read these here.
- Agency is a closed collective, but we welcome potential new participants. If you are excited about this project and would like to talk with us about getting involved, please contact us.
