Nachie
22nd September 2005, 17:59
http://www.revolutionaryleft.com/uploads/post-7-1127408541.jpg
Addressing all anarchists, autonomists, libertarian communists, anti-authoritarians, revolutionary workers, students, squatters, and all others who insist that our mutual struggle for a non-hierarchal society take place outside the current one,
Although I originally came to this forum looking for help with a Spanish translation, I thought it might be interesting to start a discussion on a project I've been involved with for the past three years, the Red & Anarchist Action Network (RAAN).
Formed through a series of debates and constructive dialogues on forums much like this one, RAAN seeks first and foremost to dismantle the artificial gaps between anarchisms of all tendencies and the traditions of anti-state communism, thus cleansing "communism" and Marxism from the massive genocidal distortions to which they have been subjected, and in the process perhaps reclaiming a couple other concepts which have been more recently hijacked - for example, "freedom" and "liberty". We propose to do this by setting out a groundwork of common principles related to anti-capitalism/anti-authoritarianism, and then using that base as a way of strengthening the whole as each individual involved builds upon their own theoretical traditions and immediately relevant, personally fulfilling struggles. We are not regimented like a traditional political party, and instead opt for the TOTAL autonomy of all collectives, cells, and participants within the stated principles. Wherever enough interest or need exists for a certain initiative on our part, we believe that this interest will be sufficient to ensure that the project gets done.
It's obviously a very nuanced approach - drawn directly from the most effective clandestine "direct action" networks - but applied to the totality of struggle as we seek to develop fluid ways of organizing ourselves against our enemies. There are a wide array of discussions one could engage in on how to properly implement this vision, but to begin with I think it will be sufficient to introduce everyone to the three major documents of RAAN, which together may paint a more complete picture of just what the hell I'm talking about:
The RAAN Principles & Direction (http://raan.yardapes.net/publications/principles.html) - The P&D is the founding and principal document of RAAN. Written collectively over many months, it is the product of hundreds of debates and lays out the network's most uncompromising points of unity.
The RAAN Principles of Action (http://raan.yardapes.net/pn/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=26) - The PofA arose out of the accelerating activity of RAAN, and was the final network-wide document created before total decentralization. This text sets out in explicit detail the system of autonomous action through affiliation that characterizes the network's tendency.
The RAAN Principes of Organization (http://raan.yardapes.net/pn/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=10&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0) - The PofO lays out the seven principles of RAAN for those who want to organize a network-affiliated presence in their area. Tips on how to go about that are also included.
I would also strongly recommend my own essay, The Functioning of a Network: A "No Bullshit" Policy VS. The Lethargy of Activism (http://raan.yardapes.net/pn/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=28), as it builds our articulation of the unique methods by which RAAN organizes its activity, specifically the idea that the network itself does not physically exist save for in the precise moments when actions are being carried out in its name.
I hope that this is not seen as a recruitment drive on my part. From my brief time on this forum I've noticed a preponderence of Leninists who will - with justification - be entirely hostile to RAAN. I am in no way trying to convert you, and ask in return only that you make no attempts at converting me. I do however wish to stimulate discussion on how an effective national/international tendency would go about conceiving of itself and dealing with the sustained contradictions of its own existence. Given the complete fossilization of the vanguardist Party, the rapid decay of formalized anarchist groups, and the inadequacy of individualist practice, it is more important than ever for us to deal with these issues, and deal with them in a way that is consistent with our vision of the future.
More information about RAAN can be found at http://www.redanarchist.org
"The State is a condition, a certain relationship between human beings, a mode of human behavior; we destroy it by contracting other relationships, by behaving differently." -Gustav Landauer
Addressing all anarchists, autonomists, libertarian communists, anti-authoritarians, revolutionary workers, students, squatters, and all others who insist that our mutual struggle for a non-hierarchal society take place outside the current one,
Although I originally came to this forum looking for help with a Spanish translation, I thought it might be interesting to start a discussion on a project I've been involved with for the past three years, the Red & Anarchist Action Network (RAAN).
Formed through a series of debates and constructive dialogues on forums much like this one, RAAN seeks first and foremost to dismantle the artificial gaps between anarchisms of all tendencies and the traditions of anti-state communism, thus cleansing "communism" and Marxism from the massive genocidal distortions to which they have been subjected, and in the process perhaps reclaiming a couple other concepts which have been more recently hijacked - for example, "freedom" and "liberty". We propose to do this by setting out a groundwork of common principles related to anti-capitalism/anti-authoritarianism, and then using that base as a way of strengthening the whole as each individual involved builds upon their own theoretical traditions and immediately relevant, personally fulfilling struggles. We are not regimented like a traditional political party, and instead opt for the TOTAL autonomy of all collectives, cells, and participants within the stated principles. Wherever enough interest or need exists for a certain initiative on our part, we believe that this interest will be sufficient to ensure that the project gets done.
It's obviously a very nuanced approach - drawn directly from the most effective clandestine "direct action" networks - but applied to the totality of struggle as we seek to develop fluid ways of organizing ourselves against our enemies. There are a wide array of discussions one could engage in on how to properly implement this vision, but to begin with I think it will be sufficient to introduce everyone to the three major documents of RAAN, which together may paint a more complete picture of just what the hell I'm talking about:
The RAAN Principles & Direction (http://raan.yardapes.net/publications/principles.html) - The P&D is the founding and principal document of RAAN. Written collectively over many months, it is the product of hundreds of debates and lays out the network's most uncompromising points of unity.
The RAAN Principles of Action (http://raan.yardapes.net/pn/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=26) - The PofA arose out of the accelerating activity of RAAN, and was the final network-wide document created before total decentralization. This text sets out in explicit detail the system of autonomous action through affiliation that characterizes the network's tendency.
The RAAN Principes of Organization (http://raan.yardapes.net/pn/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=10&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0) - The PofO lays out the seven principles of RAAN for those who want to organize a network-affiliated presence in their area. Tips on how to go about that are also included.
I would also strongly recommend my own essay, The Functioning of a Network: A "No Bullshit" Policy VS. The Lethargy of Activism (http://raan.yardapes.net/pn/html/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=28), as it builds our articulation of the unique methods by which RAAN organizes its activity, specifically the idea that the network itself does not physically exist save for in the precise moments when actions are being carried out in its name.
I hope that this is not seen as a recruitment drive on my part. From my brief time on this forum I've noticed a preponderence of Leninists who will - with justification - be entirely hostile to RAAN. I am in no way trying to convert you, and ask in return only that you make no attempts at converting me. I do however wish to stimulate discussion on how an effective national/international tendency would go about conceiving of itself and dealing with the sustained contradictions of its own existence. Given the complete fossilization of the vanguardist Party, the rapid decay of formalized anarchist groups, and the inadequacy of individualist practice, it is more important than ever for us to deal with these issues, and deal with them in a way that is consistent with our vision of the future.
More information about RAAN can be found at http://www.redanarchist.org
"The State is a condition, a certain relationship between human beings, a mode of human behavior; we destroy it by contracting other relationships, by behaving differently." -Gustav Landauer