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OCCUPIED TERRITORY JUNE 2004 (Friday 18th - Saturday 20th):
CALIFORNIA ANARCHIST/ANTI-AUTHORITARIAN GATHERING
"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
FROM THE BARRICADES TO THE BEDROOMS: MAKING LOVE WITH AUTONOMY
Never before has the anarchist and anti-authoritarian movement in
this
country been this strong, and this influential. Across the post-left,
left, and progressive spectrum, anarchist ways of organization,
theory,
and action are being put into place. No longer settling for hollow
and
boring ways of organizing in the liberal, and Marxist-Leninist
“top-down” models of organization, people are now settling for
nothing
less than complete abolition of hierarchy. Affinity groups, spokes
councils, and consensus process are replacing vanguards and
Democratic
Party candidates. Direct-Action, and the shutting down, stopping, and
destruction of capitalism’s institutions and structures are being
held
as the models of resistance by many. Community based activism like
Food
Not Bombs, Critical Mass, and community gardens, and militant
“groups”
like the ELF, ALF, Black Bloc, and Anti-Racist Action, are becoming
wide
spread, and taking anti-authoritarian modes of organization and
resistance far and wide. From above ground community activism, to
militant underground resistance, we are now encompassing some of the
most powerful work ever to be done by any movement.
CELEBRATING DIFFERENT TENDENCIES:
If we have never before been this strong, then we have never before
needed solidarity and unity with each other than ever before. As some
sisters and brothers are fighting the battle against vivisection,
others
are imprisoned for sabotage against eco-terrorists, while others
organize workers for a better tomorrow. As our movement expands and
grows, we come into more and more road blocks within our movement,
causing many of us to splinter out from each other. While it is good
to
think and understand our own personal ideologies, we must recognize
that
we are all in this together, and that there is something to learn
from
every person, and every struggle. From the ethics of veganism, the
(anti) politics of re-wilding, to the praxis of union organizing, we
all
have work to do, and we all have something to teach others. At
“Occupied
Territory 2004”, we will celebrate and learn from all
anarchist/anti-authoritarian tendencies, while respecting our own
personal beliefs.
CREATING ANARCHY, UNBUILDING THE SPECTACLE AND EMPIRE:
There’s nothing quite like the moment when that paint bomb hits
it’s
target, or when 2,000 people are able to physically shut something
down
that half a million couldn‘t stop by marching, or even just
listening
and understanding someone as opposed to just ‘waiting for your turn
to
talk’; in essence, there’s nothing quite like anarchy. But unlike
other
political ideologies that dream of a far off time when things will be
better; with a better candidate, or a revolutionized class of people;
we
can have our dreams come alive when ever we want, we just have to
work
to expand this to a greater scale.
Every wheat pasted poster made those metal electoral boxes more
useful
than they ever were before, every defeated Nazi made that community
that
much closer, every sexist comment challenged made certain people more
empowered than they ever felt before. Anarchy comes to us in these
little bits, sometimes were so busy trying to sustain it that we
forget
to enjoy it. We forget to actually enjoy the fact that we are living
it!
Every homeless spokes council organized, every smashed window, every
pied politician, every pig stripped of their dignity; every
interaction
allows us to win, and yet we are so disconnected from each other we
seem
to always lose. Within a movement with no central authority, or
strict
direction, it’s important to understand that expanding that anarchy
with
others is the key to expanding our movement. We can do this expansion
simply through mutual aid and understanding, by continuing our own
activism and understanding it’s links with other strands of
resistance.
OCCUPIED TERRITORY 2004!:
In this spirit of resistance, we are launching “Occupied Territory
2004”, in Fresno CA. Centrally located in California, we are
calling on
all anarchist and anti-authoritarian anti-capitalist groups to
converge
and create the world that we so desperately need. Let us build the
structures that will replace ones that alienate and exploit. Let us
not
live in a world of spectacles, but in a world of truth and of choice,
free association and freedom. Let us make the decisions for our
selves,
and represent our various movements, movements that will hopefully
bring
us to sustain those precocious moments that we work so hard for: for
anarchy.
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At this point in time we are working on workshops ranging from
Anarchism
and Metal Health, 60-70’s militant resistance, Earth First! Issues,
and
anarchist organizing. We have six months to go, to include workshops,
lectures, talks, and adventures ranging from re-wilding, to forming
unions. Please email us at:
modanarcho@yahoo.com
If you have a work shop on that relates to the anarchist movement,
that
revolves around anti-fascism, animal liberation, eco-defense, worker
liberation, anti-sexism, ect, then get in touch!
Speakers are also greatly needed, if you are someone who would like
to
speak, by yourself, or on a panel, then please email us as well.
If you have a work shop on that relates to the anarchist movement,
that
revolves around anti-fascism, animal liberation, eco-defense, worker
liberation, anti-sexism, ect, then get in touch!
Speakers are also greatly needed, if you are someone who would like
to
speak, by yourself, or on a panel, then please email us as well.