London Anarchist bookfair 2020

[Athos]

I would love to hear your thoughts on how such an event can provide a welcome to Anarchist comrades who feel alienated due to such issues without letting any IdPol BS slip through the net?

Not getting involved with Goldsmiths types.

 

[butchersapron]

No, you really don't do you? My point was that you in your post(s) above - basically a simplified version of the AF's adoption of identity politics under a veneer of being critical of identity politics - respond to criticisms of the event not actually being anarchist by pretending that the criticisms are criticisms of either non-anarchists or the wrong sort of anarchists (" black anarchists, there will be queers anarchists, there will be trans anarchists and probably a hole bunch of people not quite "Anarchist" enough for some others ") attendees rather than the people establishing then running a non-anarchist event under the title of anarchist event. It's a nice little trick as you leaves you defender of all the above wrong people who fail the purity test, rather than organiser of some labour-left fringe event.

 

[chilango]

Here's the published list of attendees. I'm sure someone more plugged into the scene can do the Maths but there appears to be a sizeable proportion of "not strictly Anarchist" groups on the list (I don't have a problem with these groups, but that's not the issue).

• Active Distribution
• Activist Court Aid Brigade
• AK Press (if in capacity)
• Anarcho Agony Aunts
• Anarchist Federation
• Anarchist Studies Network
• Art For Animals
• Class War
• Communist Workers Organisation
• Community Action on Prison Expansion [CAPE]
• Earth Strike
• Empty Cages Collective
• English Collective of Prostitutes
• Fourth Wave: London Feminist Activists
• Freedom Press
• Green Anticapitalist Front
• International of Anarchist Federations
• Jewdas
• Kolah Studio
• London Anti-Fascist Assembly
• Plan C
• PM Press
• Prisonism
• Radical Anthropology Group
• Reading Red Corner
• Reel News/Final Hours
• Seeds for Change
• Smash IPP
• We Shall Overcome!

 

[Rhyddical]

No, you really don't do you? My point was that you in your post(s) above

Ah thanks for making yourself clear.

Allow me to be clear back, I am an Anarchist, Bookfair 2020 is an Anarchist event and there will be a variety of groups in attendance, some of which are not distinctly Anarchist, either in political identity or everyday practice, (thinking here various disabillity groups and animal rights groups as well as the previously mentioned) much like every other bookfair Including the London Anarchist Bookfairs which have proceeded it.

I am actually very critical of Identity Politics and if I was taking the time to write in a more substantial manner that would be clear, I personally (and the bookfair collective itself) have absolutely no intention of it being a event that plays host to Identity based politics. Tho rather telling of our times, some of the attendees may be more favourable to Labour than myself. I mean that's just the reality of the scene right now which is pretty sad, but hey perhaps being around some solid Anarchist comrades and our politics you'd hope to sway such groups further Anarchistic in their political organising.

You specifically mentioned the stalls and stuff, so I'm trying to gather whether you think any of them are founded in cross class IdPol?

No one needs me or anyone else to be their defender and if my curtish manner after a long night of work doesn't make that clear my apologies.


I think if we were to be purely an Anarchist event, we'd be rather small! Would we even have the IWW or Smash IPP? I certainly think thats a curious hairshirt that we can't push onto any bookfair.

Tho perhaps something that might apply to events like The Anarchist Festival which can make it work with it's extended timeline and decentralised nature.

 

[Rhyddical]

Here's the published list of attendees. I'm sure someone more plugged into the scene can do the Maths but there appears to be a sizeable proportion of "not strictly Anarchist" groups on the list (I don't have a problem with these groups, but that's not the issue).

Probably worth a note that these are groups which either contacted us to request a stall, that we are involved with ourselves or that we spoke with in a casual manner rather than a illustration of the ratio of "Anarchist/Non-Anarchist" on the invite list which we will be using to send out invites in Jan/Feb.

The list of stalls refused is already is probably equal in length.

We have an "informal policy" of three green lights from collective members with everyone able to block, raise objections about any requests. Given we're a reasonably diverse bunch this has so far done us good stead, however if anyone has specific issues we should pay attention too with any of the groups, feel free to DM me or the Bookfair on any of the social media and we'll review.

 

[Rob Ray]

I expect it'll be in process at some point, but on pro-active asking around for groups (it'd be a shame if anarchist groups were turned away because of prior applications by non-anarchist ones) the 2017 list is probably worth a consult. I've C&P'd from the stalls announcement from that year below.

Also for folks complaining about there being non-anarchist groups on the list it's worth noting how many were included in that same lineup. Finally, I think it's worth noting the different sizes of project involved here. The new bookfair is a first try, and starting out on a smaller scale, so while yes they are doing a London Anarchist Bookfair, investing in it or judging it as a straightforward continuation of the original is a bit pointless:

Active Distribution www.activedistributionshop.org
Advisory service for Squatters www.squatter.org.uk
AK Press www.akuk.com
Anarchist Action www.anarchistaction.net
Anarchist Federation www.afed.org.uk
Anarchist Studies www.lwbooks.co.uk/anarchist-studies
Animal Lib Front Supporters Group www.alfsg.org.uk
Angry Workers' World www.angryworkersworld.wordpress.com
Anti Capitalist Art Group
Anti-Fascist Network
Art for Animals
Autonomedia/Minor Compositions www.autonomedia.org
The Autonomous Centre of Edinburgh

 

[Rob Ray]

Banned in Braille
Berkshire Antifascists Merch from Berkshire Antifa
Black Rose Books www.blackrosebooks.com
Brett Henning
(Brighton) NFA Residents NFA Residents Association
Brighton Anarchist Black Cross & The Bottled Wasp Pocket Diary
Brighton Solfed www.solfed.org.uk
Bristol Radical History Group www.brh.org.uk

Campaign Against Arms Trade www.caat.org.uk
Camp Wild Forest Obóz dla Puszczy
Cambridge Climate Action
Chronos Publications
CIRA Marseille cira.marseille.free.fr
CNT France CNT - Secrétariat International
COPS/Undercover Research Group Campaign Opposing Police Surveillance - An alliance of people spied on by Britain's political secret police
Communist Workers' Organisation www.leftcom.org
Consented consented.co.uk
Corporate Watch www.corporatewatch.org
Cowley Books
Critisticuffs www.critisticuffs.org
Cubesville Cubesville.uk
Cunningham Amendment

Datacide Datacide
Dog Section Press
DPAC (Disabled People Against Cuts) www.dpac.uk.net
Dissident Island Radio & LARC www.dissidentisland.org
DIY Space for London www.diyspaceforlondon.org
Dywizjon 161 www.pozordistro.co.uk

Earth First UK www.earthfirstgathering.org
Edinburgh Chiapas Solidarity
Elephant Editions & Actforfree www.actforfree.nostate.net
Empty Cages Collective www.prisonabolition.org
Endnotes www.endnotes.org.uk

Feminist Fightback www.feministfightback.org.uk
Feminist Library www.feministlibrary.co.uk
Freedom Press Freedom Press

Global Women's Strike www.globalwomenstrike.net
Greek Anarchist poet (Katerina Gogou)

Haringey Justice for Palestinians www.hjfp.org.uk
Housmans Radical Booksellers www.housmans.com
Haringey Solidarity Group
Hydra Bookshop

 

[Rob Ray]

International Marxist-humanist Organisation www.internationalMarxisthumanist.org
London Wobblies www.iww.org.uk

Jewdas www.jewdas.org

Kate Sharpley Library www.katesharpleylibrary.net
Kebele BASE Community Co-Op | Base for Anarchy & Solidarity in Easton

LCAP - Housing Action Southwark and Lambeth
LDMG
LibEd www.libed.org.uk
London Catholic Worker www.londoncatholicworker.org

MayDay Rooms www.maydayrooms.org/
Merlin Press www.merlinpress.co.uk
Movement Communiste/KpK www.mouvement-communiste.com

Netpol: The Network for Police Monitoring www.netpol.org
No Borders
NELS - North East London Hunt Saboteurs
Northern Herald Books
No Sweat/ Punk Ethics/ Pride Punx / Influx Press www.nosweat.org.uk
Now Or Never www.nowornever.org.uk

The Occupied Times of London (Base Publication) www.basepublication.org

Past Tense www.pastenseblog.wordpress.com
Peace in Kurdistan Campaign Peace in Kurdistan
Peace News www.peacenews.info
Peace Pledge Union www.ppu.org.uk
PipDW Books
Plan C London
Pirate Press
PM Press - UK www.pmpress.org
Princesa Pirata www.princesapiratadistro.wordpress.com
ProjecteUter Projecte Úter
Propagate collective propagatecollective.tumblr.co

Queen Mob Collective & Contrabanda

Radical History NE London
Reel News www.http://reelnews.co.uk/
Rising Tide www.risingtide.org.uk

Seeds for Change www.seedsforchange.org.uk
Solidarity Not Charity
South Essex Stirrer The South Essex Stirrer - Archive
Sparrows Nest The Sparrows' Nest Library and Archive - Welcome to The Sparrows' Nest, Nottingham
Sto citas - anti politica www.stocitas.org

Theory and Practice www.theoryandpractice.org.uk

United Voices of the World the union www.uvwunion.org.uk

Wedoria Chronicles www.wedoria.com/chronicles
Winter Oak www.winteroak.org.uk
Wolf Press www.maxhertzberg.co.uk
World saving worms (Childrens Book) https://www.kevindoyle.ie/

 

[chilango]

As I said, I don't have any particular problem with the group's on the list. Some of them are of more interest to me than the explicitly Anarchist ones. So it's not a complaint. It's more an observation.

 

[ska invita]

I expect it'll be in process at some point, but on pro-active asking around for groups (it'd be a shame if anarchist groups were turned away because of prior applications by non-anarchist ones) the 2017 list is probably worth a consult. I've C&P'd from the stalls announcement from that year below.

Also for folks complaining about there being non-anarchist groups on the list it's worth noting how many were included in that same lineup. Finally, I think it's worth noting the different sizes of project involved here. The new bookfair is a first try, and starting out on a smaller scale, so while yes they are doing a London Anarchist Bookfair, investing in it or judging it as a straightforward continuation of the original is a bit pointless:

Active Distribution www.activedistributionshop.org
Advisory service for Squatters www.squatter.org.uk
AK Press www.akuk.com
Anarchist Action www.anarchistaction.net
Anarchist Federation www.afed.org.uk
Anarchist Studies www.lwbooks.co.uk/anarchist-studies
Animal Lib Front Supporters Group www.alfsg.org.uk
Angry Workers' World www.angryworkersworld.wordpress.com
Anti Capitalist Art Group
Anti-Fascist Network
Art for Animals
Autonomedia/Minor Compositions www.autonomedia.org
The Autonomous Centre of Edinburgh

Missing D-H from that list?

 

[redsquirrel]

It's a stickler isn't it. How to involve your black comrades, gay comrades, trans comrades etc without someone turning around and saying that their presence is detracting from the revolutionary working class anarchism.

Frankly this type of shit is why I have very little time for you. It is just totally dishonest. No one has said any such thing and either you are too stupid to realise that or too dishonest to care.

EDIT: FTR rat's comment was total twattery.
I was a bit unfair above but you can't claim to want a sensible discussion of identity politics in communist/anarchist politics starting from the type of strawman you've created (not for the first time).

 

[treelover]

can someone inform what has happened to London Coalition Against Poverty, which surely hasn't gone away?

 

[Rob Ray]

It was in decline well before 2017, pretty much defunct as far as I know. Various former members are still around in different contexts.

ska invita oh yeah fixed ta.

 

[Pickman's model]

.

 

[Rhyddical]

Frankly this type of shit is why I have very little time for you. It is just totally dishonest.

You know what, being hands up honest... I'm blaming this thread for more explicit commentary elsewhere and it was 8am n I hadn't had any sleep.

I was also ticked off because of the way the thread was ressurected.

I'm still not sure what "goldsmiths types" is supposed to mean but it seems to me what they are saying is "Comrades who are black" or who care about black politics and thus in the mind of some, can be dismissed as IdPol. Maybe I'm reading a little much into the vagueries there but the post linked, that got people saying "meh IdPol". - Maybe I am stupid - reads "Our black comrades don't feel welcome, how can we make the space better for them?" and when someone goes goes "WTf is this IdPol shit?" then tbh yeah I do think they are essentially turning around and saying that the presence of comrades who may have a focus on issues that affect them based on aspects of their identity is detracting from all the revolutionary working class anarchism.

I've had way to much of that shite these past few months and thus, perhaps my low tolerance and quick turn of phrase there. Maybe you all live in a better bubble than I but sadly there are plenty of comrades who genuinely are so dismissive of black/gay/trans etc comrades and they react in a very similar manner and given the 20 odd pages of "is making a space welcoming to Trans people not just IdPol, It's not Anarchist to ban people *oh what's your definition of bigot then eh?" you can see why I've little interest in 20 pages of "talking about the specific issue that affect black comrades? This isn't Anarchist, it's some far left Labour fringe event" or whatever it was.



TBH I'm not here to win the "bestest more patient" Anarchist awards. I'm here to answer a few questions about Bookfair not make some bezzie buds. Frankly it's irreleveant whether you think I'm an arse, Maybe I am, I'm assured I'm much better company over a pint ;p Either way the relevative qualities of my personality has very little to do with the Anarchist bookfair. This isn't Rhyddical's hootnany and Anarchy fun time, It's a collective effort. I'm just here stand around in hi vis looking oh so very pretty.

This is a collective effort, the blog post is an honest accounting of the meeting. If anyone has concerns that it's all a bit IdPol, tell us why and we'll stick it on the list to have a natter about next time... at the end of the day the proof of the pudding is when you come along to bookfair, see 90% of the same stalls again, find some new things you like and some new things you don't and go "fair enough, it's just a standard Anarcho bookfair" instead of whatever weird Labour, let's be Marxist, IdPol obsessed anti anarchy, probably secretly loving Stalin celebnration of the police state parade with a bouncy council some of you seem to think we're hosting.

Frankly the lack of comradely support and the personality assault is just a wee bit boring and I've got a game to play brother (Stellaris and Scum ;p)

There is an Anarchist Bookfair coming up, you should come it'll be fun, there will be books, talks and some music n shit. If you don't like it, it's not the end of the world. It'll be better than nothing and there will be cake.

 

[Rhyddical]

the 2017 list is probably worth a consult.

Cheers bud.
Our current invite list is five pages long ;p I cant say I know every one of these groups but I suppose they get a extra tick by merit of being previously welcome and such.

 

[redsquirrel]

You know what, being hands up honest... I'm blaming this thread for more explicit commentary elsewhere and it was 8am n I hadn't had any sleep.

See you say something like this that is perfectly reasonable and which I could accept - if in the next paragraph you didn't come out with the below (my emphasis)

I've had way to much of that shite these past few months and thus, perhaps my low tolerance and quick turn of phrase there. Maybe you all live in a better bubble than I but sadly there are plenty of comrades who genuinely are so dismissive of black/gay/trans etc comrades and they react in a very similar manner .

Yes, everyone who disagrees with views is living in a bubble. If you don't want to address peoples points fine - then don't bother but don't pretend that you are willing to discuss these issues when you aren't.

Frankly the lack of comradely support and the personality assault is just a wee bit boring and I've got a game to play brother (Stellaris and Scum ;p)

You've repeatedly misrepresented people's positions on this thread and you're talking about a lack comradely support.

 

[Athos]

... it seems to me what they are saying is "Comrades who are black" or who care about black politics and thus in the mind of some, can be dismissed as IdPol... I do think they are essentially turning around and saying that the presence of comrades who may have a focus on issues that affect them based on aspects of their identity is detracting from all the revolutionary working class anarchism.

... there are plenty of comrades who genuinely are so dismissive of black/gay/trans etc comrades...

... "talking about the specific issue that affect black comrades? This isn't Anarchist, it's some far left Labour fringe event"

You're either incredibly stupid or entirely dishonest (or both).

Literally nobody on this thread has come even close to saying what claim (and even purport to quote).

 

[Rhyddical]

See you say something like this that is per...

We all live in a bubble tho do we not? I said "better" bubble, because I live in one too.
It seems some (reading the 27 pages) here have never encountered Anarchists who are actually rather racist or transphobic (or atleast act this way) and thus respond like such a thing as implausable and suggest our defensive protocols a bit much. That has been a general tone of the entire thread.
Unfortuantly The collective HAS to account for the sad reality that some who would call themselve comrade are actually pretty shitty people with bigotry masked behind anarchist rhetoric. They are keen to disengage from the discussion and politics of black comrades or trans comrades because of their ill ease with such diversity and often mask it up in anarchistic language. This is the bubble I've been thrust into and the one I am living in.

Even if you're own bubble - hum whats a better word, sphere of influence? Community? idk... - lacks this dark spectre, I'm sure you can understand that i exists and be something others are dealing with.

Saying all that I'm not sure I agree that I am misreprenting people's positions.
If I've misunderstood them fair enough, hands up.


It seems to me that certain members of this thread are concerned that our blog post which talks about making Anarchism more accessable for People of Colour is a slip into IdPol, especially given our much maligned position of making the space Trans friendly (a policy which has reams of copy here saying is Liberal/IdPol) and is thus, not actually about Anarchism. Essentially that we should ignore the whole "black Anarchists don't feel welcome" conversation we were having because I'm/we/(they?) arn't actually Anarchist at all because this is IdPol.

Is this not the position it would seem they hold? Is that the starting point of the discussion here? If not, maybe I'm too stupid to understand, please use small words and correct me.



To my mind, I think I understood and have asked which group raising these concerns is one based in Identity Politics? Who exactly are we concerned about here?
Who am I misrepresenting? I think we all agree that IdPol can take a long walk of a short cliff, a deeply broken aspect of the political scene which undermines worker class solidarity and plays to the hands of capitalists and liberal aspects of the state so, let's discuss the bit where "black Anarchists don't feel welcome" without someone telling me I'm/we/they are not Anarchist?

 

[redsquirrel]

We all live in a bubble tho do we not? I said "better" bubble, because I live in one too.

Something of an aside but this seems a rather strange view for a class based anarchist to take. Surely the point of communist politics is universality, that we don't live in isolated bubbles but in interacting communities. Yes those communities might differ but at heart they are not separate in the way bubbles are.

It seems some (reading the 27 pages) here have never encountered Anarchists who are actually rather racist or transphobic (or atleast act this way) and thus respond like such a thing as implausable and suggest our defensive protocols a bit much. That has been a general tone of the entire thread.

I'm sorry once again this is a mischaracterisation. Who has made such a claim? I don't believe anyone on this thread has said any such thing. In fact a number of people have said the opposite. We all exist in a prejudiced society and are all (in part) a product of that society, and cannot escape the prejudices of society. Moreover, there are people on "the left" that hold explicitly racist/sexist/homophobic/transphobic views.

What people have taken issue with is your crude strawmen. For example

They are keen to disengage from the discussion and politics of black comrades or trans comrades because of their ill ease with such diversity and often mask it up in anarchistic language. This is the bubble I've been thrust into and the one I am living in.
....
Essentially that we should ignore the whole "black Anarchists don't feel welcome" conversation we were having because I'm/we/(they?) arn't actually Anarchist at all because this is IdPol.

No one (on this thread) has made any such arguments.

Personally I've never heard anyone claim that the presence of black/gay/trans comrades is "detracting from the revolutionary working class anarchism". Certainly no one on this thread has made any such argument. I've not read any left criticism of identity politics that is consistent with such a claim. So to raise it as if posters on this thread (or left wing critics of identity politics) are making such a claim is just dishonest.

 

[rat]

It's a stickler isn't it. How to involve your black comrades, gay comrades, trans comrades etc without someone turning around and saying that their presence is detracting from the revolutionary working class anarchism.

Like quite literally their very presence. It's a shitty thing and it happens.

When? Where? Who?

 

[nyxx]

Goldsmith's students involved now. That report does read a bit ID politics-tastic too not surprisingly.

Please expand.
Do you purport a link between this "id politics-tastic" development with the involvement of students from Goldsmiths?

 

[Rhyddical]

Red Squirrel and Rat, I don't know whether you havn't bothered reading the thread or whether you are comfortable the mask of symantics but this threads origin literally started with the negation and undermining of the trans community but saying that providing a space they were safe and secure in was IdPol and "not anarchist". The more recent addition via the blog, that black anarchist feel similarly uncomforable and we should seek to make changes equally met with accusations of IdPol. I'm going to assume you genuinely think I'm deliberatly misinterpreting people to "win" a barny on the internet so can I ask...
Are you saying that labelling something as Idpol isn't saying that it's a detraction from Revolutionary Working Class Anarchism?

To my mind and that of most of my Anarchist Communist peers, Identity Politics are a detraction from Revolutionary Working Class Anarchism.

Labelling any voice or effort to represent or provide security against bigots with "It's Idpol" it tantamount to saying making space for the tran/black community is counter RWCA.

So which is it?

Ahh no I get you.... you think I'm mischaracterising because there is a differance between trans people being present (which no one has a problem with yeah?) and transphobic bigots people being excluded to (apparently not Anarchist, maybe Idpol) and worse perhaps Trans people talking about issues which face trans people? (definatly IdPol as labelled both here and elsewhere).......

So yeah ... I don't want to mischaracterise, you are right.

Trans people very welcome, no bigots here, everyone is comfortable with their presence.Not a detraction and no one is saying it is. cool.

Just don't talk about issues which effect you or be involved in the organising philosophy and we can't stop the bigots that abuse you either because that would be idpol, yes?

Is that right? I mean It REALLY seems like that is what certain people are saying here. (and no I'm not tagging peoples comments and highlighting them for review and hostility - have a scroll if you are truly interested)

Then we have the most recent development, ie the moment we talk about the diverse group of comrades ie the Goldsmiths Students a whole bunch of people jump back to It's Idpol...

Can someone point out the IdPol in the blog post? Becuase it looks like members of the thread are saying "they are black and talk about black issues within the Anarchist discussion and within the wider society" and this is IDPOL, thus a detraction from Revolutionary Working Class Anarchism.

Maybe less mischaracterisation and more the capacity to infer peoples meaning without bothering with all the polite and formal circumlocution.

I would love for someone to actually qoute the bit in the blog post that is Identity Politics.

Was it "a discussion on the nature of Anarchistic events and how they can often feel exclusionary to black and minority ethnic comrades." or perhaps "In building Bookfair 2020 we have to take into consideration the interests of comrades from across the Anarchist spectrum. We agreed in principle that our discussions and debates would be progressive in nature, seeking mutually beneficial solutions and this is something that we believe is needed in the wider movement as we seek to re-invigorate ourselves as a community", no I know it was "We welcome thoughts and opinions from comrades on improving our practice. We’d love to hear your thoughts on ensuring bookfair and supplemental events are welcoming to all regardless of ancestry, capacity or identity."....Yep we're obviously a bunch of liberals. Probably vote Labour and weld tofu.


Unfortunatly, this issue is made much more vocal and upfront on other places (FB and Twitter for example) tho I'm not going to go unblocking people just to get screen grabs I suspect you'd dismiss as tokenistic. There are some nasty shits out there and atleast a couple I've blocked on here for crossing the transphobia line too. Now nnot once, in any of our media or commentary have we endorse a cross class movement or one that is counter Anarchistic analysis in favour of a broad Identitiy one. Yet the mear mention of Trans people and Black people brought out the calls of IdPol, to my mind as a dogwhistle for the eye rolling so common in some of our comrades who would rather stick to the more traditional narratives of class organising in the UK.

There was a time not so long ago that Feminism and Queer politics had to fight for a space at the table and those movements had similar reactionary blathering put on them, as I'm sure you are aware.

To be fair to the thread, lots of people have much less unsavoury concerns or basis and that is why I havn't written it off. It is them folk I'm speaking too, the curious folk wanting to know more or who have questions about the organising.
Even many of our detractors wouldn't stoop to such outlanding and ridicolous statments as labelling all the things as Idpol.

 

[Rhyddical]

Further - The casual acceptance of someone linking my personal Twitter on this thread (one which, let's be honest, includes some hostile folk), with my name an associated points of information seems like really shitty precident.

 

[Athos]

Further - The casual acceptance of someone linking my personal Twitter on this thread (one which, let's be honest, includes some hostile folk), with my name an associated points of information seems like really shitty precident.

I missed that. I thought it was a link to the Bookfar2020 Twitter, no?

 

[Athos]

... this threads origin literally started with the negation and undermining of the trans community but saying that providing a space they were safe and secure in was IdPol and "not anarchist".

No it didn't.

Labelling any voice or effort to represent or provide security against bigots with "It's Idpol" it tantamount to saying making space for the tran/black community is counter RWCA.

Nobody is saying that all efforts to provide security against bigots is necessarily idpol.

Trans people very welcome, no bigots here, everyone is comfortable with their presence.Not a detraction and no one is saying it is. cool.

Just don't talk about issues which effect you or be involved in the organising philosophy and we can't stop the bigots that abuse you either because that would be idpol, yes?

Is that right?

No.

I mean It REALLY seems like that is what certain people are saying here. (and no I'm not tagging peoples comments and highlighting them for review and hostility - have a scroll if you are truly interested).

And you can't, because there are no examples.

Your engagement with this thread continues in the same way. You make outlandish claims (often with fabricated purported quotes), for which you fail to provide any evidence.

I really can't tell whether you're being deliberately dishonest, or that you simply don't understand what people are saying.

 

[FabricLiveBaby!]

I was always interested in anarchism, and seriously thought about going to some events to learn more (I read a couple of big names, Chomsky etc ad really liked what they had to say, but if this is what it is in reality then I think I'll stick with the tankies

From the way this thread went, Anarchy sounds like a movement for bearded hipster wankers. Either that, that or its being captured by pomo nobs.

Either way. Anarchists actually scare quite bit now. More than any other leftist group and tbh I can't think of anything more unappealing than being surrounded by a bunch of breying angry anarchists dudes. Mud sticks and bones take time to heal.

Fuck this bookfair.

 

[Rob Ray]

Lol sure, nothing problematic in the behaviour of the tankie scene, especially over the last couple of years. Nothing to see there at all.

Pulling that disingenuous bollocks out of your hat to try and make out anarchism is uniquely unpleasant because it's having an internal political argument when you've been around this long is just utter crap and you should be ashamed of your own transparency.

 

[chilango]

It's interesting (to me at least) to note the parallels between the issues of alleged transphobia in the Anarchist movement and alleged anti-Semitism in the Labour Party. The issue of definition is central.

 

[FabricLiveBaby!]

Lol sure, nothing problematic in the behaviour of the tankie scene, especially over the last couple of years. Nothing to see there at all.

Must have missed my sarcastic grin. I don't belong to any particular movement.

The fact is tho, anarchism seems to me (and others like me- ) to be the most unpleasant of the lot. And if you think it's a case of "disengenouousness", then that's gonna be a problem of your movement, eh.

I know what my and others thoughts are. Up to you to acknowledge them or dismiss them. Not my problem, really.