Volume 7, Number 2 Fall 2003 PerspectivesJL On Anarchist Theory Some Notes on the Argentine Anarchist Movement in the Emergency Inside this issue By Fernando Lopez 2 IAS Update The social conflict that exploded in by our people in the 1970s gave birth to 3 Grants Awarded Argentina on the 19th and 20th of weak democracies that were subject to the 3 What's Happening December 2001 is part of the crisis of blackmail of military forces that never 4 Grant Updates legitimacy affecting Latin American fully left politics. The majority of these democracies, in Argentina as in Uruguay 8 The Shock of the New: An Interview political institutions and, in particular, the democratic regime that emerged from and Chile, emerged from pacts between with Colectivo Situaciones Argentina's sinister dictatorship of 1976 to the traditional political survivors of the 16 To Think that Power Will Dissolve by 1983. The military dictatorships suffered storm and the military leaders that were in Itself is an Absurdity power during the dictatorships.1 On the economic plane, these 18 Libertarian Archives in South America restricted democracies managed to legitimize the violent concentration of wealth produced by the dictatorships for the benefit of a parasitic class, which every day became smaller and more omnipotent. The promises made by populist politicians for a greater distribution of wealth were frustrated with the continuation of a system that simultaneously shrank the economy and condemned millions to exclusion, while concentrating income and making the rich richer and more powerful. In the 1990s, during the Menem's presidency, the privatization of public businesses, the rationalization of the state, and the weakening of labor legislation brought the number of unemployed to a quarter of the economically active population, on top of a similar percentage that was already excluded from the economy. Citizens were shocked to see politicians, who had sought their support to get into power, enrich themselves. In 1999, the Alianza Radical- Frepasista,2 noting the problems created by ten years of Menem's government, promised to banish corruption from the state apparatus, the justice system, and the parliament, and to elevate the quality of life of the population. However, just after taking over, this Continued on page 12 .... Institute for Anarchist Studies Update Welcome to the fall 2003 issue of Perspectives quality of anti-authoritarian theoretical work Perspectives*• on anarchist theory on Anarchist Theory! This year has been full of is on the rise. We look forward to the changes for the Institute for Anarchist challenge of building our pool of supporters Spring 2003, Vol. 7, No. 2 Studies. We have appointed a new General in order to enlarge our granting program to Editorial Committee Director, the IAS Board of Directors has been meet these movement needs. Michael Caplan, Chuck Morse very active developing the IAS's short and While the IAS is working at expanding long term goals, and we have just launched a our granting program, we are also looking Copy Editors new website (see page 19). This is, of course, toward our future. We see the IAS taking on Paula Emery, Chuck Morse on top of our regular activities, which include other work that supports emerging and Layout and Design awarding grants, fundraising, and publishing established anarchist thinkers and promotes Michael Caplan our newsletter. anarchist discourse. The Board is now The transition of Directors, from John working on developing a plan that maps out IAS Board of Directors Petrovato to myself, has, of course, been our long term and short term program Ashanti Alston, Alexis Bhagat, challenging but relatively smooth. Since development goals. Rebecca DeWitt, Paula being appointed last march, much of my Due to a fortunate combination of Emery, Paul Glavin, Brooke energy has been focused on learning the ropes circumstances, five IAS board members are Lehman, Cindy Milstein, and moving the IAS's offices from Amherst to now living in New York City. This give us the Chuck Morse, Darini Nicolas, Montreal, Canada. Working across the U.S. opportunity to take on an active, local role. John Petrovato and Canadian border has not been as easy as it To start, the IAS will be hosting a talk tided General Director should be, but it is do-able. "Black Anarchism" with IAS Board member Michael Caplan With the change of the Directors, there Ashanti Alston. For more information, please has been a change on the IAS's Board as well. see the back cover of this newsletter. Subscription Rates I am sad to say that Dan Chodorkoff has This issue of Perspectives is a very exciting Subscriptions are free for IAS stepped down from the IAS's Board in order one for us. We have been working hard on donors. USA and Canada: $7 to focus more of his energy into the Institute expanding the newsletter features to include U.S. per year. $9 U.S. per year for Social Ecology, which he directs (please more original material. With a new layout, all other countries. see page 11). Dan has served on the Board increased page count, an exciting core focus Institutions $15 U.S. per year. since the beginning of the IAS and we are on contemporary South American (with Bulk copies are available at a indebted to his commitment to us. Although emphasis on Argentina) social movements, discount. Dan will no longer be serving on the Board, plus our regular features, we are certain that Please make checks payable to: he will remain an ally of the organization. We our readers will enjoy this issue. all wish Dan the best with his important work. As part of the focus on Argentina, IAS Institute for Anarchist Studies Our 2003 granting session has come to an grant recipient Fernando Lopez writes about end, and we have once again provided S8000 the social conflict that exploded in Argentina 73 Canterbury, U.S. in grants to radical authors in need. To on the 19,h and 20th of December 2001 and D.D.O, Quebec, Canada date, we have funded over forty projects by offers an overview of contemporary H9B 2G5 authors from countries around the world. movements and anarchist organizations. As Phone Thank you to all our supporters who have well, Marina Sitrin, who was awarded an IAS 1 (514) 421-0470 donated generously this year. We still have far grant this summer, interviews the Colectivo to go in order to meet our 2003 fundraising Situaciones of Buenos Aires. The CS is a Email [email protected] goal and I encourage all IAS allies who radical research collective that has published haven't given yet to do so. As an added several books exploring questions of power, Web incentive, on top of the gift books offered by tactics of struggle, and how to think about www.anarchist-studies.org Raven Books, The New Formulation journal is revolution today. Disclaimer offering a complimentary annual subscription You will also find two other articles in The views expressed in Perspectives for donations of S50 or more during our 2003 keeping with the South American anarchism do not necessarily represent the fundraising campaign (see page 19). theme. The first is an interview Alfredo views of the IAS as a whole. The demand for financial support Vallota, a Venezuelan anarchist intellectual, on Perspectives on Anarchist Theory through our granting program has grown Hugo Chavez's populist movement. Also is is published by the: tremendously over the past few years. While an article on three important anarchist the expressed need is well beyond our present archives in South America. Institute f o r capacity, this exciting development has Enjoy! Anarchist Studies demonstrated to us that the quantity and Michael Caplan 2 / Perspectives FALL 2003 What's Happening: Books and Events By Chuck Morse War It is important to understand that the super-aggressive U.S. first book-length imperialism now transforming the planet is not only a frightening, critique of the "bad" development, but also a shift in elite strategies that will shift in U.S. create new opportunities for resistance at the base. Anarchists foreign policy since should focus on the contradictory nature of current circumstances September 11th, shows how by both denouncing the new terrors and articulating the new this policy is designed to consolidate and extend U.S. global possibilities disclosed by recent changes in world affairs. control (Seven Stories Press, 2003, 254 pages). Tariq Ali's Bush in The barbarism of the U.S. government's foreign policy is well Babylon: Recolonising Iraq book details the longstanding imperial documented in several new books. Noam Chomsky's Hegemony or ambitions of key figures in the Bush administration and shows Survival: America s Quest for Global Dominance dissects America's how war profiteers close to the President are cashing-in. He also quest for global supremacy by tracking the U.S. government's offers an in-depth analysis of Iraqi resistance to the U.S. occupa tion (Verso, November 2003, 230 pages). pursuit of policies intended to achieve "full spectrum dominance" at any cost. He shows how policies such as the militarization of Anti-Militarism space, the ballistic-missile defense program, unilateralism, the The long history of anti-war activism is rich with lessons for dismantling of international agreements, and the response to the Iraqi crisis cohere in a drive for hegemony that ultimately threat contemporary anarchists. Michael Foley's Confronting the War ens to turn the world into a wasteland (Henry Holt and Company, Machine: Draft Resistance during the Vietnam War tells the story of November 2003, 224 pages). one of the most important anti-militarist campaigns in history.