First, I’ve been busy working on two talks – one in Glasgow and another in Edinburgh. I’ve posted a couple of new articles: Precursors of Syndicalism II (on the I.W.P.A. and the “Chicago Idea”) and a review of Rupturing the Dialectic by Harry Cleaver. In addition, I added something to the AFAQ blog on The Symbols of Anarchy, revisited and something on the Proudhon blog entitled Hal Draper on Proudhon: the anatomy of a smear.

The last is something I’ve addressed elsewhere a couple of times, but when I saw (yet again!) the same cherry-picked Proudhon quote in a book chapter praising that numpty Hal Draper I thought I should go into it again, but in more detail. Draper seems to be considered something of an academic by some Marxists, personally he comes across as a hack – a hack with an irrational hatred of anarchism. His biases are clear enough, but I guess he says what Marxists want to hear and so they regurgitate him as he regurgitated Schapiro. Suffice to say, I’ve addressed some his claims in AFAQ (and elsewhere) and it is very easy – and quick – to refute his assertions. Not exactly what I would call a great scholar…

This particular cherry-picked quote does the rounds and it comes as no real surprise to discover Proudhon did not, as such, actually write the quote Schapiro presents and which Draper repeats. But, then again, making up and tampering with Proudhon quotes has been the case since Marx in 1847. I doubt that this will make much difference, but it shows the time and energy required to just a single quote! And Schapiro’s article is full of similar inventions and distortions.

Second, book news. PM Press has now published a new edition of Voline’s The Unknown Revolution which includes a lengthy introduction by yours truly. It , I hopes, fills in some gaps in Voline’s account as well as showing how subsequent research has confirmed his analysis. Also, Freedom Press has confirmed it will be publishing my collection of George Barrett pamphlets and articles from Freedom later this year. I’m glad this is happening, as his Anarchist Revolution and Objections to Anarchism are good, clear, accounts of anarchism. Both projects, incidentally, were finished while I was on strike last year.

Third, an update on A Libertarian Reader. I’ve selected the texts, written the introduction and am now working through the document adding introductory paragraphs to the texts and appropriate footnotes. As noted before, due to the quality and quantity of the texts I’ve decided to turn it into two volumes. Here is the contents of volume 1:

A Libertarian Reader: Fighting for Freedom, 1857 to 1936

1857 On The Male and Female Human Being – Joseph Déjacque
1858 Exchange – Joseph Déjacque
1863 The Federative Principle – Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
1863 Anarchy – César de Paepe
1868 Communism and Property – André Léo
1868 Report of the Brussels section – Brussels International Workers Association (IWA)
1868 Resolution on Collective Ownership – IWA
1868 Resolution on War – IWA
1869 Women and Morals: Freedom or Monarchy – André Léo
1869 The Present Institutions of the International in Relation to the Future – César de Paepe
1869 Organisation and the General Strike – Michael Bakunin
1869 Programme – International Alliance of Socialist Democracy
1869 Policy of the International – Michael Bakunin
1869 Resolution and Discussion on Resistance Societies – IWA
1870 The Presidency of Mutual Assistance Societies – Eugène Varlin
1870 Manifesto – Paris IWA
1870 Workers Societies – Eugène Varlin
1870 Letter to Richard Albert – Michael Bakunin
1871 To Worker of the Countryside – André Léo
1871 Appeal to the citizenesses of Paris – A Group of Citizenesses
1871 Declaration to the French People – Paris Commune
1871 The Programme of the Commune – André Léo
1871 Federalism – James Guillaume
1871 Revolution without Woman – André Léo
1871 The Internationale – Eugène Pottier
1871 Circular to all the Federations of the International Workers’ Association – Jura IWA
1871 Statement before the Military Tribunal – Louise Michel
1872 Manifesto – Spanish IWA
1872 Resolutions of the Saint-Imier Congress – IWA
1878 Work and Wealth – Ingalls Joshua King
1880 Anarchy and Communism – Carlo Cafiero
1883 Karl Marx as Friend and Foe – Benjamin Tucker
1883 Defence Statement – Louise Michel
1883 Manifesto – IWPA
1884 A Factory as it might be – William Morris
1885 Political Rights – Peter Kropotkin
1885 The International – Albert Parsons
1886 Haymarket Speech – August Spies
1886 Parsons’ Plea for Anarchy – Albert Parsons
1886 Freedom – Charlotte Wilson
1886 I am an Anarchist – Lucy Parsons
1887 On Anarchy – Lucy Parsons
1887 Socialist Letters – Ernest Lesigne
1888 Work and Organisation – Francesco Merlino
1889 Why are we anarchists? – Elisee Reclus
1889 Anarchistic Socialism – Victor Yarros
1889 Anarchy versus Social Democracy – John Turner
1890 The Slavery of Our Times – Leo Tolstoy
1890 Sex Slavery – Voltairine de Cleyre
1891 The Soul of Man under Socialism – Oscar Wilde
1892 Mutualism – Dyer Lum
1895 The Effects of Persecution – Peter Kropotkin
1896 Why I Am an Anarchist – Louise Michel
1896 Appeal of 1st May 1896 – Fernand Pelloutier
1896 The Forthcoming Congress – F. Domela Nieuwenhuis
1896 Social Democracy in Germany – Gustav Landauer
1896 Let us be Just – William Tcherkesoff
1896 Anarchy Defended by Anarchists – John Most and Emma Goldman
1896 Anarchism and Violence – Louisa Sarah Bevington
1897 Organisation – Errico Malatesta
1898 Sabotage – Pouget Emile
1898 Liberty through Education – Various
1899 Libertarian or Anarchist? – Henry Glasse
1899 November Eleventh – Voltairine de Cleyre
1899 Toward Anarchy – Errico Malatesta
1905 Industrial Workers of the World Congress: Two Speeches – Lucy Parsons
1905 Direct Action and the General Strike in Russia – Peter Kropotkin
1906 The Charter of Amiens – CGT
1907 Stirner: The Ego and Its Own – Max Baginski
1907 Anarchists and Unions – Peter Kropotkin
1907 Motions – International Anarchist Congress
1908 Preamble – IWW
1909 A New Declaration of Independence – Emma Goldman
1910 Working-Class Socialism – E.J.B. Allen
1911 Cranky Notions – Joseph Labadie
1911 Tom Mann Quits Politics – Tom Mann
1911 Anarchy and the Labour War – George Barrett
1911 Manifesto of 23 September 1911 – MLP
1911 Mary Wollstonecraft, Her Tragic Life and Her Passionate Struggle for Freedom – Emma Goldman
1912 The Commune has risen! – Voltairine de Cleyre
1912 [Article from The Syndicalist] – Tom Mann
1913 There is power in a union – Joe Hill
1914 Without Bosses – Ricardo Flores Magon
1915 Solidarity Forever – Ralph Chaplin
1915 International Anarchist Manifesto on the War – Various
1916 Come, Workers, Let Us Take Counsel Together – Alexander Berkman
1917 Non-Governmental Society – Edward Carpenter
1917 Self-Government in Industry – G.D.H. Cole
1917 The Deadly Parallel – IWW
1917 [The Bolsheviks and the Constituent Assembly] – Golos Truda
1919 Justice for the Negro – IWW
1920 Guild Socialism Restated – G.D.H. Cole
1920 To All Peasants and Workers of the Ukraine – Makhnovists
1920 An Anarchist Programme – Italian Anarchist Union
1920 A letter from Kropotkin – Peter Kropotkin
1920 Report from Moscow – Otto Ruhle
1920 Revolution and Dictatorship: On one anarchist who has forgotten his principles – Luigi Fabbri
1921 The Goals for Which We Fight – Kronstadt Izvestia
1921 Forces of Revolution – Sébastien Faure
1921 Class struggle or class hatred? – Errico Malatesta
1922 Principles of Revolutionary Syndicalism – IWA
1923 What is behind the label? A plea for clearness – Sylvia Pankhurst
1926 Reflections on the General Strike – Emma Goldman
1926 The True Nature of the State – Rudolf Rocker
1926 The Struggle Against the State – Nestor Makhno
1929 Now and After: The ABC of Communist Anarchism – Alexander Berkman
1932 Statement of Principles – FIJL
1933 Nationalism and Culture – Rudolf Rocker
1935 There is no Communism in Russia – Emma Goldman
1935 Colonies – a Short Cut to Freedom? – Sidney Solomon
1936 A Warning Voice – CNT
1936 The Confederal Conception of Libertarian Communism – CNT
1936 The Working Class in Struggle – J Ribeyron
1936 From the collective contract to worker control – N. Faucier
1936 Interview with the Toronto Star – Buenaventura Durruti
1936 The Party and the Working Class – Anton Pannekoek
1936 State, Class and bureaucracy in the USSR – Camillo Berneri
1936 Solidarity – Emma Goldman

As can be seen, I’ve tried to include people from all schools of libertarian socialism – mutualism, collectivist-anarchism, communist-anarchism, individualist anarchism, Guild Socialism, revolutionary syndicalism, council communism, situationism, other forms of libertarian Marxism and, of course, the occasional individual outwith specific categories. It also, I hope, will show the origins of revolutionary anarchism in the First International, with translations of French texts which show the influence of Proudhon far better than the English translations of the time. As is clear, the bulk of the texts are from the revolutionary anarchist tradition – as this is historically accurate in terms of numbers, but also expresses my own political preferences. Also, from a personal perspective as a fan of Proudhon, it is interesting to note (or footnote, in this case) the clear links between later forms of anarchism (collectivism and communism) with mutualism. Notions raised by him are echoed later by many, many others – sometimes unknowingly, I am sure, but still it indicates how he addressed issues of concern for all socialists and raised many of the same solutions.

I tried to include rare texts, in the main, ones which are not in other books. Obviously, some works above are a chapter or extracts of the books indicated by their titles. Talking of which, I have preferred to include the whole article or chapters in question, and so have only rarely excluded text (and have included cuts with “[…]”). I’ve included many anarchists who have become less well-known over the years. And, yes, I’ve included people who did not remain libertarians – why forget their contributions? I’ve tried to include key events and organisations, showing that libertarians were involved in mass movements and history shaping events. There are also a few songs… but no poems! A lot is newly translated, including new versions of texts available elsewhere.

The introduction is complete. It is based, perhaps needless to say, on 160 Years of Libertarian but supplemented by later research, including Propertarianism and Fascism. It also draws upon Anarchist Organisation – Practice as Theory Actualised (talking of which, I should get around to completing the longer version of this, which was the first draft).

I’m happy with the texts selected, they give – I think – a good overview of libertarian ideas and they show how disgraceful is the right-wing appropriation of the word is. The libertarians of the 1920s and 1930s were fighting fascism, while the likes of von Mises were supporting it. Not to mention that even the briefest look at the notions advocated by right-“libertarians” shows that they are hardly libertarian – property is their concern, not liberty. Hence all the injustices and authoritarian social relations which drove the original libertarians are usually ignored by the propertarians – when not defended by them!

What also comes across is just now positive and constructive libertarian socialism is, why it inspired mass movements. To see it associated with a bunch of authoritarians seeking to defend their preferred private hierarchies is beyond sad – but, then, we are talking about the right and their grasp of ethics has always been slight (even in their own terms, as shown by their knowing theft of the word libertarian from the left shows).

The second volume will cover from 1937 to 2016 – many of these texts have already been identified, but I am sure more will be added. Also, there will be short biographies of all the individuals and groups included, along with summarises of the various schools of libertarian thought. I will also cover the question of ideological overlap and evolution. However, these are thoughts for later this year. I need to get volume 1 complete and sent to PM Press!

Until I blog again, be seeing you…