Anouncing two new books: Plain Words – The “Good War” of Italian Immigrant Anarchists in the United States 1914-1920 //// Anti-Semitism and the Beirut Pogrom / Palestine, mon Amour

Plain Words - The “Good War” of Italian Immigrant Anarchists in the United States 1914-1920

In the United States between 1914 and 1920, the greatest armed revolutionary offensive of the 20th century was unleashed against the governmental, judicial, industrial and financial institutions of the most important capitalist country on the planet. These direct actions weren’t the work of the militant factions of a political party or of a more or less radical mass movement, but of a handful of anarchists who had emigrated from Italy at the turn of the century. It was from this context that Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti came, sadly famous their execution on the electric chair in 1927.

The bad example for posterity is why the direct actions of these immigrant subversives have fallen into the hands of those who have every interest in pacifying, hiding and slandering them. But against all political realism, these anarchists, despite their limited numbers attacked all authority. Against all odds, they refused to resign to their limited means and stubbornly strove to overcome them. Against all illusory idealism, they did not hesitate to resort to violence. Against all strategic compromises, they never gave up their dreams. Against all clichés, they never set individual freedom against the need for association. Here a genuine ethic of life was forged out of love for freedom and the hatred of power, in defiance of any political ideology. It was here that the spark was ignited between dreams and reality, love and revolt, kisses and dynamite, roses and barricades, which characterized the “good war” of these Italian anarchists.

A history that knows neither authority nor obedience.

Roofdruk/Compass editions, January 2024, 336 pages

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Anti-Semitism and the Beirut Pogrom / Palestine, mon Amour

 From the introduction:

Anti-authoritarian ideas are neither a recipe nor an ideology, but do carry certain uncompromisable principles, such as an incompatibility with any State and any economic and religious authority. It is exactly when faced with a reality that is complex, beyond any individual’s capacity to fully know and grasp it, when the real horrors of State power surpass our worst nightmares, that our ideas are put the most to the test. The war in the Southern Levant is a tragic reminder of this.

[...}For us, being against the State, any State, at any time, is not an empty slogan, it is an unmovable principle and it is precisely in scary, challenging and heartbreaking moments in which this anchor becomes essential to give a clear starting point to our rage, our solidarity, our discussions, our proposals. Because it is exactly in these moments of confusion, stress and tragedy that the authoritarian agenda which proclaims itself as the only solution to human relationships, seeks (and often is given) even more legitimacy. An anarchist tension that does not put in contradiction ethics and empathy, pain and the lucid identification of the enemy, rage and the conviction in practices of freedom can only find cracks to flourish, even in the darkest hours, if it is not forsaken.

Aware though that our analytical anarchist arsenal about the complexities of this war is upsettingly low, we here re-propose two texts written over thirty years ago by two comrades that experienced in first person, but in completely different ways, many of the key ingredients that foreshadowed the explosive escalation that ignited in the region at the beginning of October 2023. These two texts are presented as a small contribution for the deepening and development of anti-authoritarian and anti-militarist practices and perspectives. We hope that anarchists will never be afraid of their ideas.

Anti-Semitism and the Beirut Pogrom, Fredy Perlman

People who don’t understand human freedom might think the terrible revelations could have only one effect, they could only turn people against the perpetrators of such atrocities, they could only make people empathize with the victims, they could only contribute to a resolve to abolish the very possibility of a repeat of such dehumanizing persecution and cold-blooded murder. But, for better or worse, such experiences, whether personally lived or learned from revelations, are nothing but the field over which human freedom soars like a bird of prey. The revelations about the decades-old Pogrom have even been turning up as justifications for a present-day Pogrom.

Palestine, mon amour, Alfredo M. Bonanno

A possible solution would be the dissolution of the Israeli State and the prevention of the birth of the Palestinian State, all parallel to the formation of free communes and other structures selfmanaged by Palestinians and Jews together all with a right to the land and, principally, reciprocal respect in the name of freedom.

Although the present and future enemies of the Palestinian and Israeli people are many, there can be no doubt that it’s necessary to do something to help the revolt of the Palestinians against Israeli militarism. To do something means to move, to act here, immediately, everywhere, striking Israeli interests and not stand arguing until the last Palestinian is killed.

 
Roofdruk editions, Double book, printed February 2024 136 pages

Both books are available through rupture.noblogs.org