A Brief Intro to Liberatory Thought

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Welcome! This is a starting point for anyone interested in learning about the history, theory, and practice behind a General Strike. Our goal is to build a shared understanding and a powerful, unified movement for the liberation of all people. Let's explore the ideas that can help us build a new world in the shell of the old.

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🏛️ The Foundations: Why Do We Strike?

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To understand why a general strike is a powerful tool, we first need to understand the system we live in. These foundational texts explore the relationship between labor, capital, and the class structures that define our society.

• Video Intro: What is Socialism? For a more visual and modern explanation of these concepts, this video provides a great overview of Socialism https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrBRV3WK2x4.

• What is our economic system? For a foundational analysis of class conflict and the historical struggle between the bourgeoisie and the proletariat, a great place to start is The Communist Manifesto https://www.gutenberg.org/files/31193/31193-h/31193-h.htm.

• How does it work? To understand the mechanics of how labor creates value and how wages function within capitalism, Marx's Wage Labor & Capital is essential reading https://www.marxists.org/archive/marx/works/1847/wage-labour/index.htm.

• How did this start? Anthropologist David Graeber's groundbreaking work explores the history of debt, revealing it as a tool of power and social control, not just an economic mechanism https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/david-graeber-debt-the-first-five-thousand-years.

 

⛓️ Deeper Critiques: What Are We Fighting?

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Our society is shaped by more than just economics. To build a truly liberatory movement, we must understand the intersecting systems of power and oppression, like patriarchy and state control, that maintain the status quo.

• Can we reform the system? Audre Lorde famously argued that we cannot use the tools of an oppressive system to dismantle it. This is a crucial concept for understanding why we must build our own alternatives https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/audre-lorde-the-master-s-tools-will-never-dismantle-the-master-s-house).

• What is Patriarchy? bell hooks provides a clear and accessible explanation of patriarchy and how it impacts everyone in society, making it a critical system to understand and dismantle https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/bell-hooks-understanding-patriarchy.

• How does the state maintain control? Power isn't just one thing; it's a series of institutions and social relationships. This guide helps us identify these "pillars of power" so we can strategically weaken them https://commonslibrary.org/pillars-of-power/.

 

✨ Anarchist Vision: What Are We Building?

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Anarchism offers a vision for a world without rulers, based on principles of decentralization, voluntary association, and mutual aid. These readings explore what that world could look like.

• What is Anarchism? Emma Goldman's classic collection of essays provides a passionate and compelling introduction to anarchist philosophy https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/emma-goldman-anarchism-and-other-essays.

• But would it actually work? Peter Gelderloos provides real-world examples from around the globe of anarchist principles in action, answering the common question, "But what about...?" https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/peter-gelderloos-anarchy-works.

• What about resources? Petr Kropotkin argues that society is already wealthy enough to provide "well-being for all" and outlines how this could be achieved through a system of anarchist communism in The Conquest of Bread https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/petr-kropotkin-the-conquest-of-bread.

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🛠️ The Strategy: How Do We Get There?

 

Understanding the world is the first step. Changing it requires strategy and action. These resources provide frameworks and tactics for effective resistance.

• Does resistance work? This academic study provides compelling evidence that nonviolent civil resistance is historically more effective at achieving political change than violent campaigns https://www.nonviolent-conflict.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Why-Civil-Resistance-Works-Article.pdf.

• A Guide to Action: This guide from the Black Flag Catalyst provides a framework for thinking about and organizing for revolt https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/bfc-revolt-guide.

• A Cookbook of Tactics: For a comprehensive and creative encyclopedia of direct action tactics, from blockades to culture jamming, this is an invaluable resource https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/crimethinc-recipes-for-disaster#toc100.

 

🤝 The Practice: Building the New World Now​

 

A general strike isn't just about stopping the old system; it's about starting a new one. This is where the concept of "Dual Power" comes in: building the institutions of the world we want to live in, right here and now.

• What is Mutual Aid? Dean Spade's guide is the essential text on mutual aid: a form of political participation where people take responsibility for caring for one another and changing political conditions, not just through symbolic acts but by building new social relations https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/dean-spade-mutual-aid.