Anarchism

The word anarchism comes from anarchy , a way of thinking that infuses many people with a series of thoughts associated with fear , chaos and violence . It is basically a way of rebelling against the system and the state that generates a lot of controversy. It is a way of governing oneself in such a way that everything related to the political organization remains in a state of repression .

Definition

Anarchism is a philosophical current applied to politics whose primary purpose is to be able to completely eliminate the State and all types of government that are related to it. It seeks to exercise the greatest possible control over society and impose its way of thinking on all individuals. It is a movement that seeks a way to break with the order that has already been established to exert a change within society, where, according to its ideals, there would be no masters, owners and there would be no dominance of any kind.

Characteristics of anarchism

Its main characteristics are the following:

• It is a political movement that believes in the freedom of the individual and in their own autonomy and therefore does not consider that laws are not needed to act.
• It gives value to education and knowledge seeing them as weapons to build a free world without rules.
• Among its main proposals are the abolition of the State and the elimination of all kinds of law.
• They see the law as a form of repression that is also unnecessary and unnatural.
• It does not accept the formation of political parties since they are seen as a representation of classes and sectors.
• He is in favor of social equality .
• They are completely opposed to the creation of monopolies , whether of a public or private nature.

Source

This word comes from the Greek language and originated from the French Revolution after the total fall of the monarchy . At the beginning, it was a term used to recognize those people who participated causing disorder and revolutionary fear. However, the first movements of contemporary anarchy occurred with the labor movement in the early nineteenth century that sought improvements in working conditions when industrial capitalism began .

History of anarchism

Its history dates back to the 19th century when modern states began to be established, mainly after the Second Industrial Revolution . Science underwent a considerable strengthening thanks to the Enlightenment and the revolution, and religion began to decline more and more each day. Furthermore, socialism and communism began to influence the working class. William Godwin proposed the transformation of society because he considered that private property should be abolished as well as any type of government to achieve a free society.

By 1894 , the movement had been greatly strengthened by influencing the workers. For many, the state had to be abolished and the use of violence to achieve this end was justified. At the end of the 19th century , anarchism took even more strength and influenced the different unions and labor mobilizations .

Types

The central idea of ​​the types of anarchism that exist is basically the same and among them we can mention:

Individualist anarchism

This kind of ideology is completely opposed to the community because for them, this is synonymous with authoritarianism . For them, the simple fact of a meeting of people to discuss ideas endangers freedom and they see it as a threat to the creation of authority.

Collectivist anarchism

It is opposed to its counterpart because for them, individualism is the same as capitalism where power is focused on an individual who will always try to stand out from others.

Anarchism in Spain

Anarchism had a strong blow in Spain through the Franco dictatorship and it was not until the 20th century that it was reactivated as a movement, however, it did not manage to form properly. At present, with the beginning of Spanish democracy, a new era has begun for this type of organization but they are more focused on different movements such as the LGTB and the defense of animals , in addition, they continue to fight for improvements for workers .

Anarchism in Japan

In Japan it had a great influence especially in the 19th and 20th centuries and was a movement influenced by the world wars . After the end of the war, the North Americans entered the country causing the economic resurgence and the activation of the industry that made the anarchist groups lose autonomy and although they wanted to reorganize, they did not succeed.

Anarchism in the United States

After the First World War, this movement began to lose importance. In 1970, anarchist ideas were present in feminist and environmental movements and during the 1980s, the group began to be more noticeable. In the 1990s, anarchism participated in different types of protests.

Anarchism in Mexico

The movement began in the 1950s and occurred after the war of independence. They were influenced by Europe and the first to try to introduce the movement to the country was Roberto Owen . An attempt was made to carry out a series of movements against the government as they argued the presence of oppression by the upper classes and the tyranny of the central government.  An attempt was made to replace governmental sovereignty with the principle of peoples having their own government.

Advantage

Its advantages are based on the order that people can achieve, in the little need to completely depend on the different agencies of a State , in which people can establish and promote their own standards of living and there would be no authority in the hands of a single person.

Disadvantages

There is the possibility that with anarchism there may be chaos and power struggles because there is no social order that must be followed, the difficulties for the proper resolution of problems arise at all times because there is no institutional order that helps To face crises, it is also possible to present usurpation to power .

How it differs from Marxism

Despite being similar ideologies, they also have important differences. The Marxism is based on the need to modify the organization of society to eliminate social classes and private property while anarchism seeks a society that does not belong to any state and associations that do not have a hierarchical order. Marxism sees private property as a means of production but anarchism sees it as a common good that must be owned by people and associations. Marxism allows cult religion , although they prefer atheism ; anarchism is based primarily on atheism .

Importance

This type of movement does not really present a positive importance within a State, because although it promotes the freedom of the individual it also calls for disorder and injustice because behind the facade of freedom that is promoted there is only chaos , violence and the destruction of countries and their people.

Criticism of anarchism

The main criticism is based on the fact that it is a completely utopian thought , since no society could function properly without a leader or a group of people who help to govern a country. It is a theory strongly criticized for its wide sense of incoherence in terms of thoughts and ways of acting. It is a theory that lacks theoretical aspects , good speeches and adequate strategies to be able to move a country forward.

Representatives

Its main representatives are:

• Johann Kaspar Schmidt (Max Stirner)
• Pierre-Joseph Proudhon
• Mikhail Bakunin
• Piotro Kropotkin
• Emma goldman