Black Rose/Rosa Negra Anarchist Federation has received word about the white supremacist, fascist violence committed in Charlottesville today. We are deeply saddened by the loss of our comrade in struggle. Our hearts and minds go out to their loved ones.

We stand in solidarity with anti-racist activists in Charlottesville today, their families, the IWW and DSA members present, and all those involved in the struggle against the rising tide of fascism worldwide.

[Castellano] [Ελληνικά] [Français]

See also: [IWW's statement] [Français] [Ελληνικά]

Este documento fue escrito en el 2010 como introducción al libro "Los Orígenes Libertarios del Primero de Mayo: de Chicago a América Latina" (Ed. Quimantú, Hombre y Sociedad, Libre Iniciativa), volumen que recogía contribuciones históricas sobre los orígenes del Primero de Mayo como día de protesta obrera y sus vínculos con el movimiento anarquista de comienzos del siglo XX en América Latina*. Esta introducción ponía los sucesos de Chicago de 1886 en el contexto de un movimiento de matriz libertaria, obrero, que se convirtió en una amenaza para la clase capitalista en los EEUU, y explora cómo este evento logró capturar el espíritu de toda una época de luchas y cómo estos sucesos fueron parte de un movimiento internacional muchísimo más amplio. Al difundir este documento, espero no sólo hacer un homenaje a estos luchadores de hace más de un siglo, sino también entregar algunas reflexiones sobre su experiencia histórica concreta, en la esperanza que puedan ser de utilidad para las nuevas generaciones de luchadores.

José Antonio Gutiérrez D.
1o. de Mayo 2017

*Este libro no se habría podido editar sin la ayuda económica del Centro de Documentación "Franco Salomone".

In the first week of Donald Trump’s presidency, there were two important mobilizations that expressed radically different views on reproductive rights. The Women’s March on Washington, which took place the day after Trump’s inauguration, has been hailed as one of the largest mobilizations in US history. What began as a spontaneous call quickly ballooned into a movement that tapped into growing anxieties over the intentions of the new administration. The march drew some 500,000 to rally in Washington DC while sister marches were held across the country and even worldwide. One week later, another mobilization took place: the annual March for Life. While significantly smaller, this march still drew many attendees who were energized by celebrity speakers from the Trump administration.

At this point, there is no certainty that the Women’s March will evolve into an actual social movement. This much is clear: the Women’s March represents a political opening to rebuild a revolutionary feminist movement (in conjunction with other developing struggles) that advances demands to improve the lives of working people and embraces conflict with the liberal, capitalist character of the feminist movement of the day.

[Castellano]

When Obama received the Nobel Prize in 2009, the committee acknowledged his commitment to peace. He has since bombed eight countries.

Debate

"The claim that "syndicalist unions broke off from mainstream federations to form 'purely revolutionary' unions, cutting themselves off from the mass of workers" doesn't hold up, though it does conform to the Leninist orthodoxy of "Left-Wing" Communism: An Infantile Disorder. There were many countries where the syndicalist unions were the majority--such as Portugal, Spain, Argentina, Uruguay, Peru and Brazil. Syndicalist unions in South Africa, such as the Industrial Workers of Africa (modeled on the Industrial Workers of the World), were the only unions that organized native African workers, who were excluded from the white craft unions.
At the time of the mass occupation of the factories in Italy in September 1920, the USI (Italian Syndicalist Union) was claiming 800,000 members, and the factory councils formed throughout Italy in those events were mostly organized by the USI. Moreover, it was the anarcho-syndicalists who initiated a militia movement ("arditti del popolo") to fight Mussolini's fascist squads. But the Communists didn't cooperate, and the Socialist Party capitulated to fascism.