The
vote is often upheld as the purest expression of democracy, but what
does electing wealthy elites into oppressive governments have to do
with democracy anyway? Generations of anarchists have answered, not
much. Often misunderstood as chaos and bomb-throwing, anarchism is an
anti-capitalist and abolitionist political philosophy that argues
ordinary people can, have, and should govern ourselves directly and
democratically, without nation-states or ruling elites.Since the middle of the 19th century, anarchists have maintained a
sharp criticism of representative government and have advocated voter
abstention. Anarchists have also been among the earliest fighters for
labor organization, reproductive freedom, queer liberation, and
anti-fascism.
This collection of classic anarchist writings highlights and
explains anarchists' enduring critique of electoralism, collecting
short essays by Michael Bakunin, Peter Kropotkin, Lucy Parsons, Emma
Goldman, Alexander Berkman, Kotoku Shusui, Élisée Reclus, Errico
Malatesta, a poem by Voltairine De Cleyre, and an afterword by Cindy
Milstein.
