The volatile state of politics in our country is a source of concern for many Americans, and has caused splintering between the two major parties (most notably the recently active Tea Party). It seems everyone — from sea to shining sea — is arguing about how the government should be operating.
But there is one ASU organization that is here to remind us of another alternative to consider: anarchy. The College Anarchists at ASU are a compliment group to the Phoenix Anarchist Coalition, and according to member Gabe Bodeen, it exists to “introduce the concept of anarchy” to the student body.
“We’re more interested in the political sides of anarchy,” said Bodeen, a 27-year-old bioengineering graduate student.
The term “anarchist” includes “anyone whose politics include the absence of the state and capitalism,” said Bodeen.
Does the word “anarchy” alone instill images of chaos, burning buildings, and a world where everyone fends for his or herself? Well, despite what punk bands like the Dead Kennedys and the Sex Pistols will tell you, anarchy is a rationally-built political ideology that surrounds the idea that there doesn’t need to be a state (or government) to decide the laws and proceedings of the masses.
Bodeen said he thinks of himself as a “libertarian socialist.”
Not that “socialism” isn’t also a currently slandered term, but in this case, it refers to the idea of social ownership of the means of production, rather than capitalist private ownership, which has caused oh-so-many problems.
But when asked if he thought people were afraid of living without a government, Bodeen said, “I don’t understand the question. If people were afraid for their security, they would just start a coalition themselves.”
The idea of an anarchic society is for us to decide directly what services and products should exist, and how they should exist.
But is this anarchic idea even possible, especially in the U.S.? Bodeen said this isn’t likely to happen from a physical takeover of the government, but from a “free and open organization, built below by the people in their communities.”
“It takes cultural change,” he said. “And it can happen quickly in the right circumstances.”
Think about this: Considering our infatuation with the term “democracy,” the idea that we as people know what’s best for the country, and vote for candidates accordingly — couldn’t we take our ideals, and cooperate with each other without these representatives?
Or do we want to keep the word stigmas we have, like “anarchy” and “socialism”? After all, they do make things a whole lot simpler. Just don’t expect things to get better any time soon.
For more information, reach Dante at dante.graves@asu.edu
