Earth Liberation Front

Deeds and Propaganda

In suggesting these two different goals, the film effectively reprises two different theories of propaganda of the deed that are often conflated, one which emphasizes propaganda, and another which emphasizes deed. “Let us act,” writes anarchist Paul Brousse, shortly after the crushing of the Paris Commune, “if only from the point of view of propaganda. Perhaps victory will crown our efforts, and if it is martyrdom let us remember that the idea does not perish by the sword, does not fall beneath bullets.” Where the goal is consciousness raising, the propagation of the idea of anarchy, or the Commune, then failure does not matter so much. Italian anarchists such as Errico Malatesta, however, had a different idea, and emphasized the power of such acts to inspire imitators, if selected correctly.

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