TOTW: Wither Theory?
by thecollective
Nov 23, 2025
Topic of the Week - In my local anarchist scene, anarchist theory and tendencies aren’t often discussed. There’s the obvious anarchist positions against capitalism, Marxism, and bigotries. But beyond that? Not much to say about theory of change, discussing the varieties of anarchist ideas, or even discussing the “big names” of anarchy: Bakunin, Kropotkin, Malatesta, Goldman, Bookchin, Aragorn!, or Zerzan. In fact, after a recent meeting, it was suggested to avoid centering particular anarchist beliefs, ie, anything beyond “capitalism, fascism, stalinism, and bigotry are bad.” This is because a statement such as “Fuck [person or idea]” may be interpreted by new folks as fact and not opinion. This is no shade on my people, I appreciate them deeply and some private context at least makes it somewhat understandable.