Revolution or Reification?: A Critique of FRSO's Political Program

From 08’s Substack

A Marxist Party of a New (Old) Type

In the current evolution of the so-called radical left in the so-called United States, one concerning trend is the growing popularity of Marxist-Leninist organizations, particularly among newly-activated young people. One organization that has been a major beneficiary of such a surge has been the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO), which, though around for decades, has become more visible and active on the ground and online in recent years. FRSO’s article on their 2022 congress states that “[r]eflecting the rapid growth of FRSO over the last four years, this was the first congress for most attendees. While some of the participants were veterans of the communist movement with many decades of experience, the overwhelming majority were under 35 years old.” [1] This trend has continued.

Review: No spiritual surrender: Indigenous anarchy in defense of the sacred

From Journal of Political Ecology by Alexander Dunlap
Why has political ecology ignored Indigenous anarchism? While there are a few exceptions, researchers across social science are confronted with an uncomfortable issue. Academia tends towards fetishizing, even instrumentalizing, Indigenous peoples in their projects. Meanwhile university publishers crank out volumes on “decoloniality” and “the geopolitics of knowledge” that essentialize Indigenous peoples (see Dunlap, 2022). All the while, Indigenous anarchism, or anarchists for that matter, gain little-to no acknowledgement within environmental movements. Why? Indigenous anarchy means being on the “frontlines,” engaging in unmediated attack against colonial, statist, extractivist and capitalist structures: as they are often one and the same. “Indigenous anarchism,” Klee Benally writes, “presents the possibility of attack: It is the embodiment of anti-colonial struggle and being” (2022a: 24). It’s safe to say, however, that the last thing Benally (among others) wanted is more academics chattering, objectifying and commodifying of Indigenous anarchism— “it doesn’t and should not exist” to be mapped, controlled and absorbed into the grid of the state (p. 344). Then why write about Indigenous anarchism in general, let alone in academic journals behind paywalls?

In Defense of the Sacred: A Conversation with Klee Benally

From Uncivilized Podcast

Klee Benally, Diné author and agitator. Recently the author of “No Spiritual Surrender: indigenous anarchy in defense of the sacred” and designer of the upcoming Burn the Fort table-top game. They’re also a co-founder of Indigenous Action (IA). We discuss the notion of indigenous anarchy, settler-colonialism, and (successes and failures of) resistance.

Bay Native Circle: Klee Benally special episode – January 3, 2024

From KPFA

The Bay Native Circle weekly program presents special guests and explores today’s Native issues, peoples, cultures, music & events with rotating hosts Morning Star Gali, Tony Gonzales, Eddie Madril and Janeen Antoine.

Listen here: https://kpfa.org/episode/bay-native-circle-january-3-2024/

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