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Title: Aims and Principles Author: Anarchist Federation Language: en Topics: principles, Anarchist Federation, the platform, class struggle Source: Retrieved on 5th October 2021 from http://afed.org.uk/about/aims-principles/
1. The Anarchist Federation is an organisation of revolutionary class
struggle anarchists. We aim for the abolition of all hierarchy, and work
for the creation of a world-wide classless society: anarchist communism.
2. Capitalism is based on the exploitation of the working class by the
ruling class. But inequality and exploitation are also expressed in
terms of race, gender, sexuality, health, ability and age, and in these
ways one section of the working class oppresses another. This divides
us, causing a lack of class unity in struggle that benefits the ruling
class. Oppressed groups are strengthened by autonomous action which
challenges social and economic power relationships. To achieve our goal
we must relinquish power over each other on a personal as well as a
political level.
3. We believe that fighting systems of oppression that divide the
working class, such as racism and sexism, is essential to class
struggle. Anarchist communism cannot be achieved while these
inequalities still exist. In order to be effective in our various
struggles against oppression, both within society and within the working
class, we at times need to organise independently as people who are
oppressed according to gender, sexuality, ethnicity or ability. We do
this as working class people, as cross-class movements hide real class
differences and achieve little for us. Full emancipation cannot be
achieved without the abolition of capitalism.
4. We are opposed to the ideology of national liberation movements which
claims that there is some common interest between native bosses and the
working class in face of foreign domination. We do support working class
struggles against racism, genocide, ethnocide and political and economic
colonialism. We oppose the creation of any new ruling class. We reject
all forms of nationalism, as this only serves to redefine divisions in
the international working class. The working class has no country and
national boundaries must be eliminated. We seek to build an anarchist
international to work with other libertarian revolutionaries throughout
the world.
5. As well as exploiting and oppressing the majority of people,
Capitalism threatens the world through war and the destruction of the
environment.
6. It is not possible to abolish Capitalism without a revolution, which
will arise out of class conflict. The ruling class must be completely
overthrown to achieve anarchist communism. Because the ruling class will
not relinquish power without their use of armed force, this revolution
will be a time of violence as well as liberation.
7. Unions by their very nature cannot become vehicles for the
revolutionary transformation of society. They have to be accepted by
capitalism in order to function and so cannot play a part in its
overthrow. Trades unions divide the working class (between employed and
unemployed, trade and craft, skilled and unskilled, etc). Even
syndicalist unions are constrained by the fundamental nature of
unionism. The union has to be able to control its membership in order to
make deals with management. Their aim, through negotiation, is to
achieve a fairer form of exploitation of the workforce. The interests of
leaders and representatives will always be different from ours. The boss
class is our enemy, and while we must fight for better conditions from
it, we have to realise that reforms we may achieve today may be taken
away tomorrow. Our ultimate aim must be the complete abolition of wage
slavery. Working within the unions can never achieve this. However, we
do not argue for people to leave unions until they are made irrelevant
by the revolutionary event. The union is a common point of departure for
many workers. Rank and file initiatives may strengthen us in the battle
for anarchist communism. What’s important is that we organise ourselves
collectively, arguing for workers to control struggles themselves.
8. Genuine liberation can only come about through the revolutionary self
activity of the working class on a mass scale. An anarchist communist
society means not only co-operation between equals, but active
involvement in the shaping and creating of that society during and after
the revolution. In times of upheaval and struggle, people will need to
create their own revolutionary organisations controlled by everyone in
them. These autonomous organisations will be outside the control of
political parties, and within them we will learn many important lessons
of self-activity.
9. As anarchists we organise in all areas of life to try to advance the
revolutionary process. We believe a strong anarchist organisation is
necessary to help us to this end. Unlike other so-called socialists or
communists we do not want power or control for our organisation. We
recognise that the revolution can only be carried out directly by the
working class. However, the revolution must be preceded by organisations
able to convince people of the anarchist communist alternative and
method. We participate in struggle as anarchist communists, and organise
on a federative basis. We reject sectarianism and work for a united
revolutionary anarchist movement.
10. We have a materialist analysis of capitalist society. The working
class can only change society through our own efforts. We reject
arguments for either a unity between classes or for liberation that is
based upon religious or spiritual beliefs or a supernatural or divine
force. We work towards a world where religion holds no attraction.