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Title: The Liberal Party Won Author: Collective Action Date: May 23, 2019 Language: en Topics: Australia, Elections Source: Retrieved on March 11, 2021 from https://web.archive.org/web/20210311113657/http://www.collectiveaction.org.au/2019/05/23/the-liberal-party-won-what-does-this-mean-for-anarchists/
The party that has rigorously championed the cause of the rich, powerful
and ignorantly fearful has won. Most disappointingly, the lack of
effective counter arguments from the so-called âoppositionâ have left a
void the Liberal Party has gladly filled. Weâre not convinced that the
working class are sadomasochistic or stupid, so why has all this come
about?
As Anarchists, the idea that our participation in shaping society should
begin and end with a ballot box once every while is laughable, even when
election time does sometimes come with a sausage sizzle. We have grander
visions for a more engaged and directly democratic society that is
fundamentally incompatible with capitalist governments. We have a vision
for a society based on freely associating communities that govern their
own interests and federate with other communities to make large scale
decisions â A classless and egalitarian society based on human need and
not profit. Without demonstrating this political motif in communities of
need, and without enlisting people actively in our vision, can we
rightfully be shocked that more working class people are buying into
right-wing narratives, centered around xenophobia, fear and trickle-down
economics?
If we want to make any kind of meaningful change to society, then our
mission has to be to build social movements that are capable of forcing
that change, regardless of which party is in power. It wonât be easy and
it wonât happen overnight but it needs to happen. There are deadlines
for this project, and we know the Liberal Party are too deep in the
pockets of the coal magnates to act in the interests of the planet. This
election may make the job more difficult but the job remains the same.
Leftists and activists have reacted with shame, disbelief, despair and
anger at the result of the Liberal Party election win. These reactions
show that the racism embedded in this country is somehow a surprise to
people or a deviation from the norm as opposed to being founding
principles of the Australian stateâs colonial project.
Jokes about moving to New Zealand miss the point completely, especially
from those on the radical left. For those of us who are settlers, it is
our responsibility to dismantle, organise against and deal with The
colonial-capitalist project that is Australia rather than buggering off
and leaving First Nations Peoples in the dust. These reactions are
neither helpful nor do they get to the root of why this election
happened or how we should organise in its wake.
What shouldnât be surprising about this election is that most of
Australia donât see class or social equality the same way that we do. If
we are going to build movements that are capable of changing anything at
all we need to recognise that. Without detracting from the ability for
oppressed groups to analysis, dissect and challenge their oppression,
our work lies in having difficult conversations with people about the
issues that affect their lives. We need to stand and act in solidarity
with people targeted by a new and re-invigorated wave of Liberal attacks
on workers, women, gender diverse people, the disabled, migrants and the
poor. That requires organisation.
As Anarchists, we need to have thought-out alternatives to the
profit-driven capitalist society we find ourselves in. If we are against
profit as the fundamental driving force of decisions in society, then we
must offer some kind of plan for a society based on human-need.
If authority and power in the hands of disconnected rich, white men
acting in their own interests donât answer the problems facing
communities of colour, indigenous, queer, gender-diverse and working
poor communities, then we must have a plan for how power might be placed
in the hands of communities and groups of people to govern their own
interests.
If we believe the state is a counter-intuitive way to achieve a
classless society without oppressive institutions, we must be ready with
ideas to pose about how we might reorganise this society without a
state. How communities might make economic and social decisions.
If we are for an international revolution where all oppressed people
lead their own emancipation, then we must think seriously about how our
organisational tendencies make that a possibility.
There are Anarchists that donât like voting, that vote only on
consensus, that work only in small affinity groups. Any organisations,
campaigns and efforts we take part in must prefigure the structures,
principles and ideas that would make it possible to run large-scale
Anarchist operations and communities, enough to avert impending climate
crisis, rising homelessness and further land-grabs by the colonial
state. These communities and operations will have to involve as many
people as weâd need to undo the harms done by the attacks of those in
power; of colonialism, patriarchy and capitalism. This requires
organisation, structure, decision-making, coordination and action.
All of our efforts and strategies must be consistent with how an
eventual Anarchist society might actually be operated. Through this
practice in our outward-facing work, we show people that a world without
leaders is possible and thus show the merit of our ideas in action. If
we donât organise to demonstrate and involve people in another possible
world, they cannot be blamed for choosing the one presented to them time
and time again.
We should be able to offer a vision to people of how an Anarchist
society might be better than what weâve got now. If all we can do is
negate the world we live in without suggesting and building an
alternative, we leave communities with no avenue for change but the
charade that is the parliamentary process.
Too often Anarchists are the gatekeepers of Anarchism. Anarchism, if it
is to be successful, canât belong to a subculture of people, to a
clique. It must belong to all people; to shape it, to implement it, to
make it better, more relevant and more effective. If we are committed to
gatekeeping Anarchism and not finding ways to bring it to people then we
will fail. If we are committed to being underground cells so concerned
with our security that we disappear into obscurity, we will fail. As
well as actions that might require security and trusted relationship,
there should be beginner, public-facing events that bring new people in.
This requires discussion and coordination that we donât often see among
Anarchists in Australia â Long-standing projects of Anarchists to
discuss, dissect and disseminate Anarchist ideas to more people and to
demonstrate the possibilities of communities and groups organising for
human-need in a world bent around profit. This isnât a call for people
to join our organisation, but for people to organise together in some
capacity.
Building the institutions, services, campaigns and initiatives necessary
to sway people to the cause of human-need and not profit, requires
meetings and a documented political memory. It requires making mistakes.
It requires space to learn and revise strategy. It requires trust built
with people who work together over long periods of time. It requires
voting on decisions. It requires agreeing on strategy and tactics. It
requires discipline and perseverance. If we donât do this, we will fail.
Rather than lamenting this election, let it be a call to action. No one
that has been in the crosshairs of our government will have any doubts
that the Liberals, emboldened by this win, will strike harder. The
question is, what are we going to do about it?