Simple English version of the Anarchist FAQ
The Simple English Anarchist FAQ, chapter A1.
There are three big problems in society:
Anarchists believe that these problems begin in the same place: political authority. A few people become masters of others, and abuse their power. Armies, churches, political parties, companies, universities, all capitalism, and all the governments of the world share this same fault.
But anarchism is not just about finding problems in the world today. Anarchism is full of ideas about how to make things better, without needing any masters. We can have a free, fulfilled, and peaceful world where nobody needs to be in control of anyone else.
Many anarchists will disagree with some things in this document. That’s fine. You expect that, when people think for themselves. But we have tried to explain the basic ideas which all anarchists believe.
Anarchism tries to create a society where there are no masters. Everyone will be equal, and everyone will help one another. Anarchists believe that it’s harmful for any person to have control over others, and there is no need for it. This kind of control includes governments, but it also includes capitalist bosses.
Many people are confused about what anarchists want. For example, some people use the word “anarchy” to mean disorder. This sort of confusion is sometimes even spread on purpose, by people who would lose power in an anarchist society. Because of that, anarchists also want to teach everyone about what anarchists believe, so they can consider it for themselves.
The word “anarchy” comes from Greek. The Greek word means “without a master”, rather than “without a government” or “without order”. This is also the sense in which modern anarchists use the word.
Anarchists oppose hierarchy: that is, they oppose people being masters of anyone else. In our society, government, which is also called “the state”, is the master of everyone in a country. So of course anarchists oppose government. But they also oppose all the other kinds of master, such as preachers in churches or bosses in the workplace.
Instead, anarchists want a peaceful society which is run from the bottom up, rather than from the top down. When people work together, they should all be in control of the work. There should be no more bosses and workers, or masters and servants. Anarchists try to create as this sort of society, as much as they can.
There are many kinds of anarchism. But all of them oppose government. And all of them oppose capitalism. Profits, interest, and rent exploit people, just as much as the government does.
Anarchism may seem a bit negative, and full of criticism. But it’s also very positive, and full of hope. After all, you need to see what’s wrong with society in order to fix it.
We all need freedom. We all need fairness. And we all need to stick together and look after one another. An anarchist society is designed to satisfy these needs. Our society at the moment is not satisfying any of them.
There is so much misunderstanding about the word “anarchism” that some anarchists have looked for other names.
One of these names is “libertarian socialism”. “Libertarian” means “believing in freedom to do and think what you like”. “Socialism” means “a system where the workers themselves are in charge”. So you can see that “libertarian socialism” describes anarchism pretty well.
In the United States, however, there is a political party called the Libertarian Party, and they do not oppose capitalism. For this reason, the name “libertarian socialism” can confuse people these days.
Yes. Capitalism means that the people with the money are the masters of everyone else. So all anarchists oppose it– otherwise they wouldn’t be anarchists!
Anarchists oppose capitalism for another reason, too. The owners of a company take a share of the money, even though they didn’t do the work which produced it. This is an example of exploitation.
Of course there are other kinds of society where masters of other people exploit them. Slavery is one example. Another example is the way the old Soviet Union was run. Anarchists oppose all these systems just as much.
Anarchism comes from people struggling for freedom. It has appeared again and again, in many cultures, and at many times.
People always want to make their own choices. They always want to have time to work, to love, and to play. Wherever people fight for these choices, anarchist ideas begin to grow.