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Practice and Ideology in the Direct Action Movement
Undercurrent
http://www.theoryandpractice.org.uk/library/practice-and-ideology-direct-action-movement-undercurrent-2000Date Written: 2000-01-23 Publisher: Theory and Practice Year Published: 2000 Resource Type: Article Cx Number: CX20266 Movements are never homogenous (practically or theoretically) but rather consist of contradictions and immediate limitations, which could potentially be overcome the more the movement develops. The history of the revolutionary movement against capitalism is full of examples of some tendencies. Abstract: - Excerpt: "The call to abandon their illusions about their condition is a call to abandon a condition which requires illusions". Recent explosions of discontent (such as in Seattle in November or in the City of London on J18) have expressed themselves in ways not worthy of their radical practice. The radical content of their practice (such as violence against the police, destruction of property, the sense of collective strength against the state) has been accompanied by a distorted image of capitalism which insists in seeing capital as nothing more than the financial centres, the 'dodgy' companies (as if there are 'non-dodgy' companies), and the shadowy international organisations (such as the WTO, the IMF, the World Bank, etc). They identify capital with its most superficial appearances, failing to see it in its totality. On the other hand, these actions definitely inspire the people involved in them, they do cause considerable trouble for the gatekeepers of law and order, and they do spoil the routine of the day-to-day business of the muppets who are being targeted. The problem immediately arises: how can the reformist language of the protests co-exist with their subversive practice? |