Positive image
OK. Anarchism gets a great deal of bad press and the terms "anarchy" and "anarchism" are widely prone to a great lack of understanding (the latter being scarcely heard of much less distinguished from the former). but how can such a grievious obstacle be overcome? How can we spread our message without having our words corroded along the way by the negative images conveyed on prime time TV shows and in tabloids (AKA rags) and even some of the more "enlightening" broadsheets?
The answer is to carefully "edit" the actual events before they even make it to the writers' news stories. By conducting ourselves responsibly at protest events (ie. NOT retaliating to the police baiting tactics*) and by speaking to the reporters there on behalf of the mainstream media bodies, we can significantly alter the current public image of anarchists. Hence we can hope to eventually enhance the general public's perception of what "anarchism" actually means and just what sort of "anarchy" we are striving for and why we are doing the things we are doing.
*NB: This is not a call for all activists to lay down their arms and become passive and wait to be "dealt with" by the police and other security forces. It simply means avoiding acts of shear aggression and stupidity such as hurling Molatovs at police lines right in front of BBC/ITV/CNN/ABC news cameras (hardly the most constructive image to be sharing with an unknowing and already suspicious audience). It means exercising "reasonable" force, which can be determined by using a little common sense. If it means taking a beating then so be it. Wear padding so it doesn't hurt as much and be GLAD that they (the police) are showing their true colours before the cameras which so often portray us unjustly.
Another useful technique is that of each individual anarchist to make a point of smiling at others and generally being polite, even when shunned. It is important for us all to embrace other cultures besides our own, even if they seem completely alien to us, in order to avoid giving our critics such ammunition as accusations of hypocracy. We do, afterall, preach the wonders and joys of untiy and understanding and lack of prejudice. Consider, for example, all of the so-called "anarcho-punks" who constantly persecute "goths", "skaters", "charvas" and "emos". Consider also the contempt, so often witnessed, of anarchists towards socialist and communists. There are even some divides between different anarchists who fail to recall that they all agree on one fundamental concept - freedom. It is, of course, no easy feat to lay aside our personal prejudices. But it cannot be denied that we all harbour them to some extent and we can hardly expect others to do what we do not appear willing enough to do ourselves.
By sending out a good impression of ourselves, we stand a far better chance of winning support from the general public than we already do by (more often than not) playing right into the hands of the very people and institutions which seek so tirelessly to distort our image to their own means. We can show the public our true intentions and our true nature is the first thing that will (to their minds) reveal these to them. We need to speak out to the media at protests. We need to show the police up at actions and not ourselves. We need to each act courteously and compassionately to everybody we meet in our everyday lives. We need to send out a positive image.
It is also our responsibility to optimise how well shared information between anarchists is with other members of society. For this reason, please feel free to help distribute this message so that it reaches a wider audience (it would be wasted on only those who have already thought about these issues). Constructive and/or informative feedback welcomed.
Blue skies! Swoop
The answer is to carefully "edit" the actual events before they even make it to the writers' news stories. By conducting ourselves responsibly at protest events (ie. NOT retaliating to the police baiting tactics*) and by speaking to the reporters there on behalf of the mainstream media bodies, we can significantly alter the current public image of anarchists. Hence we can hope to eventually enhance the general public's perception of what "anarchism" actually means and just what sort of "anarchy" we are striving for and why we are doing the things we are doing.
*NB: This is not a call for all activists to lay down their arms and become passive and wait to be "dealt with" by the police and other security forces. It simply means avoiding acts of shear aggression and stupidity such as hurling Molatovs at police lines right in front of BBC/ITV/CNN/ABC news cameras (hardly the most constructive image to be sharing with an unknowing and already suspicious audience). It means exercising "reasonable" force, which can be determined by using a little common sense. If it means taking a beating then so be it. Wear padding so it doesn't hurt as much and be GLAD that they (the police) are showing their true colours before the cameras which so often portray us unjustly.
Another useful technique is that of each individual anarchist to make a point of smiling at others and generally being polite, even when shunned. It is important for us all to embrace other cultures besides our own, even if they seem completely alien to us, in order to avoid giving our critics such ammunition as accusations of hypocracy. We do, afterall, preach the wonders and joys of untiy and understanding and lack of prejudice. Consider, for example, all of the so-called "anarcho-punks" who constantly persecute "goths", "skaters", "charvas" and "emos". Consider also the contempt, so often witnessed, of anarchists towards socialist and communists. There are even some divides between different anarchists who fail to recall that they all agree on one fundamental concept - freedom. It is, of course, no easy feat to lay aside our personal prejudices. But it cannot be denied that we all harbour them to some extent and we can hardly expect others to do what we do not appear willing enough to do ourselves.
By sending out a good impression of ourselves, we stand a far better chance of winning support from the general public than we already do by (more often than not) playing right into the hands of the very people and institutions which seek so tirelessly to distort our image to their own means. We can show the public our true intentions and our true nature is the first thing that will (to their minds) reveal these to them. We need to speak out to the media at protests. We need to show the police up at actions and not ourselves. We need to each act courteously and compassionately to everybody we meet in our everyday lives. We need to send out a positive image.
It is also our responsibility to optimise how well shared information between anarchists is with other members of society. For this reason, please feel free to help distribute this message so that it reaches a wider audience (it would be wasted on only those who have already thought about these issues). Constructive and/or informative feedback welcomed.
Blue skies! Swoop