Reformers, Socialists, and Communists: An Anarchist Critique

by Alexander Berkman

Have you ever wondered why reforms tend to perpetuate the same old status quo? Why your union seems to be yet another boss and only offers you band-aid solutions when faced with a rotten system? Why socialist parties oppose socialism? Or why the "Communists" of eastern Europe and China never brought the freedom they promised millions? Alexander Berkman discusses these questions and others in Reformers, Socialists, and An Anarchist Critique. Berkman points out the flaws of so-called reformists, the danger of relying on "progressive" politicians, the weakening of the labor movement, the corruption of socialist groups by a biased political system, and the moral decay and slide toward totalitarianism of the Bolshevik movement in Russia and all this in 1929! Backing up his statements with sound reasoning, Berkman offers the reader a rational, sober, but uncompromising view of the politics and economics of our daily struggles, both at the ballot box and the lunch box.

This small books is comprised of chapters 10-18 of Berkman's What is Anarchism? .

112 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Alexander Berkman was an anarchist known for his political activism and writing. He was a leading member of the anarchist movement in the early 20th century.

Berkman was born in Vilna in the Russian Empire (present-day Vilnius, Lithuania) and emigrated to the United States in 1888. He lived in New York City, where he became involved in the anarchist movement. He was the lover and lifelong friend of anarchist Emma Goldman. In 1892, Alexander Berkman tried to assassinate Henry Clay Frick for his role in violently suppressing the Homestead Steel Strike for which he served 14 years in prison. His experience in prison was the basis for his first book, Prison Memoirs of an Anarchist.

After his release from prison, Berkman served as editor of Goldman's anarchist journal, Mother Earth, and he established his own journal, The Blast. In 1917, Berkman and Goldman were sentenced to two years in jail for conspiracy against the newly instated draft. After their release from prison, they were arrested—along with hundreds of others—and deported to Russia. Initially supportive of that country's Bolshevik revolution, Berkman soon voiced his opposition to the Soviet's use of terror after seizing power and their repression of fellow revolutionaries. In 1925, he published a book about his experiences, The Bolshevik Myth.

While living in France, Berkman continued his work in support of the anarchist movement, producing the classic exposition of anarchist principles, Now and After: The ABC of Communist Anarchism. Suffering from ill health, Berkman committed suicide in 1936.

More: http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/...

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/goldman/...

http://www.nndb.com/people/137/000165...

Reviews

[Zoë Birss · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is one of the best thorough introductions to anarchist thought I've ever read. It offers fantastic arguments, reasonable and from history, for many of the leftist arguments against anarchism. It gets a little heavy on the history of the Russian revolution in the second half, arguing against communism. I appreciated the history. Some might find it somewhat dated and less relevant. It does refresh the reader for the times when someone argues against anarchism by stating that "communism" didn't work. Recommended.