An Anarchist's Manifesto

Book excerpt: Anarchism is commonly viewed as an outdated and wholly impractical idea. Worse, it has an accursed reputation for advocating chaos, violence, and destruction. The aim of An Anarchist's Manifesto is to convince readers of the exact opposite: that anarchism is the most adaptive, humane, intelligent, singly inclusive proposal that we, as social animals, have ever envisioned.In the bracing tradition of the manifesto, Glenn Wallis "makes public" the values informing the anarchist way of life-order, equality, mutual support, and a vitalizing rejection of authoritarianism, oppression, and exploitation. Offering examples of anarchism in action that are sure to surprise, this startling book inspires even the most skeptical readers to experiment with these values in practical ways. Along the way, it offers a succinct account of anarchism's historical blights of violence and quixotic utopianism.An Anarchist's Manifesto cogently promotes and presents a transformative approach to living in harmony with others.