Anarchist law

Short description: Legal theory within anarchist philosophy

Anarchist law is a body of norms regarding behavior and decision-making operative within an anarchist community. The term is used in a series of ongoing debates within the various branches of anarchist theory regarding if and how norms of individual and/or collective behavior and decision-making should be created and enforced. Although many anarchists would consider "anarchist law" simply synonymous with natural law, others contend law in anarchy would have additional, unique elements.[1] Over the course of the last two hundred years as anarchism has grown and evolved to include diverse strains, there have been different conceptions of "anarchist law" produced and discussed, or used in practice by anarchist networks such as Peoples' Global Action[2] or Indymedia.[3]

## Contents

* 1 Non-coercion
* 2 Consensus-based social contracts
* 3 Free association
* 4 Mutual aid
* 5 Enforceability
* 6 Decision-making
* 7 Examples
* 8 See also
* 9 References
* 10 Further reading
* 11 External links

## Non-coercion

The most fundamental maxim of many anarchist tendencies is that no individual has the right to coerce another individual, and that everyone has the right to defend themselves against coercion (the non-aggression principle or zero aggression principle). Systems typically considered coercive include the state, capitalism, and institutional oppression. This basic principle, like mutual aid, is foundational to much of anarchist law, and indeed much of anarchist theory. Peter Kropotkin, a prominent anarcho-communist, stated it was "best summed up by the maxim 'do unto others as you would have them do unto you.'" In short, anarchist philosophy includes the "ethic of reciprocity," but typically condones violence intended to retaliate against or dismantle systems of oppression (with the exception of anarcho-pacifism, some Christian anarchism and other nonviolent/pacifistic movements.)[4]

## Consensus-based social contracts

Since the principle of non-coercion makes hierarchical state structures unfeasible, anarchist communities must find an alternative basis for setting the rules of engagement within a collective. Accordingly, virtually all anarchist legal models begin with the assumption that whatever rules are set in place must be freely agreed to by the entirety of the community that is to be governed by them in a setting free from coercion or intimidation. Such freely given consent constitutes a social contract, though the exact nature of such contracts is a matter of heated debate.[5]

Some anarchist legal theorists hold that an ideal anarchist society should be based strictly on natural law and mutual aid, which require no social contract.[6]

However, many anarchist theorists completely reject the concept of natural law as coercive and man-made. Natural law in this view is merely disguising authoritarianism so the oppressor does not have to take credit for it. Social anarchists, mutualists and many individualist anarchists reject private property, a core principle of most natural law theories.[7]

## Free association

Free association (also called voluntary association) also implies the right of individuals to form those exact social contracts. This freedom to not associate means if the terms of a social contract become unacceptable to an individual member or sub-group(s) within a society, the discontented have the right to secede from the contract. They may also form new associations with others that more closely fit their needs.[8]

## Mutual aid

The principle of mutual aid, originally identified by Peter Kropotkin as arising from natural law, is that since evolution occurs in groups - not individuals - it is evolutionarily advantageous for members of a community to assist each other. The anarchist approach to building power - and structuring power relationships - is derived from this evolutionary and biological imperative. In a nutshell the argument is that since individuals require the assistance of groups to self-actualize, individuals have a strong self-interest in the good of the community to which they belong. It follows that (freely associating) collectives of individuals working for mutual improvement and mutual goals must form the basis of any anarchist society, thus providing the sociological and economic imperative for the creation of social contracts capable of binding these self-selecting groups together.[6]

In a pre-revolutionary situation, the principle of "mutual aid" is the moral imperative that drives efforts by contemporary anarchists to provide material aid to victims of natural disasters;[9] those that are homeless or poor, and others who have been left without access to food or clean drinking water, or other basic necessities.

## Enforceability

Enforceability is one of the most controversial areas of anarchist law. Early writers such as Proudhon argued that it was legitimate for working-class people to self-organize against criminals who prey on the weak, a process which would unequivocally entail some degree of coercion.[10]

## Decision-making

Common techniques for decision-making, including decisions about the de facto laws themselves, among non-hierarchical societies include various forms of formal consensus,[3] supermajority voting, "consensus minus one" and direct democracy.[11] Anthropologist David Graeber argues that any community that lacks a centralized mechanism of force (a state) will naturally gravitate toward some form of consensus decision-making.

## Examples

## See also

* Voluntary association
* Polycentric law
* Privatization in criminal justice
* An Anarchist FAQ

## References

1. ↑ "Anarchism and Law". https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/alexei-borovoy-anarchism-and-law.
2. ↑ "Organisational Principles". Peoples' Global Action. http://www.nadir.org/nadir/initiativ/agp/cocha/principles.htm.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Principles of Unity". Indymedia. https://docs.indymedia.org/view/Global/PrinciplesOfUnity.
4. ↑ Tamblyn, Nathan (2019). "The Common Ground of Law and Anarchism". Liverpool Law Review 40: 65–78. doi:10.1007/s10991-019-09223-1. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10991-019-09223-1. Retrieved 2020-09-24.
5. ↑ Tamblyn, Nathan (2019-04-30). "The Common Ground of Law and Anarchism" (in en). Liverpool Law Review 40 (1): 65–78. doi:10.1007/s10991-019-09223-1. ISSN 1572-8625.
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "Anarchist Writers – Anarchist analysis & the Anarchist FAQ". http://anarchism.pageabode.com/sites/anarchism.pageabode.com/files/MAintroduction.pdf.
7. ↑ "The Myth of "Natural Law"". https://theanarchistlibrary.org/library/iain-macsaorsa-the-myth-of-natural-law.
8. ↑ "Archived copy". https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1006&context=econ_workingpapers.
9. ↑ "Katrina Relief". http://www.foodnotbombs.net/katrina.html.
10. ↑ Ritter, Alan (1975). "Godwin, Proudhon and the Anarchist Justification of Punishment". Political Theory 3: 69–87. doi:10.1177/009059177500300107. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/009059177500300107.
11. ↑ "A.2.11 Why are most anarchists in favour of direct democracy?". Infoshop. http://infoshop.org/faq/secA2.html#seca211.

## Further reading

* Holterman, Thom; Henc van Maarseveen (1984). Law and Anarchism. Montréal: Black Rose Books. ISBN 0-919619-10-X.

## External links

* Anarchist Studies Network Reading List on Anarchism & Law. Archived 22 May 2019.

* v
* t
* e

Anarchism

Concepts|

* Anarchy
* Anarchist Black Cross
* Anationalism
* Anti-authoritarianism
* Anti-militarism
* Autonomous social center
* Autonomous zone
* Permanent
* Temporary
* Black bloc
* Classless society
* Class struggle
* Commune
* Human community
* Model of government
* Community unionism
* Consensus democracy
* Conscientious objector
* {{{sp}}}|uk|s|z}}ation
* Deep ecology
* Direct action
* Direct democracy
* Especifismo
* Expropriative anarchism
* Free association
* Free love
* Free school
* Freethought
* Grassroots
* Horizontalidad
* Individualism
* Individual reclamation
* Industrial unionism
* Isocracy
* Law
* Participism
* Parecon
* Parpolity
* Prefigurative politics
* Proletarian internationalism
* Propaganda of the deed
* Rewilding
* Social revolution
* Social center
* Somatherapy
* Stateless society
* Squatting

Issues|

* Animal rights
* Arts
* Capitalism
* Education
* Criticism
* Islam
* Marxism
* Nationalism
* Orthodox Judaism
* Religion
* Love and sex
* Violence

Schools
of thought|

| Classical|

* Individualist
* Egoist
* Illegalist
* Philosophical
* Mutualist
* Social
* Collectivist
* Communist
* Magonist

|

Post-classical|

* Feminist
* Green
* Naturist
* Primitivist
* Social ecology
* Pacifist
* Insurrectionary
* Religious
* Christian
* Buddhist
* Jewish
* Without adjectives

Contemporary|

* Black
* Crypto
* Free-market
* Agorist
* Capitalist
* Left-wing
* National
* Postcolonial
* Post-anarchist
* Post-left
* Queer
* Transhumanist

Other|

* Existentialist
* Lifestyle
* Panarchism

Types
of federation|

* Affinity group
* Anarcho-syndicalism
* Synthesis anarchism
* Platformism
* Union of egoists

Economics|

* {{{sp}}}|uk|s|z}}ation
* Co-operatives
* Cost the limit of price
* Decentralized planning
* Economic democracy
* Free store
* Gift economy
* Market abolitionism
* Mass strike
* Mutual aid
* Participatory economics
* Really Really Free Market
* Refusal of work
* Social ownership
* Wage slavery
* Workers' self-management

Culture|

* Films
* Anarchist Bookfair
* Anarcho-punk
* Archives
* Culture jamming
* DIY culture
* Freeganism
* History of anarchism
* Independent Media Center
* Infoshop
* "The Internationale"
* "Land and liberty"
* "No gods, no masters"
* Popular education
* "Property is theft!"
* Radical cheerleading
* Radical environmentalism
* Squatting
* Symbolism
* Glossary
* A las Barricadas

By region|

* Africa
* Algeria
* Argentina
* Australia
* Azerbaijan
* Bolivia
* Brazil
* Canada
* Chile
* China
* Cuba
* Czech Republic
* Ecuador
* Egypt
* France
* French Guiana
* Germany
* Greece
* India
* Iceland
* Ireland
* Israel
* Italy
* Japan
* Korea
* Mexico
* Monaco
* New Zealand
* Poland
* Puerto Rico
* Romania
* Russia
* Serbia
* Singapore
* South Africa
* Spain
* Sweden
* Turkey
* United Kingdom
* United States
* Venezuela
* Vietnam

Lists|

* Anarcho-punk bands
* Books
* Communities
* Fictional characters
* Jewish anarchists
* Musicians
* Periodicals

Related
topics|

* Anti-corporatism
* Anti-capitalism
* Anti-consumerism
* Anti-fascism
* {{{sp}}}|uk|s|z}}ation
* Anti-racism
* Anti-speciesism
* Anti-statism
* Anti-war
* Autarchism
* Autonomism
* Critical theory
* Environmentalism
* Epistemological anarchism
* Anarchy (international relations)
* Labour movement
* Libertarian Marxism
* Libertarian socialism
* Libertarian municipalism
* Left-libertarianism
* Feminism
* Radical
* Libertarianism
* Marxism
* Philosophy
* Neozapatismo
* Revolution
* Communism
* Council
* Socialism
* Revolutionary
* Syndicalism
* Situationism
* Voluntaryism

* Portal
* Outline

* v
* t
* e

Law

Core subjects|

* Administrative law
* Civil law
* Constitutional law
* Contract
* Criminal law
* Deed
* Equity
* Evidence
* International law
* Law of obligations
* Procedure
* Civil
* Criminal
* Property law
* Public law
* Restitution
* Statutory law
* Tort

Note: This topic belongs to "Law" portal

Other subjects|

* Agricultural law
* Aviation law
* Banking law
* Bankruptcy
* Commercial law
* Competition law
* Conflict of laws
* Construction law
* Consumer protection
* Corporate law
* Cyberlaw
* Election law
* Energy law
* Entertainment law
* Environmental law
* Family law
* Financial law
* Financial regulation
* Health law
* History of the legal profession
* History of the American legal profession
* Immigration law
* Intellectual property
* International criminal law
* International human rights
* International slavery laws
* Jurimetrics
* {{{sp}}}|us||u}}r
* Law of war
* Legal archaeology
* Legal fiction
* Maritime law
* Media law
* Military law
* Probate
* Estate
* Will and testament
* Product liability
* Public international law
* Space law
* Sports law
* Tax law
* Transport law
* Trust law
* Women in law

Sources of law|

* Charter
* Code
* Constitution
* Custom
* Divine right
* Divine law
* Human rights
* Natural law
* Natural and legal rights
* Case law
* Precedent

Law making|

* Ballot measure
* Codification
* Decree
* Edict
* Executive order
* Proclamation
* Legislation
* Delegated legislation
* General executory decree
* Regulation
* Rulemaking
* Promulgation
* Repeal
* Treaty
* Concordat
* Statutory law
* Statute
* Act of Parliament
* Act of Congress (US)

Legal systems|

* Civil law
* Common law
* Chinese law
* Legal pluralism
* Religious law
* Canon law
* Hindu law
* Jain law
* Jewish law
* Sharia
* Roman law
* Socialist law
* Statutory law
* Xeer
* Yassa

Legal theory|

* Contract theory
* Critical legal studies
* Comparative law
* Feminist
* Fundamental theory of canon law
* Law and economics
* Legal formalism
* History
* International legal theory
* Principle of legality
* Rule of law
* Sociology

Jurisprudence|

* Adjudication
* Administration of justice
* Criminal justice
* Court-martial
* Dispute resolution
* Fiqh
* Lawsuit/Litigation
* Legal opinion
* Legal remedy
* Judge
* Justice of the peace
* Magistrate
* Judgment
* Judicial review
* Jurisdiction
* Jury
* Justice
* Practice of law
* Attorney
* Barrister
* Counsel
* Lawyer
* Legal representation
* Prosecutor
* Solicitor
* Question of fact
* Question of law
* Trial
* Trial advocacy
* Trier of fact
* Verdict

Legal institutions|

* Bureaucracy
* The bar
* The bench
* Civil society
* Court
* Election commission
* Executive
* Judiciary
* Law enforcement
* Legal education
* Law school
* Legislature
* Military
* Police
* Political party
* Tribunal

* Category
* Index
* Outline

0.00

(0 votes)

Original source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anarchist law. Read more

|

Retrieved from "https://handwiki.org/wiki/index.php?title=Philosophy:Anarchist_law&oldid=801605"
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template