Maggots and Men (with Ace McArleton)

In the style of a Soviet Propaganda film Maggots and Men recounts the tragic events of the Kronstadt Uprising (Russia, 1921). This history is combined with fictionalized inter-personal relationships between the sailors. There is a strong emphasis on the filmmaking process to be a positive, affirming experience and an opportunity for people in the trans community to meet each other and work together. For the group scenes we will be recruiting large numbers of people, documenting as many trans folks on film as possible. Maggots and Men is set in all male environment of a Russian Naval Base then cast with actors from a range of masculine gender expressions, thus redefining male, challenging the binary gender construct,and intentionally creating confusion. This film comes out of an ongoing dialogue surrounding the hierarchy of "maleness" that exists and the longing for our genders to be inconsequential to our acceptance. We will bring these dialogues into the filmmaking process and together produce a film that makes a strong anti-war statement with the actors representing themselves as sexy, politicized, and beautiful heroes defending themselves against a corrupt government.

*Ace McArleton will appear in this upcoming film.

For more info on the film see the Maggots and Men homepage at http://homepage.mac.com/gowithflo/krondweb/kstills.html

Anarchism's Promise for Anti-Capitalist Resistance -By Cindy Milstein

For many, a "new anarchism" seemed to have been birthed amid the cold rain and toxic fog that greeted the November 1999 World Trade Organization protest. Yet rather than the bastard child of an emergent social movement, this radical politics of resistance and reconstruction had been transforming itself for decades. Seattle's direct action only succeeded in making it visible again. Anarchism, for its part, supplied a compelling praxis for this historical moment. And in so doing, it not only helped shape the present anti-capitalist movement; it also illuminated principles of freedom that could potentially displace the hegemony of representative democracy and capitalism.

Fighting to Win: Sufficient Strategies for Moving Forward
-Rob Augman, Fall 2002

This article was originally presented at the Renewing the Anarchist Tradition conference in the summer of 2002, in Plainfield, VT. It was published in Onward newspaper in Volume 3, Issue 2 (Fall 2002).

In our long-term struggles for a free society, our present organizing must reflect our long-term vision. Not only must it reflect such vision, it must also be our vehicle for moving us closer to such vision. As anarchists, our goal of a self-governed society, where we can directly organize social life from the bottom-up according to ethical criteria, must be at the heart of our efforts. But in the current context where all forms of social struggle are co-opted or defeated by the state and capitalism, we face the difficult task of building a movement that takes us toward our long-term vision. Many people around the world are struggling to fight off exploitation and oppression. But the project of “building the new society in the shell of the old” must be a major part of our efforts if we are to truly transcend hierarchical society. This task is a challenging one for organizers across the globe.

The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty (OCAP) has been getting a lot of attention from the anarchist movement as of late. And rightly so, because OCAP, a 14 year-old direct action organization, has used a popular and confrontational approach in fighting extremities of capitalist exploitation. And they have been largely successful!

Border Crossings -By Cindy Milstein

That which is avant-garde has always transgressed the boundaries of what is considered decent. Yet after the "shock of the new" has worn off, what was once widely perceived as subversive is often viewed by many as socially acceptable if not desirable. Anarchism, ever bohemian due to its utopian edge—even if anarchists see their principles as eminently applicable to the vast majority of peoples' lives—continually throws itself against the next brick wall as soon as the previous one comes tumbling down. At least to date, then, the praxis of anarchism has voluntarily loitered at the border regions of society, remaining outrageous, but seeing with every new frontier a sense of possibility.

Going Public -By Cindy Milstein

If antiauthoritarians have helped catalyze a new New Left in the United States, and I believe they have, they now have a responsibility: to provide direction.

This sits uncomfortably with anarchists—and not entirely without justification. Movements aimed at liberating humanity have often ended up forcing people to be “free.” But advancing reconstructive notions isn't inherently authoritarian, nor does it have to be coercive. Indeed without visions and strategies, movements have historically left themselves open to co-optation or, worse, been the exclusive project of an enlightened few.

Toward an Anarchist Politics -By Cindy Milstein

During last fall's televised presidential debates, a curious ad appeared. A semi-scruffy young musician is shown yelling at a boy on a bicycle, “You are all sheep for the capitalist wolves.” Next, flashing ominously across the screen, is the tag line: “This guy votes. Shouldn't you?”