The circled A is a symbol so widespread, so widely recognized and disseminated that it has come to be taken as a traditional symbol of anarchism, seeming to have existed forever. Some rumours trace its origin back to the Spanish Revolution: young anarchists are more accustomed to seeing a circled A than the clearly discernible
Despite well-documented evidence of its origin, numerous fanciful speculations persist, including within anarchist circles and many libertarian historiographies that explore the symbol’s origin. It’s essential to clarify that we are concerned with the history of an anarchist symbol rather than a specific design. While representations of the letter A enclosed within a circle have certainly
The anarchist author and poet, murdered by the Nazis on July 10, 1934, is now part of Germany’s literary canon
I don’t think we are just legal. I think we are a repository of collective knowledge.— Kim, he/him The Advisory Service for Squatters (ASS) was set up in 1975 as a successor to the Family Squatters Advice Service which had been providing support for squatters since the late 1960s. The purpose of ASS has shifted
Rob Ray talks to Ian Bone of Class War and Anarchy in the UK fame about his experiences of Hackney during the anti-Poll Tax campaign.
The war in Ukraine has raised a sometimes heated discussion on one of socialism’s most potent slogans: No War But The Class War. The general political idea (deserters and mutineers having always existed), is that the working class should not fight and die for the schemes of the rich and the frothing delusions of nationalism.
In this extract from the mid-December 1971 issue of Freedom, Nicolas Walter reported on court proceedings in the cases of Ian Purdie and Jake Prescott as they faced accusations of conspiring towards a series of bombings attributed to the anarchist Angry Brigade. The Angries had been active since 1967, but only began putting out their
From 1895-1913 Alfred Marsh was editor of Freedom when it was the only anarchist paper to survive the collapse of the movement in Britain at the turn of the century — and without his grit and fortitude there is no doubt that it too would have been shut down along with the likes of the
When the Great War broke out in 1914 most anarchists took their customary anti-militarist position, but the conflict also led to two of its heaviest hitters, Errico Malatesta and Peter Kropotkin, throwing down in the pages of anarchist journal Freedom. In the following extract from A Beautiful Idea: History of the Freedom Press Anarchists, Rob Ray
This is the first of a possible infrequent series charting the work of the Sparrows’ Nest, an anarchist archive based in Nottingham which has built one of the best libraries of libertarian writing in Britain. Here at the Sparrows’ Nest we host an extensive library of books and look after large collections of documents and other objects recording the
There is a very obvious article to reprint from the October 1914 issue of Freedom, which is precisely why I’m selecting a different one.
Spoilers ahead: Did David Graeber really influence Francis Ford Coppola’s vision of the film?
The militant reputation that precedes Clapton CFC fans caused Brentford security to sweat ~ Yann Dey-Helle, from Dialectik Football ~ On September 29, the Clapton CFC women’s team – which plays in the 6th tier – travelled to Brentford for a championship match.
From shows in squats to militant action, punk shows the convergence between class consciousness, psychedelic consciousness, and consciousness-raising (1/3) ~ Alex Ratcharge, from Audimat ~ For all intents and purposes, let us say that I am neither a theoretician, nor a philosopher, nor a specialist in political matters, but a humble 40-year-old reader, also a fanzine publisher and the author of a novel (Shortcut to Nowhere) exploring the world of punk and autonomous squats in France and Navarre – fictions inspired by my experience since, to quote NOFX, “I've been a punk- rocker for most of my life”
Why are so many people against immigration while so many of them desperately want to leave?
Having gone mostly online in 2014, Freedom continues to publish an irregular paper today. Those and many other issues stretching back to our founding in 1886 are online above, at libcom.org, and via the Sparrow’s Nest.
The book publishing arm of Freedom Press has a history stretching back to the 19th century and continues to publish today. Check out our catalogue to order stock or you can order from Central Books.
Keep up with the news, features and interviews Freedom produces over the year with our irregular newsletters.
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