RAMBLINGS FROM DARES

(this month Shana!)

ANARCHISM, PRACTICE & THE WORLD WE OFFER.

‘Un Mundo Donde Quepan Muchos Mundos’ (‘A World Where Many Worlds Fit’) - a motto of the Zapatistas

Anarchism is a political philosophy rooted in the belief that we should live without hierarchy. That all peoples should be equally valued and power should be mutual rather than held by some over others.

I personally identify as an anarchist, because that is what I try and practice.

(I promise, this is will come round to DARES)

Do I believe the whole world should be anarchist? Or you, even? I don’t think I know enough - or will ever know enough - to make a statement like that. And besides, that’s not the basis for why I call myself an anarchist.

I am an anarchist because anarchism is my personal chosen practice. It is the style of organising I strive for in all of my activist groups, in all my coordination efforts, in all my projects and in my personal way of relating to others around me and to the world. An anarchist world is the kind of world I hope to create through my own actions.

It is a practice I do not seek to impose, but to offer.

Many people believe in different kinds of worlds, and I hope to live in a wide world where many can co-exist, but this is mine that I choose to practice. And practice (also known as praxis) is the key word here. You will never be a perfect anarchist. Hierarchy and the dynamics of power are slippery, engrained and impossible to eliminate entirely - and this is exacerbated by the way our society functions in order to obfuscate that power.

I am a vegan because I do not wish to place myself in a hierarchy above animal lives. But what of the insects killed in farming agriculture? Am I worth more than them? I avoid flying and a high carbon lifestyle, as I view the luxury emissions of the global north to be a form of imperialism on the global south - our pleasure at the cost of their lives. But I still use a laptop, a phone: no doubt containing minerals stripped from the earth via the exploited labour of those I claim to care about. Am I placing my ability to work and communicate above their safety and dignity? Above the natural world which we strip these materials from? Acknowledging these shortcomings is vital, but just because something can never be fully realised is no reason not to reach for it. Just because you will never reach a horizon is no reason to stay put: by walking towards a utopian ideal you’ll always end up somewhere.

ONE OF THOSE SOMEWHERES IS DARES.

I first came to DARES in August 2023. By this time, I had been involved in climate activism for over a year - primarily with Scientists for Extinction Rebellion - and had that same year founded the Education Climate Coalition to bring together climate action groups within educational spaces. I did this while working full-time (and starting a part-time PhD) in London.

By this time, I was also pretty exhausted - physically and mentally. But intellectually and spiritually, I was going through a growth spurt.

In the summertime of that same year, I visited the ZAD (Zone à Défendre or ‘zone to defend’) in southern France near Nantes - the planned location of an airport that was halted by occupying activists after over a decade of struggle. I visited with a fellow Extinction Rebellion (XR) activist to represent XR UK on a panel at their festival, Intergalactic, and stayed in their community for a week. This was a space that was vocally anarchist, an intentional and radical community seeking to build and practice something different to the world I had lived in up to this point. I picked food from the collective garden to cook lunch for those that volunteered to work it, I helped erect the festival signage and spoke on a panel to contribute to the festival I had the immense pleasure to attend. Experiencing that space, specifically through active participation in that space, was transformative.

As much as I value London, going back to my 9-5 work commute was a cold shock to the system. I could see that other worlds, other than this, can and do exist. I had experienced a type of submerging freedom, solidarity and community that I had previously only captured in the short-lived microcosms during city-based direct action. And the advertisement-filled, concrete covered world sounded louder, flashed brighter and stung harsher than ever in comparison. The trappings of my life that I had once found comforting, now were beginning to feel suffocating and limiting. The growth spurt was causing me growing pains.

But this city is my home, this city is my work - in activism and in career and studies.

ENTER DARES: ANOTHER WORLD WITHIN A WORLD.

…And conveniently a 40 minute train ride from London Bridge.

One of the first things to strike me when I arrived, the same as when I arrived at the ZAD, is that I did not feel greeted as a visitor or special guest. I felt greeted as a member of the community. Despite the fact I did not know anyone but the person who had brought me, the welcome did not say to me ‘welcome to our space’ - but ‘welcome to the space’.

‘Para Todos Todo, Para Nosotros Nada’ (‘Everything for Everyone, Nothing For Us’)

And that dynamic contributed to DARES being one of the few places on earth I have ever visited where I so quickly felt comfortable to simply be. There was no felt expectation of me, no requirement to perform a version of myself that I thought people would want. It felt and feels like a space where my value was not placed in what I could do for others, in that space, at that time. But that I had intrinsic value, and was here. I was not there to perform a task to bring value. I was valuable. I was allowed to rest. And what contributed to this feeling was the fact I was allowed to pay it back in-turn. I could help out: I could cook a meal, do the dishes, lend my ears, lend my hands - but at my own free will and not obligation.

Does this mean I never go to a restaurant, or interact with a store clerk? No.

(No such thing as a perfect anarchist, especially in a non-anarchistic society)

But it does mean that I do not tend to find these experiences truly restful.

(And that I always say please and thank you, obviously)

What I find truly restful about DARES, and all spaces like it, is the ability to receive and give respite in mutual aid. A meal was cooked for me today, and I will cook tomorrow. My tears are held by you, and yours are held by me. You give me permission to be and to breathe, and I show you gratitude for your being and make space for your breath. I can allow myself to be looked after, because I will look after you.

This feels like the practice of living without having to be above or below - an attempt at truly equal exchange - where love is given space to be the primary motivator. A space where co-creation is possible, but not insisted upon. A world that is offered, but not imposed. It is only free of coercion that we can consent, and only then can the act of giving be an act of love. This is an incredibly idealistic notion - but what really inspires me is that it is a space of attempts, and of practice. The site is not a conflict-free zone, the community is never free from the tyranny of power dynamics and insidious hierarchy. Perhaps what I have given does not square up to what I’ve received : the work of the groundskeepers in upkeep the site is immense and my contributions will always be unequal in comparison. I still carry my privileges stuck to my skin and my boots when I enter the shared spaces. There is no doubt imbalances that I have not even realised. I am not perfect and DARES is not perfect, nor will either ever be.

The attempts and practice put in to minimise hierarchy and the collectivised pursuit of soothing conflict fairly and lovingly is what gives me hope in this space, not perfection. The chance to both give and receive without a score-sheet keeps me coming back, the chance to keep practicing and co-creating. I see collective love practiced at DARES every time I am lucky enough to be onsite. I see people striving towards an unreachable horizon, and I feel deep gratitude to experience the small world they’re creating on the way.

Shana

If you wish to visit or learn more about what we do at DARES, get involved with any project or ask a question, please email oakhavencollective@gmail.com​

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