No Gods No Masters
Morning Comrades! The above drop is now live and here is a little background on both of these graphics / slogans. “No Gods No Masters” is one of the core principles of modern anarchist theory/praxis. The phrase is derived from the French slogan "Ni dieu ni maître !" (literally 'Neither god nor master') coined by the socialist Louis Auguste Blanqui in 1880, when he published a journal by that name. The French phrase appears twice in Friedrich Nietzsche's 1886 work Beyond Good and Evil. In addition to its anarchist and labour history, it’s also prominently covered in the early women’s rights movement. In 1914, Margaret Sanger launched The Woman Rebel, an eight-page monthly newsletter which promoted contraception using the slogan "No Gods, No Masters". Sanger insisted that every woman was the mistress of her own body. Women without superstition: No gods – No Masters! by Annie Laurie Gaylor is a collection of writings by women freethinkers during the 19th and 20th century.
The chest graphic is a little more personal in that it was used by Hunter S. Thompson during his campaign to be elected Sheriff in Aspen, CO in 1970. It’s a wild story, one perfectly in-line with much of Thompson’s life. It should come as no surprise that his work has had and will continue to have a great impact on my own.
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This is going to be last installment of this column as summer holidays have started here and if anyone can plow through the 20 or so books I have previously suggested I would be hugely impressed. With that, I hope you enjoyed this foray into my little world and here are the last suggestions for your summer reading:
The Communist Manifesto -by Friedrich Engels and Karl Marx
Yes, you should read this. I know it seems so painstakingly obvious and I am sure most of you have but even if you have, read it again. I cannot stress how vitally important, earth shaking, world changing this pamphlet is. Get it. Read it. Over and Over again.
Planet on Fire by Mathew Lawrence and Laurie Laybourn-Langton
Planet on Fire is an urgent manifesto for a fundamental reimagining of the global economy. It offers a clear and practical road map for a future that is democratic and sustainable by design. Laurie Laybourn-Langton and Mathew Lawrence argue that it is not enough merely to spend our way out of the crisis; we must also rapidly reshape the economy to create a new way of life that can foster a healthy and flourishing environment for all.
Burn It Down! Edited by Breanne Fahs
In this landmark collection spanning three centuries and four waves of feminist activism and writing, Burn It Down! is a testament to what is possible when women are driven to the edge. The manifesto—raging and wanting, quarreling and provoking—has always played a central role in feminism, and it’s the angry, brash feminism we need now.
Riot. Strike. Riot by Joshua Clover
Award-winning poet Joshua Clover theorizes the riot as the form of the coming insurrection.
Following up on Wednesday’s words on the effects of Climate Change and what it means to us I wanted to share three films over on youtube for your weekend watching that deal with the subject in a way that i found helpful.
And just for the fuck of it, here are some hot shots I felt worth sharing despite this being the Friday edition of this newsletter.