This is to be expected. May Day itself was born from state violence against rebel workers. In 1886, America was convulsed by agitation in favour of the eight hour day. The day chosen to back up this talk with action was May 1st. Across America workers went on strike. Chicago was the centre of the movement, with hundreds of thousands took direct action to improve their conditions, to strike a blow for liberty against workplace tyranny, against capitalism.
As today, anarchists were at the heart of this anti-capitalist revolt. Active in the Central Labour Union and the International Working People's Association, the anarchists of Chicago argued that only by workers acting for themselves could they win the eight hour day and other improvements under capitalism. This struggle was just part of a wider struggle against capitalism as such, a means of building the embryo of the future free society that would replace it.
On May 3, 1886, police fired into a crowd of pickets at the McCormick Harvester Machine Company, killing at least one striker. The Anarchists called for a mass meeting the next day in Haymarket Square to protest the brutality. This peaceful meeting was attacked by the police, at which point a bomb was thrown into the police ranks, who opened fire on the crowd. A reign of state terror swept over Chicago. At its end eight anarchists were put on trial for accessory to murder. No pretence was made that any of the accused had carried out or even planned the bomb. They were considered "leaders" and were anarchists, that sufficed.
The trail was a farce, with a picked jury of businessmen and the relative of one of the cops killed. Seven of the anarchists were sentenced to death, one to 15 years' imprisonment. An international campaign resulted in two of the death sentences being commuted to life, but did not stop the US state executing four of them on November 11th, 1887 (one cheated the executioner and killed himself). Hundreds of thousands lined the route of the funeral cortege. In 1893, the new Governor of Illinois pardoned the Martyrs because of their obvious innocence, stating "the trail was not fair."
But what of today? What has the history of May Day to do with current struggles? May Day was the product of "anarchy in action" -- of the struggle of working class people organising themselves and using direct action in to change the world. The events of Chicago over one hundred years ago show that anarchy is at its best when it is applied in everyday life, in ways which build up the ability of people to effectively combat the power of the state and the bosses.
No war but the class war
This lesson seems pertinent to the current anti-war movement. There can no denying that the size of the marches called across the country has been impressive. However, while walking from A to B has forced the US/UK war machine on the defensive in order reduce the bad PR associated with civilian deaths somewhat, it did not stop the war. While such mass marches have a role to play, they obviously can be ignored and, to a large degree, were.
Nor can it be denied that the various direct actions and revolts that erupted across Britain helped make the state aware that it could not act just as it pleased. As such, they were wonderful and inspiring, showing that there exists people who not only question state power but are prepared to stop it. However, they did not stop the war.
This suggests that a lot of preliminary work was lacking, a failure to bring home the links between problems at home and imperialism abroad. It suggests that if people are not prepared to take action over their own immediate problems they are unlikely to do so for people thousands of miles away. It suggests, in other words, something most anarchists are aware of, namely the limitations of spontaneity.
Compare the lack of action by the unions here to the strikes organised in Spain and Italy. Over a million struck in Italy as part of a general strike called by the self-managed "base" unions. As well as massive demonstrations, trains carrying war material were blocked. In Spain, the main union, the UGT, called for a 2 hour strike while the syndicalist unions (the CNT, CGT and SO) called for a one day strike.
The difference? Applying anarchist ideas all year round, organising together and building links with rebels on a whole range of issues. The "base" and syndicalist unions are the direct opposite of trade unions here. They are participatory and use direct action and solidarity to win improvements. This builds up their members' confidence, allowing them to take action on issues the TUC would merely make platitudes about. Likewise, both countries have a strong tradition of extra-parliamentary action and organising. Community assemblies have been formed and fought successful battles. There are social centres and co-operatives.
These all show that we do not have to live in the rat race of capitalism. They give a practical alternative. They prove that another world is possible. They also create a power which no government can ignore, far more effective than marching from A to B. The power which we have seen, in embryo, in the direct actions which occurred when war broke out. The power of a culture of resistance rooted in working class life.
It is no coincidence that both Spain and Italy have a long history of anarchism and of anarchy in action. Whether in the workplace or in the community, anarchists have been there showing the power and practicality of anarchist ideas, tactics and organisation. They show that direct action, co-operation, solidarity and self-management are not only good ideas, but are effective and are a better way of living.
Anarchy in the UK?
Where does that leave us here in the UK? We need to turn every day into May Day. To start the process of rebuilding a viable anarchist movement which applies our ideas in every day life. Whether it is building a rank and file movement in the trade unions, or organising people into the IWW, or forming community unions or creating and supporting co-operatives, anarchists have a wide range of areas to apply our ideas.
We need to build upon the good work anarchists across the country are already doing to spread the anarchist idea. For example, anarchists in groups like Haringey Solidarity Group have a lot to teach libertarians elsewhere. Similarly, anarchists in trade unions should be meeting to discuss the possibilities of forming rank and file groups to increase their influence with their fellow workers. Anarchists in the IWW could be discussing the pros and cons of dual unionism and how it can be used to complement rank and file work in the reformist unions. Anarchists in other groups like the Disobedients could be discussing their experiences. The problems facing existing alternatives to capitalism, such as co-operatives, squats, social centres, need to be faced and solutions developed.
However, all this implies a forum for such debate, a forum that does not seem to exist as yet (at least formally). To fully apply the rich potential of revolutionary anarchism we need to organise together. The original May Day shows that by organising together anarchists can significantly increase our impact. In the 365 days we have until the next May Day, let us start to build upon the co-operation we have seen develop in the previous 365. Steps are being made, as can be seen by the increased co-operation between the national federations. However, we need to widen that to include anarchists who do not agree totally with some of their policies while sharing a commitment to revolutionary anarchism.
Part of this means using publications such as Freedom, Black Flag, Organise!, Direct Action and so on as a voice for revolutionary anarchism, to report upon and discuss our experiences and learn from each other. Another part is to start the process of building on what we have in common and co-operating where possible (for example, why have three leaflets when one could do?). This will take time, but we have made significant steps forward in the last year not least in terms of Freedom and its content. There is potential.
We can make every day a May Day, if we want!