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Chomsky on Anarchism
Q: What is it that attracts you to anarchism?
CHOMSKY: I was attracted to anarchism as a young teenager, as soon
as I began to think about the world beyond a pretty narrow range, and haven't
seen much reason to revise those early attitudes since. I think it only
makes sense to seek out and identify structures of authority, hierarchy,
and domination in every aspect of life, and to challenge them; unless a
justification for them can be given, they are illegitimate, and should
be dismantled, to increase the scope of human freedom. That includes political
power, ownership and management, relations among men and women, parents
and children, our control over the fate of future generations (the basic
moral imperative behind the environmental movement, in my view), and much
else. Naturally this means a challenge to the huge institutions of coercion
and control: the state, the unaccountable private tyrannies that control
most of the domestic and international economy, and so on. But not only
these. That is what I have always understood to be the essence of anarchism:
the conviction that the burden of proof has to be placed on authority,
and that it should be dismantled if that burden cannot be met. Sometimes
the burden can be met. If I'm taking a walk with my grandchildren and they
dart out into a busy street, I will use not only authority but also physical
coercion to stop them. The act should be challenged, but I think it can
readily meet the challenge. And there are other cases; life is a complex
affair, we understand very little about humans and society, and grand pronouncements
are generally more a source of harm than of benefit. But the perspective
is a valid one, I think, and can lead us quite a long way.
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