GMU:Thinking In Tanks/Rojin Safa

I'm doing my second bachelor in visual communication. My first was in polymer engineering , also I'm having a quite interesting academic journey. I come from Iran and it's my second semester in VC and in Germnay - Mentioning it because my background has had its part on shaping my worldview and my beliefs.

for many years I'd been apolitical, even though I come from a country where you just can't ignore politics. Politic and religion are highly connected in Iran and maybe that's why I was happy ignoring them both. Only now I know it was mainly because I was privileged enough (well, you know, with our standards. I was still a women living in Iran which is kinda fucked up) to afford not learning and selfish enough not to care. So I started relatively late to explore different ideas, different worldviews and really seeing everything that is wrong in my county and the world outside of it.

i don't like using labels.. but if you push me i'd say i'm anti capitalist and anti fascist.

In this class I'm mainly concentrating on learning about Anarchism and Anarcha-feminist.

Sources and inspirations so far:

Errico Malatesta - At the Cafe

Alexander Berkman - What Is Communist Anarchism?

https://www.youtube.com/user/anarchopac/videos (Anarcopac makes amazing and in depths videoes about anarchism and marxism theory and doing her phd on anarchism history.)

Anarchism and Feminism:

https://anarchiststudies.org/coming-to-terms-rethinking-popular-approaches-to-anarchism-and-feminism-by-theresa-warburton/

https://libcom.org/library/refusing-wait-anarchism-intersectionality

""my very genuine propaganda text""

Power loves darkness. It’s not a quote from a marvel movie. It’s a fact – and if you’re wondering where that comes from, you just need to take a look at people who are getting beaten up in the streets of America, this so-called heart of democracy, because they have dared to question the ever-growing structural abuse of power by the police. For they have done the unforgivable act of asking an unmentioble question that could cause the end of the world for many – those who would rather see the end of the world than the end of capitalism – “who are the police *really* protecting and serving?” who needs more protection than the minorities, the weak, the vulnerable – the very same people whom the police do not hesitate to kill in cold blood and in plain daylight, with no fear of the consequences. For it does not in the slightest bit interfere with their main function: to protect and serve the property and the wealthy, and to maintain the status quo. And so they will with teeth and nails fight to defend the capital and enforce white supremacy. That’s what they were created for, with the absolute support of those in power. You can’t fool yourself into believing that by choosing the “lesser evil” things will change. “the lesser evil” being Joe Biden, the man who cheerfully says “police should be trained to ‘shoot 'em in the leg instead of the heart.” You can’t reform that. You can’t reform years of corruption, abuse of power and widespread injustices suffered by weak and marginalized into this neoliberal utopia where capitalists are living happily ever after alongside the workers, white supremacists alongside the people of colors, fascist alongside the minorities. You can’t reform what is working perfectly – because the system is not even broken. It is doing exactly what it’s supposed to do.

So there is only one solution: revolution!