Angry young protesters clad in black. Yelling in the streets. Breaking windows. Chaos.
Recent mainstream media coverage of events, such as the June 18 protests in Eugene and the World Trade Organization protest in Seattle, has added to the stereotype of anarchists as violent trouble-makers. However, the reality of the anarchist movement in Eugene is quite different than what the stereotype would lead a person to believe.
“Primarily, I think the media looks for the stereotypical anarchist to interview,” said Audrey Vanderford, a self-proclaimed anarchist living in Eugene and a University graduate student in the folklore department. Her focus is on political pranks, with a specific interest in street performances at large protests, such as action at the World Trade Organization situation in Seattle. “Black-clad, young, white, male, angry, ungrammatical, spewing violent talk. It fits into the larger message that the mainstream media will always give, which is anarchist equals terrorist.”
While some anarchists do fit the stereotype and do believe in violent tactics, they definitely do not represent the majority of the Eugene anarchist community.
Some are young, and some are old. Some dress in black and have body piercings; some don’t. Some have attended the protests and riots and have interacted with the police, but many haven’t.
The truth is that anarchists are a very diverse group of people with different beliefs.
Shelley Cater is a 35-year-old anarchist and forest activist. She is also mother to two children and works on the crew of Cascadia Alive!, a public-access television show in Eugene/Springfield produced by anarchists.
“The textbook definition of anarchism, without rule, without rulers, is something I guess anybody who calls themselves anarchists would have to hold as a basic tenet,” Cater said. “As far as the finer points about how to bring it about, how to produce a paradigm that doesn’t exist inside the paradigm of destruction and greed, that’s a tougher one. Everybody has different views about tactics.”
Cascadia Alive! is the anarchist media outlet. Cater helps produce the public access show, which is aired live on cable channel 97 at 9 p.m. on Wednesday nights.
“Every week we allow other people to have their voices heard, and we do a very minimal amount of controlling what goes on the show,” Cater said. “Sometimes that results in a really boring show or a really controversial show or a really informative show. It just always comes out the way it comes out.”
Vanderford defines anarchism as “the rejection of domination in all its forms — sexism, racism, capitalism, homophobia, nationalism and environmental destruction.” She said that anarchists believe that humans are inherently good and that they don’t need institutions, such as the government, police and religion to protect them from each other.
“Anarchists believe in ‘mutual aid’,” she said. “The idea of building an alternative community that provides and assists each member in a non-hierarchical, non-exploitative manner.”
Mutual aid is, in fact, a large part of what the Eugene anarchist community is about. However, nobody is sure of exactly how large that group is.
The number of people who actually consider themselves anarchists is pretty small, said Lucy Humus, a Eugene resident and part of the anarchist community.
“Then there’s this huge community of anywhere from 200 to 800 people who interact in a mutual aid-type way,” Humus said.
While the national media has recently been portraying Eugene as a hotbed for anarchy, Cater says that this is a false notion.
“I know anarchists in every city I ever visit in this country,” she said, “and some of those communities are way more together than we are.”
However, because of all of the media attention Eugene has been getting, Cater said that a lot more anarchists are coming to check out the scene for themselves.
“There’s anarchists all over the world,” she said. “It’s a very powerful movement. It’s a movement with a lot of history.”
A history that is filled, at least one anarchist said, with misrepresentations.
“The media’s interpretation of the anarchists is exactly what police feed them,” Steve Heslin said. “It’s the same misrepresentation that was started in 1886 with the Hay Market anarchists.”
It’s true that the anarchy movement is nothing new, and in Eugene, anarchists have been working to achieve their goal for a long time through various projects. Community gardens, such as the one at Scobert Park in the Whiteaker neighborhood, have sprung up in different locations around the city. Here, anarchists and activists work together planting and maintaining organic gardens that provide food for those who need it and a beautiful place to visit for others.
There are also housing co-ops, education and day care programs and, of course, political activism. Protesting and rallying are the activities that receive the most attention from both the media and the Eugene Police Department.
Cater and Humus both said that they choose not to participate in the protests and riots, and that sentiment is shared by many anarchists.
Food Not Bombs is another project run primarily by the anarchist community. It provides free meals to those who need it weekly at Scobert Park. Humus said that Food Not Bombs has at least 400 chapters around the world.
“They’re all getting food from their local community, cooking it and serving it hot for free in a public place,” Humus said. “It’s a perfect example of shared leadership and cooperation.”