Anarchy in Athens: An ethnography of militancy, emotions and violence

By Nicholas Apoifis

The battles between Athenian anarchists and the Greek state have received a high degree of media attention recently. But away from the intensity of street protests militants implement anarchist practices whose outcomes are far less visible. They feed the hungry and poor, protect migrants from fascist beatings and try to carve out an autonomous political, social and cultural space. Activists within the movement share politics centred on hostility to the capitalist state and all forms of domination, hierarchy and discrimination. Based on extensive ethnographic fieldwork among Athenian anarchists and anti-authoritarians, Anarchy in Athens unravels the internal complexities within this milieu and provides a better understanding of the forces that give the space its shape.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Manchester University Press
• Release date: Nov 11, 2016
• ISBN: 9781526108036

Book preview

Anarchy in Athens

Image:logo is missing

CONTEMPORARY ANARCHIST STUDIES

A series edited by

Laurence Davis, University College Cork, Ireland

Uri Gordon, Loughborough University, UK

Nathan Jun, Midwestern State University, USA

Alex Prichard, Exeter University, UK

Contemporary Anarchist Studies promotes the study of anarchism as a framework for understanding and acting on the most pressing problems of our times. The series publishes cutting-edge, socially engaged scholarship from around the world – bridging theory and practice, academic rigor and the insights of contemporary activism. The topical scope of the series encompasses anarchist history and theory broadly construed; individual anarchist thinkers; anarchist-informed analysis of current issues and institutions; and anarchist or anarchist-inspired movements and practices. Contributions informed by anti-capitalist, feminist, ecological, indigenous and non-Western or Global South anarchist perspectives are particularly welcome. So, too, are manuscripts that promise to illuminate the relationships between the personal and the political aspects of transformative social change, local and global problems, and anarchism and other movements and ideologies. Above all, we wish to publish books that will help activist scholars and scholar activists think about how to challenge and build real alternatives to existing structures of oppression and injustice.

International Editorial Advisory Board:

Martha Ackelsberg, Smith College

John Clark, Loyola University

Jesse Cohn, Purdue University

Ronald Creagh, Université Paul Valéry

Marianne Enckell, Centre International de Recherches sur l’Anarchisme

Benjamin Franks, University of Glasgow

Judy Greenway, Independent Scholar

Ruth Kina, Loughborough University

Todd May, Clemson University

Salvo Vaccaro, Università di Palermo

Lucian van der Walt, Rhodes University

Charles Weigl, AK Press

Other titles in the series

(From Bloomsbury Academic):

Anarchism and Political Modernity

Angelic Troublemakers

The Concealment of the State

Daoism and Anarchism

The Impossible Community

Lifestyle Politics and Radical Activism

Making Another World Possible

Philosophical Anarchism and Political Obligation

(From Manchester University Press):

The Autonomous Life?

Anarchy in Athens

An ethnography of militancy, emotions and violence

Nicholas Apoifis

Manchester University Press

Copyright © Nicholas Apoifis 2017

The right of Nicholas Apoifis to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

Published by Manchester University Press

Altrincham Street, Manchester M1 7JA

www.manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data applied for

ISBN 978 1 5261 0059 7 hardback

ISBN 978 1 5261 0063 4 paperback

First published 2017

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 UK: England & Wales licence. Permission for reproduction is granted by the editors and the publishers free of charge for voluntary, campaign and community groups. Reproduction of the text for commercial purposes, or by universities or other formal teaching institutions, is prohibited without the express permission of the publishers.

The publisher has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for any external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

Typeset

by Out of House Publishing

For Jamie and Oli

CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Introduction

1Hellenic turmoil

2Social movement theory and collective identity

3Militant ethnography and taking notes in a furnace

4The early years of Greek anarchism: ‘it just doesn’t mean anything to me’

5A contemporary history: ‘Fuck May 68, Fight Now!’

6The anarchist and anti-authoritarian space: tensions and tendencies

7Street-protests and emotions: a temporary unity

Conclusion: imagining and fighting for alternative realities

Glossary

Bibliography

Index

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Writing this book was a collaborative process. This is not to shirk my responsibility for the final construct but to acknowledge the reality of knowledge production. There are some wonderfully passionate, hospitable, and inspiring anarchists and anti-authoritarians in Athens. My work is, absolutely, blank pages without their words and deeds. Any misrepresentation of these words and deeds is my fault and I sincerely apologise if that is the case.

Thank you to the following:

In Europe: Arianna, Bill, Acacia, Kyriako, Anna, Taki, Zizo, Electra, Mary, James, Deme, Aris, Sam, Pari, Dino, Georgia, Stavro, Panayiotta, Penelope, Aleko, Kosta, Vasili, Tina, Sofia, Emma, Yianni, Andreas, Helena, Christo, Tony, Julie Fraser, John Karamichas.

In Australia and New Zealand: Skye R, Amy P, Chris C, Adam W, Sarah DW, Andy C, Dudley W, Will P, Ben Proxy L, Rosie Sniper, Luke N, Steve Boff H, Claudia M, Craig L, Stevie V, Deme K, Dean K, Eddie F, Pops, JS, James Y, Tim G, Ewan M, Ra’cing FC, Jeremy K, Sid P, Tom E, Eddy T, Phil Benito R, Ally R, Jura Books, Karen K, SlackBastard, Ed N, Sarah S, Tim E, Weens B, Patty B, Emma P, Demelza M, Declan K, Emma W, Mark T, Caitlin Hamilton, Emilie Auton, Emma C, Chris W, Kev McF, Danny H, Andrew Bennie, Sue Wills, Diana Perche.

In North America: Jacqui P, Nick D, Paul G, Colleen S, Serge L, Stephanie C, Michele B, Dave W, Adrienne C, Jeremiah W, Chris M, Basel AK, MP S-L, Adele G, Andrej Grubacic, Michael Truscello, Jeffrey Juris.

Special thanks: Uri Gordon, Danae Bosler, Will Mailer, Aleko Moulis, Georgia Van Toorn, Sturnbull, The Gouns, The Vels, Sarah Maddison, James Arvanitakis, Manchester University Press, Macquarie University folks, University of New South Wales folks and my actual folks, Mum and Dad, who alongside my brother Alex provided unquantifiable support.

I am forever indebted to the inspirational Lloyd Cox. His endless anecdotes are a small price to pay for the privilege of his guidance. Without Annie Legendre and her unconditional love, this book would not have been possible.

Introduction

Modern Ελλάδα (Greece) finds itself navigating a treacherous confluence of economic, social and political headwaters. In the wake of the 2008–09 global financial crisis, the Greek Parliament, struggling to cope with ballooning debt and economic contraction, enforced austerity measures demanded by the European Central Bank, the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund. Structural adjustment has been the price paid for successive bailouts and continued financial assistance. This has resulted in sharply falling real wages for a majority of Greeks, a massive increase in unemployment, and significant declines in health, education and welfare services. The impoverishment of millions of working-class and middle-class Greeks has seen the chasm between rich and poor grow wider than ever, thereby exacerbating the economic crisis and giving it a political face. Here, mainstream political parties, such as the centre-left PASOK (Πανελλήνιο Σοσιαλιστικό Κίνημα or Panhellenic Socialist Movement) and the centre-right ND (Νέα Δημοκρατία or New Democracy), formed previously unthinkable coalitions in their struggle to maintain power in a context of dwindling voter support. Meanwhile, relative newcomers SYRIZA (Συνασπισμός Ριζοσπαστικής Αριστεράς or The Coalition of the Radical Left), a left-wing political party, have been the chief electoral beneficiaries of economic and political crisis, charging into government in 2015. The Communist Party of Greece (Κομμουνιστικό Κόμμα Ελλάδας (KKE)) has had its support base halved, while the explicitly fascist Golden Dawn (Χρυσή Αυγή; see Glossary) has grown alarmingly, often taking its reactionary, anti-immigrant politics onto the streets. In short, political polarisation in Greece has accompanied economic polarisation and dislocation.

Away from the parliamentary battles over votes and seats, graffiti heralding the resurgence of another actor in the drama of Greek politics similarly express political polarisation: ‘Fuck May 68’, the walls scream, ‘Fight Now!’ Discussed in detail in later chapters, this is a call to arms from the world’s most militant anarchist and anti-authoritarian movement. This book is centrally concerned with this movement and its contemporary form, dynamics and internal constitution.

The Athenian anarchist and anti-authoritarian movement has been reinvigorated in recent years. Its public protests and battles against the Greek state, police and other capitalist institutions are prolific and highly visible, replete with rioting, barricades and Molotov cocktails. Away from the intensity of the street-protests and the glare of mainstream media, however, its militants implement an anarchist and anti-authoritarian praxis of which the outcomes are less visible. These militants are feeding the hungry and poor, protecting migrants from fascist beatings and trying to carve out an autonomous political, social and cultural space in the ancient city of Αθήνα (Athens). Activists within this milieu share an anarchist and anti-authoritarian politics broadly centred on hostility to the capitalist state and all forms of domination, hierarchy and discrimination. Yet, beneath the apparent unity of purpose are concealed tensions and fissures, which periodically reveal themselves in sharp political differences over a range of issues.

While these political ideas broadly involve a struggle against all forms of domination, questions about how best to apply them are a source of perennial conflict. Such conflicts can arise around general strategy and tactics, but also around specific questions on violence, anarchist practice with respect to the mainstream media, and female marginalisation within the movement itself. Nevertheless, the differences that give rise to these conflicts are transcended, albeit temporarily, in the moment of street mobilisation and action. When the Athenian anarchist and anti-authoritarian movement confronts neo-liberalism, fascism, hierarchical rule and the state’s police in public protests and demonstrations, difference and conflict within the movement gives way to group cohesion and solidarity. Militant protest action is here more than an expression of collective grievance. Rather, these actions are, as I argue later, key elements in the ongoing construction and reconstruction of Athenian anarchist and anti-authoritarian collective identity. Insurrectionist street-protests become as much an aspect of identity formation as they are a tactic.

In this context, this book is concerned not so much with anarchist theory, as with examining the forces that give the Athenian anarchist and anti-authoritarian movement its specific shape. What are the historical and contemporary factors that are influencing and helping to construct what it means to be part of this vibrant milieu? How do the activists themselves understand the terms ‘anarchist’ and ‘anti-authoritarian’? What are the conversations that they are having and what do these reveal about the movement, its dynamics and boundaries? What role do emotions such as anger, humiliation, fear and loathing play within the movement? In answering these questions, I draw on Alberto Melucci’s (1995a) work on collective identity, while offering a first-hand, ethnographic account of Athenian anarchists and anti-authoritarians in action, based on my time there in 2011 and 2013, living, squatting and protesting within this milieu.

Throughout this book I have tried to balance academic obligations to the form and presentation of my ideas, with a desire to keep the work accessible to those without experience of academic jargon. This is an important political point to which activist-engaged writing needs to be constantly attentive. Further, I have segmented the book into stand-alone chapters so they can be read somewhat independently of each other. Activists who offered feedback on early drafts suggested that I had fused too much social movement theory with the history chapters (4 and 5) and contemporary observations (6 and 7). The concern was that you had to wade through the theoretical mud to get to the ‘good stuff’. As much as I personally enjoy a good theoretical wade, and this probably leaves me open to academic critique on the book’s form, I want the book to be relevant and accessible to activists. As such, I disentangled a lot of the social movement theory so it now reads as its own chapter and, depending on your interests, can be skipped at will. The same goes for Chapter 4 (on the older Greek anarchist history). For some, this got in the way of the contemporary discussions of Athenian anarchists and anti-authoritarians.

The primary aim of this book is to illuminate the complexities of the Athenian anarchist and anti-authoritarian milieu. In the course of the following chapters, I argue that varying shades of anarchic tendencies, and ensuing ideological and practical disagreements, are overcome for the most part in (often violent) street-protests. In Chapter 1, I set the scene with a sketch of Greece’s contemporary economic, political and social turmoil. Chapter 2 provides a discussion of social movement theory, and outlines my own position on some key debates. I begin with a discussion of the nominally North American tradition of social movement scholarship. Although there might have been the inclination merely to mention this tradition’s existence before moving to the preferred viewpoint, I have taken the time to unravel this theoretical trajectory because it is particularly problematic for the study of anarchist collectives. I argue that the North American tradition of social movement theory often focuses on factors that create a false perception of an internally homogeneous political identity. I pay particular attention to this narrative because it can produce misleading conclusions, undermining the heterogeneous nature of anarchist and anti-authoritarian collectives. Having rejected these assumptions, I explore new social movement theory and ideas about collective identity, acknowledging the pioneering work of Alberto Melucci. His work rightly problematises contentious assumptions about internal homogeneity within collectives. It also provides a set of conceptual tools for understanding the dynamic, reflexive and negotiated process through which collective identities are constructed. Finally, it sensitises us to the ‘field of opportunities and constraints offered to collective action’ (Melucci, 1985: 793). This allows me to explore a number of important factors that give shape to the Athenian anarchist and authoritarian space. These include discussions on the way in which contemporary actors view their region’s anarchist and anti-authoritarian history, the internal tensions and sources of unity within the movement, and the important role played by emotions within the space.

In pursuing these theoretical leads, I conducted intensive fieldwork in Athens from the beginning of January through to late March of 2011 and again in December 2013. Communicating directly in Greek, I participated in countless political protests, events and actions with Athenian anarchists and anti-authoritarians, while living in anarchist squats and shared housing. Furthermore, I had over 90 interviews and conversations with Greek anarchists and anti-authoritarians. These interactions are the foundations of this book. Throughout Anarchy in Athens, I refer to my Athenian collaborators by pseudonyms. They are as follows: Arianna, Bill, Acacia, Kyriako, Anna, Taki, Zizo, Electra, Mary, James, Deme, Aris, Sam, Pari, Dino, Georgia, Stavro, Panayiotta, Penelope, Aleko, Kosta, Vasili, Tina, Sofia, Emma, Yianni, Andreas, Helena, Christo, and Tony. Chapter 3 explores the methodological premises on which this fieldwork was based and the real-life issues that come with engaged fieldwork. My research methodology was guided by Jeffrey Juris’s militant ethnographic approach (2007). This method is premised on intense, reflexive collaboration between ethnographers and activists, in which, as far as possible, researchers assume the role of active political practitioners. By focusing on the activists themselves, it brings to the fore their agency and voice. Consequently, the way in which actors in the anarchist movement interact, negotiate and share emotions, ideas and beliefs, is central. I detail some of the strengths, nuances and functional issues associated with my preferred qualitative research approach, ending the chapter with some of the fieldwork issues I encountered.

Chapters 4 and 5 move from method and theory to history, discussing Greek anarchist history and contemporary attitudes to that history. Chapter 4 gives some historical depth to contemporary attitudes on pre-World War II Greek anarchist history. I reveal that the Athenian anarchists and anti-authoritarians I spoke to had severed nearly all emotional, theoretical and practical links with the region’s early anarchist history. Even when specifically asked, my interviewees were largely indifferent to the old anarcho-syndicalist history, instead clamouring to discuss the more recent insurrectionist history. I discuss the possible reasons for this towards the end of the chapter. Chapter 5 discusses the more recent Greek anarchist history. I provide a post-military-junta (1974) history that is celebrated and embraced by the collaborators of my militant ethnography. Here I show that although a plethora of political actions and events inform these contemporary historical reflections, militant and often-violent direct actions dominate the narrative presented in the chapter.

Moving beyond history and into the contemporary period, Chapter 6 details some of the more prominent tensions within the Athenian anarchist and anti-authoritarian space. I discuss tensions around gender and sexuality politics, tactics and media engagement, as well as violence and solidarity. I argue that negotiations and interactions around these issues contribute to the processes of collective identification within the space. Whereas Chapter 6 focuses on tensions, Chapter 7 builds towards a conclusion regarding unity. Set against the backdrop of riots and street-protests, I make two claims: first, that there is nothing at all pacifist about the space; second, that a wide range of emotions are expressed, fermented and developed within acts of performative violence. Throughout the chapter, I show how experiences and elements of a street-protest contribute to the temporary unity of the often-fragmented milieu, and provide a focus for collective identity formation. I end with concluding remarks that summarise my findings regarding unity within the space, culminating with the observation that the movement’s longevity stems from the unity produced within often-violent collective actions.

A final point: this book is the culmination of four years of research and throughout my study I was regularly asked by fellow scholars, family and friends why I had chosen Athens. Athenian anarchists and anti-authoritarians are a pertinent area of research because of both their politics and their geographical location. To begin with, there is the whole ‘rise of anarchism throughout the activist world’ phenomenon, visible from Seattle to Genoa, Quebec City to São Paulo. Anarchist and anti-authoritarian social movements are prominent actors in resistance to the current phase of capitalism in multiple, global locations (Gordon 2008; Graeber, 2009; Juris, 2007; Pallister-Wilkins 2009). Throughout Europe, North and Latin America, Asia and the Antipodes, radical resistance to neo-liberalism often has an anarchist and/or anti-authoritarian cast. If not openly waving the red and black flags of the anarchists, many of those challenging contemporary capitalism, consumerism and impending environmental catastrophe are anarchist inspired. They favour non-hierarchical decision-making processes such as those witnessed in the Occupy and Indignados movements, while advocating militant direct street action as an alternative means of political change to parliamentarianism. Their prominence in social movements over recent years makes understanding the anarchist and anti-authoritarian movement both a pressing political and scholarly task. As one of today’s go-to destinations for anarchist-inspired activism and activist-inspired scholarship, Athens is the ideal place in which to undertake this task. That is why I chose it.

1

Hellenic turmoil

Greece is in the midst of a profound economic, social and political crisis. Hardly Greece’s issue alone, it is a crisis shaped by a prevailing neo-liberal economic doctrine in Europe and elsewhere. Here, the ‘logic’ of markets and associated policies like austerity, privatisation and deregulation, are imposed on societies as life-saving cures for contemporary economic woes. Leaving aside for other scholars the problematic relationship between these ‘cures’ and the disease itself (see Amin, 2013; Shannon, 2014), it is nonetheless worth sketching the origins of this crisis as they specifically relate to Greece. This construct forms a backdrop to my discussion of the Athenian anarchist and anti-authoritarian movement.

In 2001, Greece entered the eurozone, but on the basis of economic modelling and data that were deliberately misleading (BBC News, 2004). Entry into one of the world’s richest clubs opened up tremendous new economic possibilities for Greece, though ones that would in the longer term come at a high cost. In particular, membership of the European Union along with the new currency enabled the Greek state, Greek capitalists and Greek consumers to borrow at very low interest rates relative to rates prior to joining the European Union. For a time, this fuelled a credit-driven economic boom. Times were good as flourishing consumer spending augmented tourism and shipping – the traditional mainstays of the Greek economy. But the economic boom concealed the deeper reality that both public and private debts were soaring to levels that would be impossible to service should there be an economic downturn (Choupis, 2011). Unfortunately, for Greece, such a downturn began in 2006, accelerated in 2007 and reached a crescendo in 2008–09, as the international banking system teetered on the verge of total collapse. The consequences for Greece were swift and devastating. In the midst of a sharply contracting economy, tourism slowed to a trickle of its former self, shipping plummeted, consumer spending slowed dramatically and the proverbial debt chickens came home to roost (Behrakis and Maltezou, 2012). The crisis arrived in earnest in 2009, when the newly elected PASOK announced the government’s fiscal balance was not in deficit by 4.1 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) as proclaimed by the previous New Democracy government, but was instead a staggering 12.7 per cent of GDP and growing (Smith, 2009). Equally concerning, Greece’s public debt to GDP ratio was 114 per cent (Reuters, 2010).

As a result of the global economic crisis, international lending dried up, or at least became much more difficult to secure for a state with an indebted economy such as Greece. Where the Greek government was once able to pay back loans by ‘rolling them over’ (in effect, issuing new bonds to repay maturing ones), this became increasingly difficult in a context of soaring interest rates on bonds that were of a questionable quality. Neither able to use monetary policy to stimulate the economy (because interest rates are set at a European level), nor regain competitiveness through a depreciating currency, the Greek economy continued to contract while its debts mounted. Equally, the government was limited in its fiscal stimulus measures, having already reached an ultra-stimulus zone and now being unable to fund adequately such stimulus (Choupis, 2011). International bond markets froze Greece out, which required an injection of capital in order to avoid a sovereign default on debt repayments. This may have resulted in a Greek withdrawal from the eurozone and a return to the drachma, with very uncertain consequences for Greece, Europe and the World.

As austerity sucked demand out of the local economy, Greek economic statistics appeared weaker than originally anticipated by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Central Bank (International Monetary Fund, 2010). Hence, these institutions demanded even harsher austerity measures. In early May 2010, a troika consisting of the European Central Bank, the IMF and the European Commission granted the National Bank of Greece a three-year, €110 billion loan (Traynor, 2010). Attached to this loan were onerous obligations, including significant austerity measures aimed at cutting the government’s expenditure, increasing revenues and restoring fiscal balance. Amongst other measures, these involved a 15 per cent cut to public-sector wages,¹ the closure of nearly 2,000 schools, the movement of the retirement age from 61 to 65 years and the privatisation of a host of government assets. Added to these were increased income tax and a hike in the regressive consumption tax known as the VAT (value added tax). In essence, this punished the average Greek for their government’s ineptitudes, while rewarding gamblers (like banks and investment firms) for their morally hazardous investment in Greek bonds, an investment now protected by the troika’s bailout. The effects were devastating for most working- and middle-class Greeks. At the beginning of 2011, around the time I was first in Athens, the national rate of unemployment was 15.8%, which included 43.1% unemployment for those aged from 15 to 24 years (Sedghi, 2011). By July 2013, 27.6% of the population was unemployed, while youth unemployment had risen to 55.1%. In early 2015, opportunities had only marginally improved with unemployment at 25.7%, with 50.1% unemployment for the 15–24 age cohort (ieconomics, 2015). In circumstances of rapidly dwindling welfare services, this often meant homelessness, malnourishment and destitution for those thrown out of employment, or else it meant relying on the generosity of family and friends.

Massive protests throughout Greece exploded in response to economic decline and fiscal austerity. Protesters demanding a more equitable loan arrangement frequently brought Athens to a standstill (Reuters, 2010). Others called for more radical solutions, bringing them head-to-head with Athens’ police. This had been anticipated most vividly in December 2008 when riots and protests erupted throughout Greece after a policeman murdered a teenager in Exarcheia (I explore this in Chapter 5). The city was shut down as tens of thousands of disenfranchised people charged into the streets. The anger was palpable as protesters vented their emotions, with anarchists and anti-authoritarians out in force. Buildings were occupied, while others were torched, covered in graffiti or simply smashed up (Schwarz et al., 2010a). Amidst the repeated mass protests that followed, the government appealed for patience, insisting that the situation was soon to improve.

There was, however, no improvement. By the end of June 2011, daily protests swarmed the streets of Athens and other large Greek cities. A general election was finally held in May 2012, allowing the Greek electorate to participate in the political process and cast judgement on the policies of the day. All of my interviewees refused to participate in the election, as to do so would confer tacit legitimacy on the process of parliamentary democracy. For Greeks who did vote, the election was billed as a vote on the austerity measures (Malkoutzis, 2012). Pro-austerity parties only managed 30–35 per cent of the votes, which appeared to signal a resounding rejection of the austerity programme. None of the parties were able to form a coalition to govern, however, so another election was called for the following month (Smith, 2012a). This time the pro-austerity vote increased to around 45–47 per cent of votes (Owen, 2012). On 20 June 2012, pro-austerity parties and bitter political rivals New Democracy and PASOK (plus the smaller Democratic Left party) came together to form a coalition. With over half the population against the austerity measures, the streets again swelled with resistance and protest as the government extended the budget tightening.

All this bespoke a