Decolonizing Anarchism: An Antiauthoritarian History of India's Liberation Struggle

Anarchist Intervention Series #3

by Maia Ramnath

Decolonizing Anarchism looks at the history of South Asian struggles against colonialism and neocolonialism, highlighting lesser-known dissidents as well as iconic figures. This approach reveals an alternate narrative of decolonization, in which achieving a nation-state is not the objective. Maia Ramnath also studies the anarchist vision of alternate society, which closely echoes the concept of total decolonization on the political, economic, social, cultural, and psychological planes. This facilitates not only a reinterpretation of the history of anticolonialism, but insight into the meaning of anarchism itself. Maia Ramnath teaches at New York University and is a board member of the Institute for Anarchist Studies.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, India, Politics, Philosophy, Theory, Race

304 pages, Paperback

First published December 13, 2011

Reviews

[Indu Vashist · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is probably one of the worst books that i have ever read on INDIAN history. Maia takes a historiographical narrative of upper caste men and attempts apply anarchist thought on to them. It is the equivalent of writing the history of turtle island ONLY from the perspective of bourgeois educated white men.

In order to write about decolonisation movements in India, one must look at anti-Hindi movements in the South, Dalit and adavasi movements, the autonomous women's movement, amongst many others. oh ya, and don't quote right wing hindu fundamentalists who founded fascist parties.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a remarkable book by an extremely articulate writer. Anyone who is interested in anarchist theory (especially those who think that is an oxymoron) will find this to be a treasure. Ramnath uses the history of the Indian struggles for liberation as an organizing principle for investigating the important issues anarchism has and continues to grapple with, e.g.,
"Even if an anarchistic logic holds that decentralization and local control are goods in themselves, it can never assume that changing the formal relations of governmentality is enough without also reweaving the very fabric of culture and society at every level." And she also identifies and celebrates the role of prefigurative action:
"The village republic had never existed as they imagined it. The key thing is that they did imagine it. They wanted to create it anew."

[Amy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some interesting history and ideas in here to try to bring about some sort of reinterpretation of decolonization. Overall the book feels compressed and too ambitious of a goal for this quick read as there has to be more than just a handful of privileged men who contributed to South Asian struggles against colonialism and nation-states. I also found the writing to be unnecessarily academic.

[Onii · Rating 5 out of 5]

It does well looking into the ideas of lesser known anarchist figures within the context of Indian liberation. These figures are brought up with the sole purpose of analyzing their strategies of deconstructing hierarchies and exploitative power rela­tionships that arise through the concept of the state. To me, the most valuable thoughts are how they differ from Western anarchist thinkers; something (Western) postmodern radicals regularly exclude. It focuses less about agreeing with every historical figure mentioned, but how building upon their actions and theories contribute to a model that paths us toward decolonization and liberation in the present.

As a side note, I do not recommend it to those not yet invested into colonial India and its history without a large amount of prior knowledge. This is because the organization and lengths from which these histories are told makes the presumption that the reader already read several books on the topic, which admittedly left me impatient sometimes (adhd moment). Much of this could be my own fault, but as a book in the "Anarchist Interventions Series," I hope this doesn't make an improper impression on anybody newly interested.

[Spicy T AKA Mr. Tea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've been trying to read a bunch on anti-colonialism and was really hopeful about this book. I thought it would be more hands on but it turned into a history of radical Indians through an anarchist lens which, while interesting, didn't do so great a job at breaking down what a decolonized anarchism looks like. At the end questions are posed and she answers them and that was more of the hands-on kinds of stuff I was looking for. Sadly it was a few pages at the end. Again, an interesting look at small a anarchism being applied to Indian radicals and some of the history of India, but it was not what I thought it would be. Will look for more from her in the future though.

[Clare · Rating 2 out of 5]

A good history of anti-colonial struggle in India/South Asia and how these struggles were consistent with anarchist principles in some aspects and in others not. It concludes with the ability of anti-colonial struggles to be anarchist in principle, that the Eurocentric view of what anarchism is doesn't necessarily exclude nationalism or even religion as a culture resources in breaking down hierarchy on all levels. Decolonizing anarchism means not imposing a purely western or Eurocentric view of what anarchism is supposed to be in an anti-modernity or anti-progressive mode of action but one of building and progressing, even technologically, by "nation building" in arming people with the ability to direct their own lives in a egalitarian manner and in essence removing the hierarchical structure imposed globally from outside but also from inside in their attitudes and mentality.

[Daniel Burton-Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

The cover and title don't reveal much about what this book actually is, leading to some confusion of expectations. It's primarily an analysis of the great male thinkers of early to mid-20th century Indian social movements as their ideas relate to the Western anarchist tradition. I found it both an informative discussion of figures previously un- or little known to me, and a valuable effort to deprovincialize anarchist ideals.

[Antti Rautiainen · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent intro to often ignored anarchist topic. I think people who accuse this of concentrating on upper-caste or hindu nationalists do not grasp historical dynamics of movements and are putting forward somewhat anachronistic takes.

[Leslie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very informative

[Michael Schmidt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meditations on Maia Ramnath’s Decolonizing Anarchism: an Antiauthoritarian History of India’s Liberation Struggle (AK Press, USA, 2012) and her Haj to Utopia: How the Ghadar Movement Charted Global Radicalism and Attempted to Overthrow the British Empire (California World History Library, USA, 2011):

What the Institute for Anarchist Studies’ Maia Ramnath has achieved with these two books whose angles of approach differ yet which form companion volumes in that they intersect on the little-known anarchist movement of South Asia, is a breathtaking, sorely-needed re-envisioning of anarchism’s forgotten organisational strength in the colonial world which points to its great potential to pragmatically combat imperialism today.

My review, South Asian Anarchism: Paths to Praxis, is way too long to post here, but for those interested, the link is http://www.anarkismo.net/article/23404

[Gurty · Rating 1 out of 5]

Conflation of Hindu nationalists w/ anarchists very problematic. At best just poorly researched at worst Red-brown entryism.

[shabana ks · Rating 1 out of 5]

Centered on a bunch of upper caste men and their activities.....