The Impossible Community

Description

**The Impossible Community** confronts a critical moment when social and ecological catastrophes loom, the Left seems unable to articulate a response, and the Right controls public debates. This book offers a fresh and highly readable reformulation of anarchist social and political theory to develop a communitarian anarchist solution. In this stunningly original work, John P. Clark, author, lifelong activist, and one of the most fascinating anarchist luminaries of our time, skillfully argues that a free and just social order requires a radical transformation of the modes of domination exercised through social ideology, the social imaginary, the social ethos, and social institutional structures. Communitarian anarchism unites a universalist concern for social and ecological justice while recognizing the integrity and individuality of the person. The Impossible Community is a renewed examination of the anarchist principles of mutual aid and voluntary cooperation and provides convincingly lucid examples in various contexts, from the rebuilding of New Orleans after Katrina to social movements in South Asia. Ambitious in scope and compelling in its strength and imagination, The Impossible Community offers readers an accessible theoretical framework along with concrete case studies to show how contemporary anarchist practice continues a long tradition of successfully synthesizing personal and communal liberation. This provocatively innovative work will appeal not only to students of anarchism and political theory but also to activists and anyone interested in making the world a better place. (Source: [PM Press](https://www.pmpress.org/index.php?l=product_detail&p=1053))

Description

*The Impossible Community* confronts a critical moment when social and ecological catastrophe loom, the Left seems unable to articulate a response, and the Right is monopolizing public debates. This book offers a reformulation of anarchist social and political theory to develop a communitarian anarchist solution. It argues that a free and just social order requires a radical transformation of the modes of domination exercised through social ideology and institutional structures. Communitarian anarchism unites a universalist concern for social and ecological justice while recognizing the integrity and individuality of the person. In fact, anarchist principles of mutual aid and voluntary cooperation can already be seen in various contexts, from the rebuilding of New Orleans after Katrina to social movements in India. This work offers both a theoretical framework and concrete case studies to show how contemporary anarchist practice continues a long tradition of successfully synthetizing personal and communal liberation. This significant contribution will appeal not only to students in anarchism and political theory, but also to activists and anyone interested in making the world a better place. (Source: [Bloomsbury Publishing](https://web.archive.org/web/20140502064820/https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/the-impossible-community-9781441185471/))

Subjects

Series Statement

• Contemporary Anarchist Studies

Other Editions

• The Impossible Community: Realizing Communitarian AnarchismPaperbackBloomsbury Publishing2013-08-01
• Impossible CommunityBloomsbury Academic & Professional2013-01-01
• The Impossible CommunityHardcoverBloomsbury Academic2013-06-06
• The Impossible CommunityPM Press2020-01-01
• Impossible CommunityPM Press2022-01-01