Against The State

“I wish we didn’t need this book so badly right now, but I’m grateful it’s so well-written. It’s a good idea to be prepared for whatever the future holds and, as James points out, if we can organize industry then we can organize military supply chains. Against the State is part memoir, part history, part journalism, and all together essential reading.” –Margaret Killjoy, author of A Country of Ghosts and The Sapling Cage

“With deep insight and empathy, scholar-journalist Stout brings us to the front lines of anarchists at war. From the barricades and armored vehicles of 1930s Catalonia to innovations in contemporary Rojava and Myanmar, the challenges and rewards of fighting for freedom, with freedom, are this fascinating and indispensable book’s uplifting revelations.” –Edith Mirante, author of Where the Mithuns Are: Essays on War, Art and Beasts

“What happens to revolutionary movements when they are forced to respond to state violence? In elegant prose and with formidable insight, historian James Stout answers that question, taking us deep into the heart of revolutionary Spain, Rojava, and Myanmar to observe how movements confronted with state violence can fight back while still retaining power in the hands of the people. Beautifully written, this cogent examination of revolutionary history is more relevant than ever–and impossible to set down.” –Debbie Bookchin, journalist and editor

James Stout is a journalist, historian, and anarchist with experience working in conflict zones and mutual aid projects around the world. His PhD research was on international antifascism in the Spanish Second Republic and Civil War. He is the author of The Popular Front and the Barcelona 1936 Popular Olympics: Playing as If the World Was Watching.