Sociology of the Anarchists - Gozips.uakron.edu - The University of ...

[Snyder 1961 on Buddhism and anarchism]
Still, Bufe (1995) fiendishly defines “Buddhism” as:
A philosophy which promotes compassion, respect for life,
logic, and reason, and hence in no way, but for its
unfortunate embrace of self-denial, deserves to be libeled as
a “religion”. (p. 49)
Dewey (2004) points to Unitarian Universalism (UU) for its embrace of humanity and
anarchist sympathies. 51 The Catholic Worker are likely the most open anarchists, many of
whom are prominent anarchists, such as Dorothy Day and Ammon Hennacy. 52
Foster (1987 and 1997) suggests that Amish-Anabaptists embody many anarchist
tendencies. In his 1987 article, he contrasts the Amish with Taoism, stating that both have
key values synonymous with anarchism, practice direct democracy and civil
disobedience, use “appropriate technology”, rebelled against their oppressive
contemporaries, and rejected “civilization”. The philosophies of Lao Tse and the Amish
are akin to what Foster calls “eco-anarchism”, or similar to what activists today might call
“green anarchism” or “primitivism”. He states that the Amish value:
Separation from – and non-conformity to – the secular
world, in language, dress, the use of modern technologies,
consumption patterns, types of residence... Value-oriented
rationality, or rationality in the service of family,
community and religious ideals... A preference for smallscale
communities, farms and business enterprises... A
reverential attitude toward nature and a respect for the
benefits of manual labour... Voluntary simplicity...
Christian pacifism, as embodied in the Sermon on the
Mount... Adult baptism... The supremacy of the sacred
community over the rights of the individual... Humility.
(Foster 1987, pp. 10-11)
It would appear that the Amish practice their philosophy far better than green anarchists
and primitivists, and are less ideological about it. They also seem to delve into less
hypocrisy in action than current primitivists, which stems from the White middle-class.
51 As a complete aside, the Kent, Ohio UU congregation was open-minded and trusting enough to, at the
last minute, host an anarchist conference on May 3, 2003 after the site reservation at Kent State
University was pulled on conference organizers by a paranoid and ultra-nationalist (i.e. “patriotic”)
university administration.
52 Again, see Boehrer (2000 and 2003) for more on the Catholic Worker movement. Also DiFranco and
Phillips (1996) relate a story about Hennacy in the song “Anarchy”.
[ Williams 56 ] [ this is a draft. do not cite. ]