The new issue of Black Flag: Anarchist Review is now available:
This year’s third issue has the usual mix of articles, re-prints and reviews, starting with the first of a two-part marking of the founding of Freedom in 1886. Founded by, amongst others, Peter Kropotkin and Charlotte M. Wilson, this monthly paper was a mainstay of the British Anarchist movement for decades (monthly, albeit with the occasional break or bimestrial issue). This issue covers its first 21 years – an anniversary the paper itself marked – with the following 20 years (1908-1927) covered in our next issue.
Previous issues of Black Flag Anarchist Review have included articles by regular contributors to the paper:
• L. S. Bevington, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 5 Number 3 (Autumn 2025)
• Alexander Berkman, Black Flag Anarchist Review Vol. 6 No. 1 (Spring 2026)
• Voltairine de Cleyre, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 2 Number 1 (Spring 2022)
• Emma Goldman, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 4 Number 2 (Summer 2024)
• Harry Kelly, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 3 Number 3 (Autumn 2023)
• Peter Kropotkin, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 2 Number 3 (Autumn 2022)
• Errico Malatesta, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 2 Number 2 (Summer 2022)
• Lucy Parsons, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 2 Number 1 (Spring 2022)
• Rudolf Rocker, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 3 Number 2 (Summer 2023)
• John Turner, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 4 Number 2 (Summer 2024)
• Charlotte M. Wilson, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 4 Number 1 (Spring 2024)
Also of note are:
• “1914: World War or Class War”, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 4 Number 3 (Autumn 2024)
• “Anarchism and the General Strike”, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 3 Number 1 (Spring 2023)
• “Socialists and Workers: The 1896 London Congress”, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 1 Number 3 (Autumn 2021)
• “Tom Mann and British Syndicalism”, Black Flag Anarchist Review Volume 1 Number 3 (Autumn 2021)
Here, we concentrate on articles published anonymously (although we do find room for three by Kropotkin and one by Henry Glasse). These reflect the general anarchist communist perspective of the paper on a range of subjects – including the social revolution, the labour movement, Marxism as well as current affairs. These will be read with great interest by today’s anarchists.
We then move on to Guy A. Aldred (1886-1963), someone who initially worked with the Freedom Group before ploughing his own furrow. A stalwart of the anarchist and anti-parliamentarian communist movements as well as the Glasgow radical scene, he was a somewhat idiosyncratic person but with an admirable energy and persistence. Unfortunately, this included when he was wrong and so, unfortunately, took far too long to admit the reality of the Bolshevik regime (slandering those who did, such as Emma Goldman and Freedom, before acknowledging the facts). Still, he should be remembered for his contributions to the British libertarian movement over the decades.
Then we publish a recent translation of the Charter of Lyon adopted by the CGT-SR in 1926 While the 1906 Charter of Amiens is well-known in the history of French revolutionary syndicalism, this post-war charter is less so. However, it is of note for it sought to learn the lessons of the failure of the pre-war CGT and its descent into reformism and shameful support of the Allied war effort.
Next is a discussion of the Factory Occupations which swept France in 1936 and the Popular Front. Given that today we hear calls for a new Popular Front to combat the right, it is useful to recall how French anarchists responded to the original. As the article indicates, they argued that a “popular front” on the streets and in the workplaces, using direct action and solidarity, would be more effective than relying upon politicians to do our resisting for us.
We re-print a rare article by Murray Bookchin (1921-2006) written to mark the 50th anniversary of the Spanish Revolution. Given Bookchin’s break with anarchism in 1999 and his subsequent anti-anarchist comments, including this article is problematic. However, while Bookchin happily destroyed his own legacy in his final years, we think that his contributions to anarchism over the decades outweigh the shamefulness of his final years.
Bookchin’s account does have flaws. He does indulge in some regional stereotypes to explain anarchism’s appeal but that does not explain why there were CNT and UGT unions in the same areas. Also, while he rightly laments the decision of the CNT to collaborate with the other anti-fascist groups (and so, eventually, the Republican State), he focuses too much on the post-hoc rationales issued (rightly labelled as confused) rather than the social context the decision to ignore anarchist theory was made. We then mark the death of Durruti.
The example of the Spanish anarchist movement was one Kropotkin, for one, always pointed to and has important lessons for radicals today. Suffice to say, if that Spanish Labour movement had been completely Marxist with a large Communist or Trotskyist Party (the latter being admittedly extremely unlikely) then the Spanish Revolution would not have taken place. The movement would have degenerated into reformism decades before and if fascism sought power it would have met the same lack of resistance Hitler had. This should be remembered when reading the patronising and inaccurate accounts of Spanish anarchism and the 1936 revolution by Marxists.
Next we commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 by re-printing a pamphlet issued by the Syndicalist Workers Federation the year following its crushing. Then we mark the 30th anniversary of the death of Bobby Lynn, a stalwart of the Glasgow Anarchist movement from the 1940s to the 1990s. This is followed by an obituary for Barry Pateman.
We end with reviews – one of which discusses Bookchin’s shameful anti-anarchist diatribes in the years before his death – and our usual round-up of movement news, Parish Notices.
Original translations which appear in Black Flag: Anarchist Review eventually appear on-line here:
https://anarchistfaq.org/translations/index.html
In addition, we have taken the opportunity to correct various typos in, and make other minor changes to, previous issues.
This year we aim to continue to cover a range of people and subjects. These will hopefully include the Russian Revolution, the Haymarket Martyrs, the 1907 International Anarchist Congress, Augustin Souchy, Sacco and Vanzetti, amongst others.
However, this work needs help otherwise at some stage it will end. Contributions from libertarian socialists are welcome on these and other subjects! We are a small collective and always need help in writing, translating and gathering material, so please get in touch if you want to see Black Flag Anarchist Review continue.
This issue’s editorial and contents can be found: here
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