In Defense of Looting: A Riotous History of Uncivil Action

Vicky Osterweil

ISBN 10: 1645036693 / ISBN 13: 9781645036692

Editore: Bold Type Books, 2020

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A fresh argument for rioting and looting as our most powerful tools for dismantling white supremacy. Looting -- a crowd of people publicly, openly, and directly seizing goods -- is one of the more extreme actions that can take place in the midst of social unrest. Even self-identified radicals distance themselves from looters, fearing that violent tactics reflect badly on the broader movement. But Vicky Osterweil argues that stealing goods and destroying property are direct, pragmatic strategies of wealth redistribution and improving life for the working class -- not to mention the brazen messages these methods send to the police and the state. All our beliefs about the innate righteousness of property and ownership, Osterweil explains, are built on the history of anti-Black, anti-Indigenous oppression. From slave revolts to labor strikes to the modern-day movements for climate change, Black lives, and police abolition, Osterweil makes a convincing case for rioting and looting as weapons that bludgeon the status quo while uplifting the poor and marginalized. In Defense of Looting is a history of violent protest sparking social change, a compelling reframing of revolutionary activism, and a practical vision for a dramatically restructured society.

Codice articolo CIN1645036693VG

Dati bibliografici

• Titolo: In Defense of Looting: A Riotous History of Uncivil Action
• Editore: Bold Type Books
• Data di pubblicazione: 2020
• Lingua: Inglese
• ISBN 10: 1645036693
• ISBN 13: 9781645036692
• Rilegatura: Hardback
• Condizione: Very Good

Descrizione articolo

Riassunto

A fresh argument for rioting and looting as our most powerful tools for dismantling white supremacy.

Looting -- a crowd of people publicly, openly, and directly seizing goods -- is one of the more extreme actions that can take place in the midst of social unrest. Even self-identified radicals distance themselves from looters, fearing that violent tactics reflect badly on the broader movement.

But Vicky Osterweil argues that stealing goods and destroying property are direct, pragmatic strategies of wealth redistribution and improving life for the working class -- not to mention the brazen messages these methods send to the police and the state. All our beliefs about the innate righteousness of property and ownership, Osterweil explains, are built on the history of anti-Black, anti-Indigenous oppression.

From slave revolts to labor strikes to the modern-day movements for climate change, Black lives, and police abolition, Osterweil makes a convincing case for rioting and looting as weapons that bludgeon the status quo while uplifting the poor and marginalized. In Defense of Looting is a history of violent protest sparking social change, a compelling reframing of revolutionary activism, and a practical vision for a dramatically restructured society.

Informazioni sull'autore

Vicky Osterweil is a writer, editor, and agitator and a regular contributor to the New Inquiry. Her writing has also appeared in the Baffler, the Nation, the Rumpus, Real Life, and Al Jazeera America.