Just as rapidly as COVID-19 spread around the world, top-down responses that have allowed national governments to consolidate their power have proliferated in the opening months of 2020. At the same time, there has been an outbreak of antiauthoritarian responses to the disease and its impacts that look beyond the state and build power beyond this crisis. As discussions about wealth redistribution, mutual aid, resource sharing, worker and tenant organizing, and government intervention come more into the mainstream, examples of antiauthoritarian principles, practices, and politics in the mainstream are becoming more prevalent. At the same time, we are all navigating difficult material, mental, physical, and emotional terrain. So, let’s check in.
Responding to the urgency of the moment, Perspectives on Anarchist Theory is seeking reports from the field and short pieces about the ongoing global pandemic for digital publication outside of our regular issues. How are you and your community responding to the pandemic? What strategies have been useful in building up necessary resources and what have turned out to be more trouble than they are worth? What have you been doing to stay connected with folks during self-isolation? How have you handled caregiving for others, including homeschooling? How do you nourish yourself, physically, mentally, and emotionally? How does what’s happening now connect to larger struggles with which you’ve been engaged? How has it changed them?
We are open to a range of formats, including but not limited to:
- Short report-backs from groups or networks
- Toolkits for organizing during a crisis
- Self-care and care for others during physical distancing
- Reflections on the intersections of coronavirus with power, oppression, and resistance
- Creative pieces, including poetry, nonfiction, short fiction, and visual art
- Annotated reading or watch lists
- Lessons plans for all ages of schooling
- Recipes, shopping lists, or other models for staying nourished
We expect most submissions to be relatively modest in terms of length in order to facilitate an efficient and responsive editing process. We will begin accepting submissions immediately on a rolling basis.
Please prepare your manuscript as thoroughly as you can before sending it along for consideration. If you have a concept for an article but are unsure how to develop and refine the ideas or language, we are happy to help you out with the writing process, particularly if you have never written for publication before. As with any publication, please familiarize yourself with our work before submitting (http://anarchiststudies.org).
All submissions should meet the following format requirements:
- Please follow the Chicago Manual of Style for general format and citation guidelines.
- Please use endnotes rather than footnotes and keep notes to a minimum.
- Type your endnotes directly into the text. Please do not use the “insert note” function in Word, as it is incompatible with our layout software.
- Do not include page numbers on your manuscript.
- Do not indent new paragraphs. Use a line break instead.
- Please keep in mind that we seek to share these ideas with a broad readership; write in accessible, clear language. Do not assume an academic audience.
- Be sure to include your name and reliable contact information, as well as a brief (3-6 sentence) bio that you would like printed alongside your article.
Send any questions, queries, or submissions to: perspectivesonanarchisttheory@gmail.com
