What do anarchists want with No Kings?

We live in a time when billionaires can buy up whole communications platforms and political parties, when heads of state can start wars without concern for public opinion. Many people are rightly questioning the institutions that got us here.

Anarchists have always opposed kings—and every other kind of tyrant, besides. We oppose all forms of hierarchy, every structure that concentrates power in the hands of a few. We believe that no one deserves to be able to dominate anyone else, whether by hoarding access to resources or wielding the instruments of state violence. There is no excuse for remaining subservient to those who only seek to enrich themselves at our expense.

We want to bring about a situation in which no politician or billionaire could ever be in a position to cut off essential resources to millions with the flick of a pen, in which no army of masked mercenaries could terrorize people. This is a profounder commitment to freedom, equality, and the well-being of the general public than you can find inside the halls of any government.

Rather than competing for control or hoarding wealth the way the billionaires do, we want to abolish the mechanisms that impose artificial scarcity. Rather than entrusting our agency to leaders, we want to build our capacity to act collectively, horizontally, and autonomously. All of us should be free to fulfill our potential on our own terms. We aim to create a network of voluntary associations that meet everyone’s needs while enabling us to defend each other.

To be an anarchist means recognizing that our own freedom and well-being are inextricably bound up with the freedom and well-being of others. It means being loyal to what is best in ourselves, becoming more capable of compassion and cooperation and courage. It means developing strategies for combating injustice and sharing those with everyone who needs them.

Across two centuries, anarchists have resisted every monarchy and persisted through every dictatorship. Now that democracy and capitalism are concluding in a new form of tyranny, a new generation must draw on this legacy of struggle.

No kings, no masters.