Anarchism, anthropology and Andalucia: an analysis of the CNT and the 'new capitalism'.

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Confederacion Nacional del Trabajo - Organization overview

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Anarchism, anthropology and Andalucia: an analysis of the CNT and the 'new capitalism'.

ABSTRACT

Systems theory can show us how organizations develop, allowing them to survive changes in their environments. Such analyses also demonstrate why the CNT is passing through such a profound crisis: it is a trade union which is completely excluded from the world of work. The CNT began in a society very different from today. Despite the many significant changes which have occurred since 1910, its organizational structures and ideological assumptions have remained practically unchanged.

The need for change has not met with a common response from its militants. The CNT is currently split between two tendencies, which we will term 'anarchist' and 'syndicalist'. Despite a general consensus around the principle of non-participation in trade union representation structures, both tendencies compete for control of the CNT. We end this paper by presenting some examples from the Seville CNT, which can be classified as following the 'syndicalist' tendency: it has had some success in the context of the 'new capitalism'.

INTRODUCTION

This article presents an analysis and a diagnosis of the CNT in Andalucia, using some theories and concepts of social anthropology. The CNT is a Spanish trade union organization inspired by anarchist ideas. Its ultimate objective is the radical transformation of society through a revolutionary process, but what really distinguishes it from other revolutionary organizations is its strategy: it aims to unite workers through the fight for better working conditions, to encourage awareness of different forms of domination--particularly of the exploitation of the working class--and thus to create a situation of social polarization which leads to a social-revolutionary general strike. These are the basic precepts of anarcho-syndicalism.

In the sections which follow I will explain how the CNT works and how it is organized, considering its actions in the context of the work-place, the local environment and the international context (through the AIT [International Workers' Association]). (1) I will concentrate on the CNT in Andalucia, but I consider that my analysis can be applied to almost any branch of the CNT. Next, I will use some elements of systems theory to show how organizations establish links with their environments, and I will demonstrate that the recent transformations in the social context have led to a profound crisis within the CNT, which has shown a clear inability to adapt. Its successive congresses are little more than re-affirmations of ideas and organizational structures which may have worked in the past, when the CNT offered solutions to the workers' real problems. Here, we will conduct a SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, threats): a device which may provoke a much-needed debate. Lastly, I will show how the CNT Local Federation in Seville has been able to adapt partially to the new circumstances, despite many obstacles. The CNT could have a promising future, if it allowed the necessary revision of the presumptions which currently limit its potential.

My main aim is to demonstrate how an anarcho-syndicalist organization can act to resolve the tension between--on the one hand--the heritage of modernity and industrial capitalism and--on the other hand--the need to survive in the context of flexibility, fragmentation and insecurity. I will also show that this 'new capitalism' may give the CNT an unprecedented opportunity to recover its strength. To a great extent, everything depends on the CNT militants being able to accept changes and to resolve conflicts and dilemmas.

Most of the ...

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