Subject: (en) Brazil, Florianopolis, Anarchist Collective Black Flag - Note on expulsion of militant (pt)

At the beginning of June 2013, we received information that the militant Leandro B?, the 
Community Front of our organization, had assaulted his partner with whom he lived, and 
still maintains a relationship. In addition, other violent behavior were recurring, as 
humiliation and psychological coercion, which were reported in the companion itself, which 
acts together with our activists in social movements, and the bonds of friendship we have. 
---- For us, this was a complete breach of trust and an attitude at odds with our 
principles. We argue that the fight against sexism and patriarchy are central, as well as 
all the oppressions, and a case of gender violence is unacceptable coming from anyone. 
Coming from someone who considers himself an anarchist, is absurd and incoherent.

We stand, since then, in full solidarity with the companion, we seek help in this 
difficult time. We helped her move house, offering another place to dwell therein.

We suggested that she denounced the story and became willing to assist in this task, 
because we understand that silence only favors the aggressor, as we have positioned 
ourselves in other cases of gender violence. However, we respect your request for 
confidentiality, and so the story was not made public at that time.

As for the militant, he was immediately removed from the organization, both externally and 
internally. Having recognized the serious error committed and alleged willingness to 
change their behavior, we determined a number of requirements needed to reevaluate later 
resumption (or not) of their work in our spaces: 1) never attack or have positions in a 
violent relationship, 2) seek psychological help for their aggressive behavior, 3) also 
seek a focus group for perpetrators, to discuss and reflect on their attitudes, 4) stay 
away from militancy, 5) read and research about feminism and gender violence, for produce 
a synthesis material on the subject, 6) make periodic repasses our organization on 
compliance with these requirements for collective assessment.

These steps have not been met and reoccurred militant aggression. Therefore, we believe 
that it is necessary to position ourselves publicly discussing what we did again with the 
companion.

We understand that these were minimum requirements to begin to deal seriously with the 
problem of gender violence, which is not a failure of an individual or another person, but 
a social issue, widespread and sustained in the macho culture that we live. We seek to 
provide a more effective response than mere expulsion, only wash our hands, isolating the 
former militant feminists and libertarian discussions of where it needs to be inserted, 
now more than ever. At the same time, we try not to expose any (a) partner (a) to act 
politically by his side without being aware of the situation.

Punitive solutions, but do not address the source of the problems, is the practice that 
the state already offers today. To build a libertarian society and feminist we need to 
build methods that are feminists and libertarians to deal with social problems, including 
gender violence there. It is a very hard task, in which we have more questions than 
answers, but we deem necessary.

So we need to continuously discuss gender issues and reassess our posture policies there, 
including all social relations. For within a system where structural violence is a central 
feature of social relations are also marked by oppression. We see daily feminist struggles 
are secundarizadas in social movements and leftist organizations, including the media 
libertarians, and must be willing to face this situation. We do not want this bill to 
indemnify us for any evaluation or criticism, but rather to give visibility to this issue 
and strengthen the discussion of gender within the political spaces that participated.

We launched this note not only to make public one gender violence, but because we want to 
build together the mechanisms of a libertarian revolutionary justice - because freedom can 
only be constructed with freedom.
Just as socialism or libertarian will not be socialism, the revolution will be feminist or 
not!
Core Florian?polis - Black Flag Anarchist Collective
Posted in: CABN , Notes