"The Freedom to Desire and to Grow" ---- Among American female
anarchists, we have already presented the memoirs of Emma Goldman and
the articles of Lucy Parsons, but Voltairine de Cleyre is more in the
background. Yet her dynamism, despite her health concerns, was renowned,
and her contribution to the defense of women's rights and those of
workers was decisive in the bitter struggles in the United States. Alice
Béja is publishing a biography, Voltairine de Cleyre, Anarchism,
Feminism, and Free Love, with Éditions de l'Atelier. "Writing about
Voltairine de Cleyre today is to affirm that her ideas and her life
resonate with our present. In her texts, she always closely associates
the social dimension and the ethical aim of anarchism, which ultimately
rests on the responsibility of individuals since it removes all
legitimacy from institutions."
Voltairine de Cleyre was born in 1866 and lived for over twenty years in
Philadelphia. Emma Goldman considered her an example of American
anarchist activists, demonstrating that anarchism was not an import from
the Old World. It was in 1888 that Voltairine encountered anarchist
ideas after the Haymarket tragedy in Chicago. She would establish
herself as an anarchist, atheist, and feminist. From an individualist,
she evolved toward the theories of Peter Kropotkin. American society was
undergoing rapid change; anarchists represented a strong minority, seen
as a danger by the public authorities. Unlike other activists, she was
not subjected to imprisonment or repeated repression. Yet her discourse
was powerful, cutting against the inequalities and injustices suffered
by women in this straitjacketed American society. She helped create
alternatives in the personal lives of activists, enabling them to apply
their ideals in their daily lives and experiment with different modes of
political, sexual, and romantic relationships than those that
constituted the social norm of the time. According to Alice Béja, "the
hope of the revolution is associated with a constant attention to the
possibilities offered by the here and now." Her private life experiences
led her to harsh reflections on the influence of religion and the
relationships between men and women within the family. This denunciation
of two pillars of American society would obviously shock those in power.
Women's Emancipation and Cohabitation
She was a free woman who defended women's emancipation and cohabitation.
She rejected marriage. "In order for love and respect to last, I
advocate for rare and fleeting unions. For life to flourish, men and
women must remain separate personalities." She wrote to her lover: "I
want there to be between you and me the respect that exists between us
and others." Activism and private life are closely linked. Voltairine
develops a radical feminism that does not find its fulfillment in access
to the right to vote. Women must gain economic freedom. "Political
freedom has not liberated the people." Here we find the spirit of Louise
Michel, whom she would meet in London.
Her denunciation of religion finds its source in her stay in a convent,
then in her association with the freethought movement. Obviously,
reading Michel Bakunin's book, God and the State, reinforces her
militant atheism.
Empathy for a Suffering World
American society is experiencing a wave of repression against
anarchists; she intends to demonstrate that they are victims of a
system. Anarchist society is a society of love in the face of state
violence. Like Louise Michel, she was the victim of an attempted
assassination attempt that weakened her health. And like Louise, she
refused to press charges. Living in pain, she showed empathy for a
suffering world. We can also find words from Élysée Reclus. She defended
her ideas in the anarchist press such as Mother Earth and in association
with the IWW union. She died on June 20, 1912, at the age of 45,
somewhat forgotten, but she affirmed: "Anarchism means freedom of the
soul as well as the body, the freedom to desire as well as to grow."
* Alice Béja
Voltairine de Cleyre,
Anarchism, Feminism and Free Love
Ed. de l'atelier, 2025
https://monde-libertaire.fr/?articlen=8285
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
anarchists, we have already presented the memoirs of Emma Goldman and
the articles of Lucy Parsons, but Voltairine de Cleyre is more in the
background. Yet her dynamism, despite her health concerns, was renowned,
and her contribution to the defense of women's rights and those of
workers was decisive in the bitter struggles in the United States. Alice
Béja is publishing a biography, Voltairine de Cleyre, Anarchism,
Feminism, and Free Love, with Éditions de l'Atelier. "Writing about
Voltairine de Cleyre today is to affirm that her ideas and her life
resonate with our present. In her texts, she always closely associates
the social dimension and the ethical aim of anarchism, which ultimately
rests on the responsibility of individuals since it removes all
legitimacy from institutions."
Voltairine de Cleyre was born in 1866 and lived for over twenty years in
Philadelphia. Emma Goldman considered her an example of American
anarchist activists, demonstrating that anarchism was not an import from
the Old World. It was in 1888 that Voltairine encountered anarchist
ideas after the Haymarket tragedy in Chicago. She would establish
herself as an anarchist, atheist, and feminist. From an individualist,
she evolved toward the theories of Peter Kropotkin. American society was
undergoing rapid change; anarchists represented a strong minority, seen
as a danger by the public authorities. Unlike other activists, she was
not subjected to imprisonment or repeated repression. Yet her discourse
was powerful, cutting against the inequalities and injustices suffered
by women in this straitjacketed American society. She helped create
alternatives in the personal lives of activists, enabling them to apply
their ideals in their daily lives and experiment with different modes of
political, sexual, and romantic relationships than those that
constituted the social norm of the time. According to Alice Béja, "the
hope of the revolution is associated with a constant attention to the
possibilities offered by the here and now." Her private life experiences
led her to harsh reflections on the influence of religion and the
relationships between men and women within the family. This denunciation
of two pillars of American society would obviously shock those in power.
Women's Emancipation and Cohabitation
She was a free woman who defended women's emancipation and cohabitation.
She rejected marriage. "In order for love and respect to last, I
advocate for rare and fleeting unions. For life to flourish, men and
women must remain separate personalities." She wrote to her lover: "I
want there to be between you and me the respect that exists between us
and others." Activism and private life are closely linked. Voltairine
develops a radical feminism that does not find its fulfillment in access
to the right to vote. Women must gain economic freedom. "Political
freedom has not liberated the people." Here we find the spirit of Louise
Michel, whom she would meet in London.
Her denunciation of religion finds its source in her stay in a convent,
then in her association with the freethought movement. Obviously,
reading Michel Bakunin's book, God and the State, reinforces her
militant atheism.
Empathy for a Suffering World
American society is experiencing a wave of repression against
anarchists; she intends to demonstrate that they are victims of a
system. Anarchist society is a society of love in the face of state
violence. Like Louise Michel, she was the victim of an attempted
assassination attempt that weakened her health. And like Louise, she
refused to press charges. Living in pain, she showed empathy for a
suffering world. We can also find words from Élysée Reclus. She defended
her ideas in the anarchist press such as Mother Earth and in association
with the IWW union. She died on June 20, 1912, at the age of 45,
somewhat forgotten, but she affirmed: "Anarchism means freedom of the
soul as well as the body, the freedom to desire as well as to grow."
* Alice Béja
Voltairine de Cleyre,
Anarchism, Feminism and Free Love
Ed. de l'atelier, 2025
https://monde-libertaire.fr/?articlen=8285
_________________________________________
A - I N F O S N E W S S E R V I C E
By, For, and About Anarchists
Send news reports to A-infos-en mailing list
A-infos-en@ainfos.ca
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