Hi everyone, I’ve really been wanting to learn more about anarchism and communism, especially because they’re so misunderstood and it seems they’re never really portrayed correctly, especially in America where the idea of socialism is enough to spark reactions. I’m 20 and have always been interest in politics as a trans person whose been raised to question authority and what I see and hear from politicians, on TV, etc. but I never really dug in to politics much until now. I’ve never been satisfied by “just being liberal” and I care more about extreme/revolutionary societal change and have always been disillusioned with capitalism, especially after experiencing horrible financial conditions that included me and my dad losing our house, a few years of having to live with a friend of his, and we now live in an apartment and it’s fairly stable but we’re always having to find ways to save and have had to deal with a few eviction notices.

I purchased anarchism and other essays by Emma Goldman and foundations of Leninism by JV Stalin from a used bookstore so far, but does anyone have any other recommendations?

Sorry if I sound like a noob, it’s because I am :)

  • spectre [he/him]@hexbear.netEnglish
    8·
    1 month ago

    Pretty good starting points!

    I like to recommend “principles of Communism” as a jumping off point as well. It’s a short essay in Q and A format written by Marx. Might help set the stage before jumping in to a book that’s more dense.

    Another important area to learn is media criticism. Since most of your knowledge is going to be filtered through media and cultural biased in general, it’s important to understand them so you can “cancel them out”. The Citations Needed podcast does this sort of commentary and criticism in relation to current events. Highly recommended.

    If you want something with more slop that “goes down easy” watch clips of Hasan Poker. He draws off the same material that we do, and you’ll get “up to speed” pretty quickly. Then check back here as you move past his presented viewpoints.