Special Issue: Anarchy and Degrowth

AKC Collective (2023) has recently invited degrowth scholarship to engage with autonomous struggles in less abstract ways, specifically pointing at its tendency to “certify” rather than learn with and from them. Echoing this invitation, we suggest that an (eco)anarchist approach to corporate media may help to understand the creation and resilience of green growth narratives. We demonstrate this in the case of anti-mining struggles around Lützerath, Germany, where we explore the role of integrative propaganda (Ellul, 1965/1973) in managing this socio-ecological conflict. Building on ethnographic research, we identify and illustrate dominant narratives on a corporate-state agreement known as the “RWE-deal,” Lützerath’s symbolism, and left extremism; all of which omit, distort, and distract from the dissent emerging from Lützerath. We then analyze these dominant narratives as (un)intentionally manipulated by exploring news production at Rheinische Post Media Group through Herman and Chomsky’s (1988/2002) Propaganda Model. Building on a discussion around dominant narratives as a form of psychological warfare, we draw out how dominant narratives are intertwined and rely on centering the lifestyle and culture of Lützerath’s inhabitants to secure green growth narratives. We then elaborate on how cherishing the practice of re-inhabiting can help scholars in engagements with autonomous struggle.

Capitalism relies on various forms of violence that create and uphold injustice and alienation. Anarchist practices—such as disobedience and occupations—challenge this status quo by resisting oppression and imagining alternatives beyond the State. While degrowth scholarship has effectively analysed global inequalities, it must further engage with these movement experiences and explore the affective dimensions of collective struggle. In this context, this article discusses how acts of solidarity during moments of State oppression serve not only as resistance but as survival strategies against systemic violence. By referring to internationalist protests in solidarity with Palestine, the article argues for an emphasis on political emotions to understand and confront global capitalist violence. In order to move beyond ideological constraints to envision a world of radical interdependence and justice, degrowth needs to become part of a global movement for liberation, based on revolutionary bonds and collective self-defence.