Thrift Stores and Anarchists

Journal Entry from 1.11.08 at about 9 PM:

Went to Sincoste tonight (free thrift store run by anarchists). Nothing good clothing-wise. However, some good came of the whole trip. I inadvertently introduced myself to Madrid's anarchist underground. Sincoste and Patio Marvillas (the anarchist squat where Sincoste is located) aren't so much stores or a place to hang out. They are an anarchist squatters' paradise. As I write this I hear echoes of demonstration and revolt. Drums, whistles, and screams for freedom reverberate down tthe street as they march towards Plaza de Espana. I'm not sure what they're marching for or against, but at least it's a start. This network of non-conformists is unlike anything I've ever seen or heard of in the United States. Soon, the sounds of punk, hip-hop, and reggae will be sounding from the basement of their five story home.

All political, all pro-human rights, all anti-war, and all for the greater good.

As an American who sympethizes with their causes and beliefs, I am frequently disenfranchised with the political, anti-war, "anarcho" ethos of those living in the United States . The revolution is dead there, they are no longer fighting. They hide behind their rhetoric and beliefs and use them more as a fashion statement than a stament of their lifestyle and beliefs. The anarcho-communists here, however, do not. For them it is a religion, a passion, a belief, a way of life. You don't hear about these people in the news. This is grassroots, word-of-mouth, donation financed revolution. The way it should be.

I never understood that old maxim, but now I do: "the Revolution won't be televised". It can't be, for that would kill it, bastardize it, and commercialize it (like what has already been done in the United States). It witll destroy what these people believe in. This has already been done in the United States where being a revolutionary, sporting a Che shirt, or wearing a Castro style hat is considered counter-culture. Here they walk the walk. Their revolution is silent and whispered while also shouted and screamed. That is the essence of their revolution.

Subversive and dangerous, the way it should be.