Vanguard, Subject, Rhizome?

Nia brought up a great comment regarding what I mean by the word "We" in my posts, questioning whether I was referring to a vanguard. Literally, I am referring to you the reader. Perhaps this is presumptuous. Certainly, there is no universal you. Each of you readers has a unique identity, subjectivity, and political disposition. When I refer to me, I am referring to a struggling social worker, artist, and petite-bourgeoisie, white, queer revolutionary who finds the on-the-ground struggles in various local communities, throughout the country, and abroad as inspirational.

Do I see myself as a vangaurdist? Not particularly. Rather, I identify as a Couch Potato--a passive spectator, a participant in the most grotesque cultural performance in the United States--excessive television watching. As far as I know, Lenin nor Che sat around watching TV all day.

That being said, I do view us as people who want to know about what's going on and want to be involved in it as well. I do view us as subjects who can impact history and who can collectively build power in our neighborhoods, workplaces, and communities. I do view us as people who have the right to communicate and act with others and influence decisions. I do see us as people who have the opportunity to advocate for and enjoy a broad variety of intersecting cultural expressions. I do view us as people who have an ethical responsibility to combat oppression, racism, sexism, homophobia, capitalism and ecological destruction. I do view us as people who should work towards building horizontal power across identities, communities, and geographies.


The image above is of a rhizomatic map. It demonstrates a model of organizing that is neither vanguardist nor hierarchical. It demonstrates a highly networked, horizontal, and energized structure of organizing that can neither be consolidated into a state nor a party nor monopolized by elites. When I imagine you, I imagine you are a node in this structure, part of a network of resistance and creative possibility. I imagine you are complicated, contradictory, and various. I imagine we can work together.