Anarchos^

/institute

Suite 444

3981 Boulevard St-Laurent

Montreal, Quebec

H2W 1Y5 Canada

Tel. (514) 844-4076

?The first conference of the Anarchos Institute was held this past June 5-6 in Montreal, the result of an initiative taken by our Montreal comrades. It took place in the University of Quebec, whose Department of Sociology co-sponsored the event. The intended purpose of the conference was to provide a basis for a community of anarchist intellectuals in North America by establishing the Anarchos Institute?as far as anyone knows, the first of its kind in North America.

Conference events were divided into three parts: public conferences; research seminars; and organizational sessions. Two public conferences on the theme "Intellectuals and the State," chaired by Roussopoulos and Schechter and with Laurin-Frenette, Chomsky, Leguyadef, Mascotto, Harrison, and Otero as speakers, attracted large, enthusiastic audiences of 3-500 people. The well put-together research seminars covered a wide range of anarchist topics?titles and copies of some papers are available upon request from Anarchos. They were lively.

argumentative, substantive, and enjoyed by most participants. The organizational meetings were open to members only?members were defined as those who had paid dues. There were about 60 members present, mostly from eastern Canada and northeastern US, though some came from Vancouver, San Francisco, Houston, and New Orleans. Observers from Europe, Milan and Paris, were also on hand. Though some reservations were expressed about its language and content/intent, for the time being Institute members accepted without dissent the preliminary statement of purpose that had been prepared by the Montreal comrades. It was felt by all that a fuller discussion of such matters should be deferred until the next general meeting of Anarchos. The initial discussion in Montreal centered upon the word "intellectual" and the issue of membership. It was generally felt that "intellectual" should not certainly not mean simply academic and that tendencies toward elitism should be guarded against, but that, at the same time, anyone concerned specifically with writing, studying, and teaching about anarchism should not be overly self-conscious about organizing themselves into their own so-defined group. It was also voted that the Institute would be based upon dues paying membership (though it was also stated that no person would be denied membership if s/he could not afford it) and that issues would be decided by a majority vote of such members.

Finally Montreal was accepted as the center for the Institute and June 1983 set as the date for the next general, conference. Boston had been mentioned as a likely location for the next meeting, but this was before the occurence of an incident that should seriously concern not only Anarchos members but all anarchists. Dimitri Roussopoulos, editor of Our Cenerathn and one of the organizers of the Anarchos conference, was stopped from entering the US on his way to the anti-nuclear conference held in New York City because he was an anarchist?a troubling aftermath of what most Anarchos members had felt was a good beginning in Montreal. If non-US anarchists cannot be assured entry into the US, planning for any future Anarchos conference in the US will remain uncertain; it may also signal the renewal of an effort by the US government to stifle anarchist dissent?an effort with old historical roots. Any other such incidents should be watched for and made known. * Final note?economics alas! has prevailed upon us to raise prices-single issues are now $2 plus postage/$8 for 4 issue sub.