Roots of Resistance
Encyclopedia
Roots of Resistance was an anti-racist organization active in Vancouver
, Canada
from 1992 to 1996. The organization was formed shortly after a Vancouver demonstration in support of Rodney King
during the 1992 Los Angeles riots
, fusing an affinity group
called Anarchists of Colour with Langara College's students of colour collective, the Third World Alliance, and other activists. Roots of Resistance was composed of people of colour only, with members of African, Asian
, First Nations
and Latin American ancestry, including people of mixed-race.
Members of Roots of Resistance were of various left-wing political tendencies, from anarchism
to Marxism
, as well as divergent cultural and religious perspectives. Uniting the group was an anti-colonial and anti-capitalist critique, including support of First Nations sovereignty and opposition to global imperialism. Roots of Resistance also criticized parliamentary attempts to restrict immigration, and directly opposed neo-fascist activity, two important issues in early- to mid-1990s Canada.
Roots of Resistance's people of colour-only membership was an organizational strategy developed to address racism from a position of strength and affinity, but also to reject what was seen as a white cultural hegemony within the radical left which effectively excluded people of colour and their perspectives. (This critique was aimed at, to name a few examples, the white-led left's reduction of all matters of power to "the class struggle
"; its "generation gap
"-inflected suspicion of elders; its insensitivity to the importance of spirituality for some communities; its emphasis on counterculture
over community; etc.)
These various prejudices of the white-dominated left were essentially challenged by the founding of an allied group with an all brown membership. Roots of Resistance frequently worked in coalition with white allies, and was not a separatist organization, nor was it anti-white. Roots of Resistance's most newsworthy moments were its Anti-Canada Day demonstrations on 1 July, events designed to expose the colonialist and genocidal history of the Canadian state.
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
from 1992 to 1996. The organization was formed shortly after a Vancouver demonstration in support of Rodney King
Rodney King
Rodney Glen King is an American best known for his involvement in a police brutality case involving the Los Angeles Police Department on March 3, 1991...
during the 1992 Los Angeles riots
1992 Los Angeles riots
The 1992 Los Angeles Riots or South Central Riots, also known as the 1992 Los Angeles Civil Unrest were sparked on April 29, 1992, when a jury acquitted three white and one hispanic Los Angeles Police Department officers accused in the videotaped beating of black motorist Rodney King following a...
, fusing an affinity group
Affinity group
An Affinity group is usually a small group of activists who work together on direct action.Affinity groups are organized in a non-hierarchical manner, usually using consensus decision making, and are often made up of trusted friends...
called Anarchists of Colour with Langara College's students of colour collective, the Third World Alliance, and other activists. Roots of Resistance was composed of people of colour only, with members of African, Asian
Asian people
Asian people or Asiatic people is a term with multiple meanings that refers to people who descend from a portion of Asia's population.- Central Asia :...
, First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
and Latin American ancestry, including people of mixed-race.
Members of Roots of Resistance were of various left-wing political tendencies, from anarchism
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
to Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
, as well as divergent cultural and religious perspectives. Uniting the group was an anti-colonial and anti-capitalist critique, including support of First Nations sovereignty and opposition to global imperialism. Roots of Resistance also criticized parliamentary attempts to restrict immigration, and directly opposed neo-fascist activity, two important issues in early- to mid-1990s Canada.
Roots of Resistance's people of colour-only membership was an organizational strategy developed to address racism from a position of strength and affinity, but also to reject what was seen as a white cultural hegemony within the radical left which effectively excluded people of colour and their perspectives. (This critique was aimed at, to name a few examples, the white-led left's reduction of all matters of power to "the class struggle
Class struggle
Class struggle is the active expression of a class conflict looked at from any kind of socialist perspective. Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels wrote "The [written] history of all hitherto existing society is the history of class struggle"....
"; its "generation gap
Generation gap
The generational gap is and was a term popularized in Western countries during the 1960s referring to differences between people of a younger generation and their elders, especially between children and parents....
"-inflected suspicion of elders; its insensitivity to the importance of spirituality for some communities; its emphasis on counterculture
Counterculture
Counterculture is a sociological term used to describe the values and norms of behavior of a cultural group, or subculture, that run counter to those of the social mainstream of the day, the cultural equivalent of political opposition. Counterculture can also be described as a group whose behavior...
over community; etc.)
These various prejudices of the white-dominated left were essentially challenged by the founding of an allied group with an all brown membership. Roots of Resistance frequently worked in coalition with white allies, and was not a separatist organization, nor was it anti-white. Roots of Resistance's most newsworthy moments were its Anti-Canada Day demonstrations on 1 July, events designed to expose the colonialist and genocidal history of the Canadian state.