Disruption has been critical to the emergence of new subjects and subjectivities. Here you will find documents by subjects who rejected their given roles, descriptions, and functions in order to redefine themselves on new terms.
All
Black
Students
Colonized
Queer
Latino
Indigenous
Women
Workers
Subjects Redefined
All
Pre-Modern
1700-1830s
1840-1945
1946-1989
1990-2010
2011-Present
The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House (1984)
In 1984, In 1985, feminist, civil rights activist, and librarian Audre Lorde published “The Master’s Tools Will Never Dismantle the Master’s House”. The essay argued for the dismantling of the current system, alluding to…
Open Letter from Students for Justice in Palestine to Universities (2024)
This letter was released by Students for Justice in Palestine on April 21, 2024. In the document, SJP lays out its mission, sets forth various demands, expresses solidarity with SJPs across the country, and makes clear i…
How to Sack Your Boss: A Workers’ Guide to Direct Action (n.d.)
This document is an excerpt from a worker’s guide that promotes direct action against employers. It critiques traditional resistance methods like strikes as ineffective, instead advocating for alternative tactics such as…
ActUP Activists Lock Al Gore Out of Office
On August 23, 1997, Five activists were arrested after locking down the Old Executive Office Building to deny Al Gore access to proceed with his U.S.-South Africa deal on pharmaceutical access.
Stanford “Disorientation Guide” (2005)
Published in 2005 by student activists, this Stanford University “Disorientation Guide” did an in depth analysis of the history of Standford Unviersity in relation to racism, sexism, and capitalism.
Interview with Alzada Clark – Organizing Black Women Workers (1989)
Alzada Clark organized workers – specifically Black women – in the South, established unions, and participated in the Black Power movement at large. In this interview, she discusses her experiences.
Statement From Vestas Workers on Their Factory Occupation (2009)
On July 20, 2009, workers of the Vestas Wind Systems factory in Newport, Isle of Wight, occupied the factory after finding out that more than 525 jobs from both the Isle of Wight and the Southampton factories were moving…
“Eternal Vigilance” – Minneapolis Truckers’ Strike (1934)
This document was written by James P. Cannon on August 6, 1934 during the Minneapolis Truckers’ Strike. It describes the importance of resisting the violence and remaining persistent in their demands and needs.
The Women’s Question is a Class Question – Celia Sojourn (n.d.)
This document, authored by Celia Sojourn, a member of the Weather Underground—a radical Marxist militant group active in the United States from 1969 to 1977—argues that the “women’s question” is inherently tied…
Indonesia: PT Istana: A Factory Occupied and Producing Under Workers’ Control – Jorge Martin (2016)
This document is a written account by Jorge Martin, the International Secretary of Hands Off Venezuela, of his November 2008 visit to PT Istana, an occupied and now worker-run factory in North Jakarta, Indonesia. The sto…
The Feminization of Earth First! (1992)
In this document, Judi Bari describes her experiences as a woman in Earth First!. It explores the relationship between feminism and eco-radicalism – eco-feminism.
Resisting Puerto Rican Sterilization
In a newspaper article from the Young Lords in 1970, Iris Morales writes about the genocide committed against Puerto Rican women.
OCCUPY EVERYTHING!: California Valley Miwok Tribe Occupies Foreclosed House in Stockton – Modesto Anarcho (2009)
An interview with the California Valley Miwok Tribe in response to their occupation of their foreclosed home in Stockton, California. The group had planned to stand their ground and barricade themselves in the house unti…
The Uses of Anger: Women Responding to Racism (Audre Lorde, 1981)
In this piece from Audre Lorde, a renowned intersectional feminist/activist, she offers the use of anger as a unifying force for women across the lines of race. White women struggled to understand the consequences of rac…
Funeral Oration for the Burial of Traditional Womanhood (1968)
During a protest against the war in Southeast Asia, radical feminists staged a mock funeral for the end of traditional womanhood in the United States, which they deemed forced women to accept an unsatisfactory hand in li…
Political Prisoners, Prisons, and Black Liberation (May 1971)
In this document, Angela Y. Davis begins with a discussion of unjust laws and black resistance. After historical analysis, Davis begins to discuss the judicial system and the political prisoner. This document ends with a…
Ahimsa in All Men are Brothers by Mahatma Gandhi (2012)
All Men are Brothers is a selection from the writings of Mahatma Gandhi compiled for UNESCO that contains most of Gandhi’s writings on nonviolence (ahimsa).
SDS Fire (1969)
On December 6, 1969, Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) published these writings. They cover a variety of topics including revolution, military conquest, and justice. It is a deep critique of the United States in wh…
The So-Called Dependency Complex of Colonized Peoples by Frantz Fanon (1952)
This excerpt is from Black Skin, White Masks, an autoethnography written by Frantz Fanon in 1952. Fanon shares his own experience while relating these experiences to a historical critique of racism and colonization.