Nationalism

Anationalism ( Esperanto sennaciismo ) is a term that arose among users of Esperanto . It describes cosmopolitan ideas that combine several or all of the following currents and ideas:

radical anti-nationalism
Universalism
a “one world” orientation
Acceptance of the historical trend towards global linguistic standardization, or in some cases even an effort to accelerate this
the need for political enlightenment and the organization of the world proletariat in line with these ideas
the usefulness of Esperanto as a tool for such education

Although it was created in the Anational World Federation ( Sennacieca Asocio Tutmonda , abbreviated SAT), the SAT does not represent anationalism as an official ideology. The SAT has an anationalist faction, but itself is only organized anationally.

history

prehistory

Anationalist ideas first germinated in the Bohemian Workers 'Perantist Federation, when it presented a plan for an "International Workers' Perantist Federation" before the First World War . The founders of SAT in 1921 were steeped in these ideas, which had gained impetus because of the war. You are clearly in Lantis under the pseudonym "Sennaciulo" published small work For la Neŭtralismon! available.

The first followers of SAT often viewed nationalism as the umbrella ideology of the SAT and liked to call themselves “nationless”. However, until the publication of Lanti's Manifesto de la Sennaciistoj , the term “nationalism” covered quite different ideas. For many SAT members who professed their nationalism at the time, this sometimes meant “(proletarian) internationalism plus Esperanto” or sometimes a version of Zamenhof's homaranism for workers.

A comparison of the ABC de Sennaciismo, written by Elsudo (Koltschinski) and published by SAT, with the Manifesto de la Sennaciistoj shows what great gap can exist between different concepts of nationalism. Elsudo clearly defines SAT in his work as a “movement for nationalism”. On the occasion of the split that took place in the 1930s, Drezen SAT did not simply hold against "anationalism", ie something that communists in SAT had supported until then (according to their own understanding), but rather "anationalism of the Lanti brand".

Little by little, the understanding of nationalism was formulated in articles by Eŭgeno Lanti in the organs of the SAT.

The more precise formulation

In 1928 Lanti published a brochure La Laborista Esperantismo ("Worker Esperantism") in which he devoted an entire chapter to defining the new term. Until then, the anationalist tendency in the party-independent organization SAT had not met with resistance. In 1929, however, there was a crisis in the SAT, and in the hands of the opposition members, nationalism became the standard argument used to attack the association's leadership.

The opposition claimed that nationalism favored imperialism and was therefore "counter-revolutionary". The sudden and unexpected attack prompted Lanti in 1931 to anonymously publish 3000 copies of a brochure: Manifesto de la Sennaciistoj , which was subsequently translated into several languages and published in French in an edition of 2000 copies.

In this manifesto, anationalism was defined as follows: “ Anationalism is mainly characterized by its recognition of the vast role that artificial creation plays in the world. The ability to do so has made man king over all other living beings. Man adapts nature to his own needs, while animals have to adapt to nature. That is why the nationalists do not deny the great power inherent in the will of man. You know beyond any doubt that he cannot free himself from his weight or jump out of his own shadow. Nevertheless, the limited scope for maneuver is fairly large. So his will can do great works. That is why we believe that the fateful laws of history are only relative. "

The following quote from the same work, which sharpens the understanding of the new doctrine, brought accusations by the Stalinist internationalists at the time, as it clearly opposes the then prevailing theory of “building socialism in one country”: “The nationalists fight everything national: national Languages and cultures, national customs and traditions. For them Esperanto is the main language, while they consider the national languages only as auxiliary languages. They refuse to take part in any national struggle and only recognize as necessary and beneficial for the exploited class the class struggle that is waged with the aim of eliminating the classes, the nationalities and all exploitation. "

Since this doctrine met resistance in the SAT, the anationalists came together to form a faction that was independent of the organization they were ardently supporting. They began to publish the Sennaciista Bulteno more or less regularly.

After Lanti's death

After Lanti's death in 1947 and the restart of SAT after the war, the Anationalists set up their SAT faction again in 1948 under the chairmanship of R. Roberts. Anationalist SAT members procured and financed two new editions of the Manifesto de la Sennaciistoj (1951 and 1971) as well as various writings by Lanti on nationalism.

In 1978 the SAT Congress in Lectoure passed a resolution against the objections of the anationalists, which stated among other things: “ The preservation of ethnic language and culture is connected with the struggle for a new social order, and therefore part of the general pursuit of SAT supporters Justice and individual freedom. "

During the 1980s, at the time when T. Burnelle was Secretary of the Nationalist Faction, a declaration on nationalism was adopted, which includes the struggle of the nationalists against nationalism and for a general individual right to self-determination, which includes an individual right to self-determination , highlighted. The parliamentary group initially continued to operate, but was also temporarily inactive in the 1980s and 1990s, although the debate on nationalism continued in the columns of the Sennaciulo .

Anationalism today

On the SAT congress in Nagykanizsa ( Hungary ) 2001 anationalist fraction was recovered, due to the re-grown interest in anationalism and related subjects that had previously shown by the creation of the mailing list "Sennaciismo". A Declaration on Nationalism , which was a revised version of the previous Declaration, was adopted during the charter meeting .

The currently active nationalists of the nationalist faction cultivate and develop the universalistic and (radically) anti-nationalist thoughts that also shaped earlier formulations of nationalism. They orientate themselves less strictly than previous generations towards Lanti's nationalism, and they also do not strive for a uniform doctrine. Some members of the parliamentary group oppose ideologies that have gained a lot of influence in the Esperanto movement in the past decades: ethnism, instrumentalization of Esperanto for different types of identity politics, differentialism ( ethnopluralism ) and "language protection" ( language purism ).

Outside of SAT, too , there are Esperantists who, to varying degrees, have anationalist ideas. Nationalism is generally not spread outside the Esperanto-speaking community. Lanti justified this in Chapter 5 of La Laborista Esperantismo with the words: "To propagate anationalism among people of different languages would be just as foolish as teaching illiterate people about fiction". However, there have been various deviations from this point of view, in that national-language translations of the Manifesto de la Sennaciistoj were published in the conviction that they would serve to spread Esperanto. Incidentally, the manifesto ends with an appeal to non-Esperanto speakers: “The anationalists appeal to workers all over the world: Learn Esperanto! Esperantists, denationalize yourselves! "