The Dialectic of Autonomy & Inclusion: Organizing and Resistance in Colombia with Anthony Dest

In this episode we interview Anthony Dest.  Anthony Dest is assistant professor of anthropology at Lehman College and currently a faculty fellow at the Center for Place, Culture and Politics. He is also a member of the Colombia Freedom Collective. We talk with Anthony about three of his essays about political economy, organizing and resistance in Colombia. This conversation primarily focuses on the organization of Black Colombians in formations like the Black Communities Process (PCN), as well as indigenous communities and other grassroots social formations.  Dest touches on the history of the US sponsored war on drugs in Colombia, the Peace Accords process in Colombia between the FARC and the Colombian government and on the resistance of the Liberation of Mother Earth Process. We also talk about some of the contradictions created by neoliberal reforms in Colombia and through an examination of the dialectical relationship between inclusion and autonomy, how Black and indigenous communities have organized in light of those reforms, while also looking at the various contradictions that have arisen along the way. Finally we talk about coordinated action and more spontaneous rebellion amid national strikes, and the election of the Petro and Márquez administration as well as other local electoral efforts. We close with an important conversation on the political prisoners who have been repressed in response to some of the uprisings we discuss, and ways that people can materially support the Colombia Freedom Collective, which we encourage folks to do. You can support the Colombia Freedom Collective at colombiafreedomcollective.org we’ll include that link in the show notes as well as a place where you can access Dest’s writings. And of course if you appreciate the work we do, please consider becoming a patron of the show. You can do so for as little as $1 a month at patreon.com/millennialsarekillingcapitalism