Anarchy in the Big Easy: A History of Revolt, Rebellion, and Resurgence

Anarchy in the Big Easy is an anarchist graphic history of the quest for freedom in radical and revolutionary New Orleans.

The story begins with the anarchic forces of nature creating the land and the cooperative indigenous communities that thrived before the European conquest. We next see the revolt against domination through the Enslaved Peoples’ Uprising of 1811, the rise of maroon communities, the work of figures such as anarchist geographer Elisée Reclus and utopian revolutionary Joseph Déjacque, and the moving history of labor militancy—exemplified by the First International, the General Strike of 1892, and the rise of the International Workers of the World. The anarchic aspects of jazz are explored, including its birthplace, the famous red-light district of Storyville. Other episodes recount the history of the Black Panthers, including the legendary shootout in the Desire Project, and the important role anarchists played in the grassroots recovery after Hurricane Katrina. The often-subversive People’s Carnival is depicted, from the history of the Mardi Gras Indians through today’s anarchist marching Krewes. The book concludes with the recent struggle to take down the confederate monuments, and the growth of a decentralized, autonomous mutual aid movement.

These stories are recounted by surregionalist writer Max Cafard and brought vividly to life through the striking images of comix artist Vulpes.

Praise

“A lot of us anarchists are localists. We want to decentralize political power because we love our cities, our neighborhoods, our block, or even our building. We trust our community more than we trust the state. The love Max Cafard has for his hometown, New Orleans, is felt on every page of this work of graphic nonfiction. He finds the source of every great, radical idea in the swamps and streams and streets of his chosen territory. Specifically, he recognizes the confluence of anarchist ideology and early New Orleans jazz. Mike Vulpes supports Cafard’s story with art that is surprisingly delicate. Appropriate to a discussion of twentieth-century jazz, he uses modernist page designs reminiscent of Frank King’s Gasoline Alley newspaper strip. Together, Cafard and Vulpes will show some of you a side of New Orleans you never knew. Or perhaps they will show you a New Orleans you have seen, but not as deeply and beautifully as it is presented here.”
—Seth Tobocman, author of War in the Neighborhood, cofounder of World War III Illustrated

About the Contributors

Max Cafard is a lifelong inhabitant of the island of New Orleans. He was the cofounder and editor of Mesechabe and Psychic Swamp magazines and is the author of The Surregionalist Manifesto and Other Writings, FLOOD BOOK, Surregionalist Explorations, Lightning Storm Mind: Pre-Ancientist Meditations, and Poemics (forthcoming).

Vulpes is an anarchist illustrator based in the Gulf South of Turtle Island. Their comics from JP Press include Naki, about the Kurdish soccer player Deniz Naki and Siege Engines, about the 2016 migrant route through the Balkans. Their work has been featured in The Nib, Commune Magazine, and The Shotgun.

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