A permanent autonomous zone (PAZ) is a community that is autonomous from the generally recognized state or authority structure in which it is embedded. PAZs are not controlled by any government (as recognized by other governments).
Applications
The phrase permanent autonomous zone has been applied to groups such as:
- An autonomous, collectively run community center
- A community living space: communes, squats, self-sustaining villages, treehouses
- Independent schools and/or free schools, self-education centers
- A community garden or greenspace, efforts to preserve nature
- A non-authoritarian news organization, publisher, low power or pirate radio station, infoshop, internet service provider, or other non-profit group that provides a service to the community
- Collectively run organizations or networks that promote non-hierarchical principles and localized autonomy
- Any continuous space, group, co-op, or individual effort accessible to a community that is founded on anti-authoritarian principles and autonomy within an egalitarian community.
Examples
| Zone | Start Date | End Date | City, State | Country | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kowloon Walled City | 1987 | 1989 | Hong Kong | China | |
| Freetown Christiania | 1971 | ongoing | Copenhagen | Denmark | A partially self-governing neighborhood in the city of Copenhagen, Denmark, which has established semi-legal status as an independent community. |
| Zone to Defend | ongoing | Notre-Dame-des-Landes | France | The ZAD (French: zone à défendre) in French) is a militant occupation that is intended to physically blockade a development project, notably the one located in the commune of Notre-Dame-des-Landes in France. | |
| Paris Commune | 1870 | 1871 | Paris | France | As well as short-lived counterparts declared in other French towns in 1870-71. |
| Auroville | ongoing | India | An intentional community. | ||
| Shinmin Prefecture | 1929 | 1931 | Manchuria | In the Korea borderlands. | |
| Rebel Zapatista Autonomous Municipalities | ongoing | Chiapas | Mexico | The independent Zapatista communities (MAREZ from their name in Spanish). Established following the 1994 Zapatista uprising, these communities operate, in practice, outside of Mexican law. They are governed internally by "Good Government Councils" composed of community members and also often by weekly general assemblies open to all members of the community. Each community also sends delegates to a regional council in order to report decisions made in their respective communities. | |
| Revolutionary Catalonia | 1936 | 1939 | Spain | ||
| Rojava Revolution | ongoing | Syria | An ongoing social revolution in Northern Syria based upon regional autonomy and influenced by anarcho-communist principles, as exemplified by the Democratic Federation of Northern Syria. | ||
| Free Territory | 1918 | 1921 | Ukraine | The Ukrainian Free Territory (Makhnovia). | |
| Free Derry | 1969 | 1972 | Northern Ireland | United Kingdom | |
| Dreamtime Village | ongoing | United States | A hypermedia permaculture eco-village project in southwestern Wisconsin. | ||
| Black Bear Ranch | ongoing | California | United States | An intentional community governed by consensus in Siskiyou National Forest of northern California. | |
| Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone | 2020 | 2020 | Seattle, Washington | United States | June-July 2020 |
| Red House eviction defense | 2020 | ongoing | Portland, Oregon | United States | An occupation protest with the goal of getting an evicted family their house back. Protesters barricaded the house and surrounding street. |
| George Floyd Square autonomous zone[1] | 2020 | ongoing | Minneapolis, Minnesota | United States | The location of the killing of George Floyd. It has been barricaded.[2] |
See also
- Anarchism
- Autonomous social centers
- Commune (socialism)
- Temporary Autonomous Zone
References
- ^ "George Floyd's Square offers an alternative to police — though not all neighbors want one". MPR News. Retrieved 2021-01-13.
- ^ Al-Arshani, Sarah. "Protesters in Minneapolis say they won't clear barricades around the George Floyd Memorial until the city leaders meet their 24 demands". Insider. Retrieved 2021-01-13.