Activism and Urban Territory: Towards a New Dimension of Political Municipalism (Co-presenter)

Since the 15M movement appeared in 2011, there has been a high level of political participation and experimentation within antisystematic Spanish activism. The political repertoire has constantly been reevaluated,with methods constantly revised and evolving, from the occupation of public spaces to the recent creation of new political parties. One of the novel aspects of these tactical revisions has been the involvement of anarchist actors in this process of engagement in the constitutional process. This paper identifies the motivations and theoretical justifications that have led libertarian activists to recently take the institutional (electoral) path. This paper stands in the small but growing tradition of works that examine this recent phenomenon of anarchist-inspired constitutionalism, but uniquely concentrates on a detailed case study of the anarchist actors linked to the platform Castelló en Moviment (CsM). As a result it explores that complex and disputed relationships and motivations that operate within 15M. It thus describes the anarchist influence in recent electoral developments across Europe, and identifies proponents justification for engaging in these previously rejected methods and highlights some of the doubts raised against this electoral experiment. <draft only> - co-presented with Ramón Feenstra