The ruling class thrives on our exhaustion. They profit from our compliance, our silence, and our belief that resistance is futile. But what if dismantling their systems could be easy? What if it could even be fun? For anarcho-communists, sabotage is not a fringe tactic—it is a liberatory practice rooted in creativity, solidarity, and the audacity to imagine a world beyond capital. Everyday acts of sabotage can disrupt hierarchies, foster collective power, and infuse the struggle for liberation with the radical joy of refusal.
Sabotage: A Tool of the Oppressed
Sabotage has always been a weapon of the marginalised. From enslaved people breaking tools to slow plantation labour, to factory workers “accidentally” disabling machinery, the oppressed have long understood that small acts of defiance erode the infrastructure of exploitation. The term itself originates from the French sabot (wooden shoe), referencing labourers throwing clogs into gears to halt production. Far from nihilistic destruction, sabotage is a deliberate reclamation of autonomy—a refusal to participate in one’s own subjugation.
Under capitalism, our labour, time, and creativity are stolen to enrich the ruling class. Sabotage disrupts this theft. It rejects the lie that resistance requires permission, resources, or institutional validation.
Why Sabotage is Easy
1. Everyone Has Access
You don’t need a manifesto or a megaphone to sabotage capitalism. Everyday life is riddled with opportunities to destabilise oppressive systems:
– Workplace Slowdowns: Working at a “reasonable” pace instead of breaking your body for profit.
– Digital Sabotage: Flooding corporate review pages with honest critiques, sharing pirated media, or automating spam emails to CEOs.
– Consumer Sabotage: Shoplifting from big-box stores, “misplacing” products in supermarkets, or boycotting unethical brands.
These acts require no special training. They exploit the fragility of systems that depend on our obedience.
2. The Power of Small Acts
A single wrench in the gears can halt an assembly line. Similarly, minor disruptions compound into systemic crises for capital. When thousands of workers call in sick on the same day (a “sick-out”), profits plummet. When tenants collectively withhold rent, landlords panic. Small acts, multiplied, become ungovernable.
Why Sabotage is Fun
1. Creativity as Resistance
Sabotage is an art form. It rewards ingenuity: graffiti subverts advertising’s visual monopoly; street theatre mocks authority; hacktivists turn algorithms against the powerful. The Zapatistas exemplify this, using murals, music, and satire to dismantle colonial narratives. When we sabotage, we replace alienation with playfulness – a middle finger to the drudgery of wage slavery.
2. Building Community
Sabotage thrives on solidarity. Imagine coworkers coordinating a “bathroom break” rebellion, or neighbours sharing tools to bypass exploitative repair services. These acts forge bonds of mutual aid, undermining capitalism’s isolation. As the Paris Communards demonstrated, barricades are built not just with cobblestones, but with laughter, shared meals, and collective purpose.
3. The Joy of Agency
Capitalism reduces us to cogs, but sabotage reminds us we’re alive. There’s euphoria in flipping a surveillance camera, planting wildflowers in a corporate lawn, or leaving a “this machine kills fascists” sticker on a cop car. These moments reclaim our power to act—not in some distant revolution, but here, now.
Ethics of Sabotage: Harm Reduction and Solidarity
Sabotage is not indiscriminate violence. Anarcho-communist ethics demand we avoid harming individuals and focus on systems. For example:
– Target Property, Not People: Disabling a bulldozer used to evict tenants is ethical; endangering workers is not.
– Prioritize the Collective: Sabotage should align with community needs, not personal vendettas.
– Protect the Vulnerable: Avoid tactics that invite state repression onto marginalised groups.
The 1943 French railway workers’ sabotage of Nazi trains exemplifies this principle: they crippled fascist infrastructure while protecting human life.
A Practical Guide to Sabotage
1. Workplace Sabotage
– Go Slow: Reduce productivity to a humane pace.
– “Misplace” essential tools.
– Create anonymous social media accounts to expose wage theft.
2. Digital Sabotage
– Organize distributed denial-of-service (DDoS) attacks against oppressive institutions.
– Use encryption tools (Signal, Tor) to protect comrades.
– Flood AI training data with nonsense to disrupt surveillance algorithms.
3. Consumer Sabotage
– Organize “shoplifting clubs” to redistribute goods.
– Swap price tags to confuse automated checkout systems.
– Boycott, divest, and urge others to join.
4. Ecological Sabotage
– Guerrilla gardening: Plant native species in urban wastelands.
– Disable fossil fuel infrastructure (e.g., valve tampering on pipelines).
– Sabotage mining equipment to protect Indigenous lands.
Historical Precedents
– The Luddites (1811–1816): Textile workers destroyed machines that displaced labourers, asserting their right to livelihood.
– The Industrial Workers of the World (IWW): Early 20th-century unionists popularized “striking on the job” through slowdowns and misinformation.
– ACT-UP (1980s): AIDS activists disrupted pharmaceutical profiteers by invading offices and dumping fake blood on Wall Street.
These movements prove sabotage is not chaos—it’s strategy.
Overcoming Fear: Safety and Security
-Stay Anonymous: Use pseudonyms, burner phones, and VPNs.
– Act in Groups: Affinity groups provide accountability and support.
– Know the Law: Understand your rights, but don’t rely on legalistic solutions.
The Revolution Will Be Playful
Capitalism wants us numb. Sabotage reawakens our desires—for freedom, community, and pleasure. It is a reminder that the system is weaker than it appears, and our power is greater. So, grab a friend, a spray can, or a wrench, and join the dance of resistance. After all, sabotage is easy, sabotage is fun… and sabotage is just the beginning.
Sabotage is a science – study it well
