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Voltairine de Cleyre (November 17, 1866 – June 20, 1912) was an American
anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...
known for being a prolific writer and speaker who opposed capitalism, marriage and the state as well as the domination of religion over
sexuality Human sexuality is the way people experience and express themselves sexually. This involves biological, psychological, physical, erotic, emotional, social, or spiritual feelings and behaviors. Because it is a broad term, which has varied ...
and women's lives which she saw as all interconnected. She is often characterized as a major early
feminist Feminism is a range of socio-political movements and ideologies that aim to define and establish the political, economic, personal, and social equality of the sexes. Feminism incorporates the position that society prioritizes the male po ...
because of her views. Born and raised in small towns in Michigan and schooled in a
Sarnia, Ontario Sarnia is a city in Lambton County, Ontario, Canada. It had a 2021 population of 72,047, and is the largest city on Lake Huron. Sarnia is located on the eastern bank of the junction between the Upper and Lower Great Lakes where Lake Huron flo ...
, Catholic convent, de Cleyre began her activist career in the
freethought Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...
movement. Although she was initially drawn to individualist anarchism, de Cleyre evolved through mutualism to what she called anarchism without adjectives, prioritizing a stateless society without the use of
aggression Aggression is overt or covert, often harmful, social interaction with the intention of inflicting damage or other harm upon another individual; although it can be channeled into creative and practical outlets for some. It may occur either reacti ...
or
coercion Coercion () is compelling a party to act in an involuntary manner by the use of threats, including threats to use force against a party. It involves a set of forceful actions which violate the free will of an individual in order to induce a desi ...
above all else. De Cleyre was a contemporary of
Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born anarchist political activist and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europe in the first half of the ...
, with whom she maintained a relationship of respectful disagreement on many issues. Many of de Cleyre's essays were collected in the ''Selected Works of Voltairine de Cleyre'', published posthumously by Goldman's magazine ''
Mother Earth Mother Earth may refer to: *The Earth goddess in any of the world's mythologies *Mother goddess *Mother Nature, a common personification of the Earth and its biosphere as the giver and sustainer of life Written media and literature *Mother Earth ...
'' in 1914.


Biography

Born in the small town of Leslie, Michigan, she moved with her family to
St. Johns, Michigan St. Johns is the largest city and county seat of Clinton County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 7,698 at the 2020 census. St. Johns is located in the north of Clinton County, surrounded by Bingham Township (although the two are ...
, where she lived with her unhappily married parents in extreme poverty. She came from French-American stock, on her mother's side of Puritan descent. Her father, Auguste de Cleyre, was a native of western Flanders, but his family was of French origin. He named her after the famed French Enlightenment author Voltaire. At age 12, her father placed her in a Catholic convent school in Sarnia, Ontario, because he thought it would give her a better education than the public schools. This experience resulted in her embracing
atheism Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no d ...
rather than Christianity. Of her time spent there, she said "it had been like the Valley of the Shadow of Death, and there are white scars on my soul, where ignorance and superstition burnt me with their hell fire in those stifling days". She tried to run away by swimming across the St. Clair River to
Port Huron, Michigan Port Huron is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of St. Clair County. The population was 30,184 at the 2010 census. The city is adjacent to Port Huron Township but is administered separately. Located along the St. Clair ...
and hiking , but she met friends of her family. They contacted her father and sent her back to the convent. Family ties to the abolitionist movement and the Underground Railroad, the harsh and unrelenting
poverty Poverty is the state of having few material possessions or little income. Poverty can have diverse social, economic, and political causes and effects. When evaluating poverty in ...
of her childhood, and being named after the philosopher Voltaire all contributed to the radical rhetoric that she developed shortly after adolescence. After schooling in the convent, de Cleyre moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan. She got involved in the strongly anti-clerical freethought movement by lecturing and contributing articles to
freethought Freethought (sometimes spelled free thought) is an epistemological viewpoint which holds that beliefs should not be formed on the basis of authority, tradition, revelation, or dogma, and that beliefs should instead be reached by other methods ...
periodicals, eventually becoming the editor of freethought newspaper ''The Progressive Age''. During her time in the freethought movement in the mid and late 1880s, de Cleyre was especially influenced by Thomas Paine, Mary Wollstonecraft and Clarence Darrow. Other influences were
Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading Transcendentalism, transcendentalist, he is best known for his book ''Walden'', a reflection upon simple living in natural su ...
and labor leaders Big Bill Haywood and Eugene Debs. After the 1887 execution of several Haymarket protesters in Chicago, she became an
anarchist Anarchism is a political philosophy and movement that is skeptical of all justifications for authority and seeks to abolish the institutions it claims maintain unnecessary coercion and hierarchy, typically including, though not neces ...
. "Till then I believed in the essential justice of the American law of trial by jury", she wrote in an autobiographical essay, "After that I never could". She was known as an excellent speaker and writer. Biographer Paul Avrich said that she was "a greater literary talent than any other American anarchist". She was also known as a tireless advocate for the anarchist cause whose "religious zeal", according to
Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born anarchist political activist and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europe in the first half of the ...
, "stamped everything she did." She became pregnant by James B. Elliot, another freethinker, giving birth to their son Harry on June 12, 1890. As de Cleyre and Elliot agreed, their son lived with Elliot, and de Cleyre had no part in his upbringing. She was close to and inspired by
Dyer Lum Dyer Daniel Lum (February 15, 1839 – April 6, 1893) was an American anarchist, labor activist and poet. A leading syndicalist and a prominent left-wing intellectual of the 1880s, Lum is best remembered as the lover and mentor of early anarcha-f ...
("her teacher, her confidant, her comrade", according to Goldman). Her relationship with him ended shortly before he committed suicide in 1893. De Cleyre based her operations from 1889 to 1910 in Philadelphia, where she lived among poor Jewish immigrants and where sympathy for anarchist beliefs was common. There, she taught English and music and learned to speak and write in
Yiddish Yiddish (, or , ''yidish'' or ''idish'', , ; , ''Yidish-Taytsh'', ) is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated during the 9th century in Central Europe, providing the nascent Ashkenazi community with a ver ...
. Throughout her life, de Cleyre was plagued by illness. Goldman said that she had "some disease of the nervous system which she had developed in early childhood". She survived an
assassination Assassination is the murder of a prominent or important person, such as a head of state, head of government, politician, world leader, member of a royal family or CEO. The murder of a celebrity, activist, or artist, though they may not have ...
attempt on December 19, 1902. Her assailant Herman Helcher was a former pupil who had earlier been rendered insane by a fever and whom she immediately forgave as she wrote: "It would be an outrage against civilization if he were sent to jail for an act which was the product of a diseased brain".


Death

De Cleyre died from septic
meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, headache, and neck stiffness. Other symptoms include confusion or ...
on June 20, 1912, at St. Mary of Nazareth Hospital in Chicago, Illinois. She is interred near the Haymarket defendants and other social activists at the
Waldheim Cemetery Forest Home Cemetery is at 863 S. DesPlaines Ave, Forest Park, Illinois, adjacent to the Eisenhower Expressway, straddling the Des Plaines River in Cook County, just west of Chicago. The cemetery traces its history to two adjacent cemeteries, G ...
(now Forest Home Cemetery) in
Forest Park A forest park is a park whose main theme is its forest of trees. Forest parks are found both in the mountains and in the urban environment. Examples Chile * Forest Park, Santiago China *Gongqing Forest Park, Shanghai * Mufushan National Fores ...
, a suburb west of Chicago. Goldman was later buried in this area of the cemetery as well.


Political beliefs

De Cleyre changed her political perspective during her life. She eventually became a strong proponent of anarchism without adjectives, according to historian George Richard Esenwein a doctrine "without any qualifying labels such as
communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...
, collectivist, mutualist, or individualist. For others, .. twas simply understood as an attitude that tolerated the coexistence of different anarchist schools". For several years, de Cleyre associated primarily with
American individualist anarchism Individualist anarchism in the United States was strongly influenced by Benjamin Tucker, Josiah Warren, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Lysander Spooner, Pierre-Joseph Proudhon, Max Stirner, Herbert Spencer and Henry David Thoreau. Other important individua ...
. Distinguishing herself from
Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born anarchist political activist and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europe in the first half of the ...
and expanding on her support for individualist anarchism, de Cleyre wrote:
Miss Goldman is a communist; I am an individualist. She wishes to destroy the right of property, I wish to assert it. I make my war upon privilege and authority, whereby the right of property, the true right in that which is proper to the individual, is annihilated. She believes that co-operation would entirely supplant competition; I hold that competition in one form or another will always exist, and that it is highly desirable it should..
Despite their early dislike for one another, de Cleyre and Goldman came to respect each other intellectually. In her 1894 essay "In Defense of Emma Goldman and the Right of Expropriation", de Cleyre wrote in support of the right of expropriation:
I do not think one little bit of sensitive human flesh is worth all the property rights in N. Y. city. ..I say it is your business to decide whether you will starve and freeze in sight of food and clothing, outside of jail, or commit some overt act against the institution of property and take your place beside Timmermann and Goldmann.
Eventually, de Cleyre embraced social anarchism over individualism. In 1908, she argued "that the best thing ordinary workingmen or women could do was to organise their industry to get rid of money altogether" and "produce together, co-operatively rather than as employer and employed". In 1912, she said that the Paris Commune's failure was due to its having "respected rivateproperty". In her essay "The Commune Is Risen", she states: "In short, though there were other reasons why the Commune fell, the chief one was that in the hour of necessity, the Communards were not Communists. They attempted to break political chains without breaking economic ones". She became an advocate of anarchism without adjectives, writing in ''The Making of an Anarchist'': "I no longer label myself otherwise than as 'Anarchist' simply". Some observers and scholars dispute whether de Cleyre's rejection of individualism constituted an embrace of
pure communism In Marxist thought, a communist society or the communist system is the type of society and economic system postulated to emerge from technological advances in the productive forces, representing the ultimate goal of the political ideology of c ...
. Goldman and Rudolf Rocker asserted that position, but others, including de Cleyre's biographer Paul Avrich, have not agreed. In response to claims that she had been an anarcho-communist, de Cleyre said in 1907: "I am not now, and have never been at any time, a communist". Anarchist scholar Iain McKay argues that de Cleyre's subsequent 1908 advocacy of a moneyless economy was technically a form of communism, even if she rejected the word communist to describe it. In her 1901 essay entitled ''Anarchism'', de Cleyre wrote:
My ideal would be a condition in which all natural resources would be forever free to all, and the worker individually able to produce for himself sufficient for all his vital needs, if he so chose, so that he needs not govern his working or not working by the times and seasons of his fellows. I think that time may come; but it will only be through the development of the modes of production and the taste of the people. Meanwhile, we all cry with one voice for the freedom to try.
"Direct Action", her 1912 essay in defense of
direct action Direct action originated as a political activist term for economic and political acts in which the actors use their power (e.g. economic or physical) to directly reach certain goals of interest, in contrast to those actions that appeal to oth ...
, is widely cited today. In this essay, de Cleyre points to examples such as the Boston Tea Party, noting that "direct action has always been used, and has the historical sanction of the very people now reprobating it". In her 1895 lecture entitled ''Sex Slavery,'' de Cleyre condemns ideals of beauty that encourage women to distort their bodies and child socialization practices that create unnatural gender roles. The title of the essay refers not to traffic in women for purposes of
prostitution Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in Sex work, sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, n ...
, although that is also mentioned, but rather to marriage laws that allow men to rape their wives without consequences. Such laws make "every married woman what she is, a bonded slave, who takes her master's name, her master's bread, her master's commands, and serves her master's passions". De Cleyre adamantly opposed the government maintaining a standing army, arguing that its existence made wars more likely. In her 1909 essay "Anarchism and American Traditions", she argued that in order to achieve peace "all peaceful persons should withdraw their support from the army, and require that all who wish to make war do so at their own cost and risk; that neither pay nor pensions are to be provided for those who choose to make man-killing a trade".


Legacy

As one of the few women of stature in the anarchist movement, de Cleyre was acclaimed by
Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born anarchist political activist and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europe in the first half of the ...
as "the most gifted and brilliant anarchist woman America ever produced".. She is not widely known today, which biographer
Sharon Presley Sharon Presley (March 23, 1943 – October 31, 2022) was an American libertarian feminist, writer, activist, and lecturer in psychology. Education and work Presley received a B.A. in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley a ...
attributes to the shortness of her life.. Since the late 20th century, there has been renewed interest in her. '' An American Anarchist: The Life of Voltairine de Cleyre'', written by Paul Avrich, was published by the Princeton University Press in 1978. A collection of her speeches, ''The First Mayday: The Haymarket Speeches, 1895–1910'', was published by the
Libertarian Book Club The Libertarian Book Club and Libertarian League were two postwar anarchist groups in New York City associated with Sam and Esther Dolgoff. Libertarian Book Club The Libertarian Book Club was an anarchist circle in postwar New York City. ...
in 1980. In 2004, AK Press released ''The Voltairine de Cleyre Reader''. In 2005, two more collections of her speeches and articles were published, namely ''Exquisite Rebel: The Essays of Voltairine De Cleyre – Anarchist, Feminist, Genius'', edited by Presley and
Crispin Sartwell Crispin Gallagher Sartwell (born 1958) is an American academic, philosopher, and journalist who is a faculty member of the philosophy department at Dickinson College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. He has taught philosophy, communication, and political ...
and published by
SUNY Press The State University of New York (SUNY, , ) is a system of public colleges and universities in the State of New York. It is one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States. Led by c ...
; and ''Gates of Freedom: Voltairine De Cleyre and the Revolution of the Mind,'' from University of Michigan Press. Her papers are held at the YIVO Institute for Jewish Research in New York City. In 2018, '' The New York Times'' published a belated obituary for her.


See also

* Bill Haywood * Dyer D. Lum *
Emma Goldman Emma Goldman (June 27, 1869 – May 14, 1940) was a Russian-born anarchist political activist and writer. She played a pivotal role in the development of anarchist political philosophy in North America and Europe in the first half of the ...
*
Eugene V. Debs Eugene Victor "Gene" Debs (November 5, 1855 – October 20, 1926) was an American socialism, socialist, political activist, trade unionist, one of the founding members of the Industrial Workers of the World (IWW), and five times the candidate ...
* Haymarket affair *
Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau (July 12, 1817May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading Transcendentalism, transcendentalist, he is best known for his book ''Walden'', a reflection upon simple living in natural su ...
* Rachelle Yarros *
The writing on the wall "The writing on the wall" is an idiomatic expression that suggests a portent of doom or misfortune, based on the story of Belshazzar's feast in the book of Daniel. The Writing on the Wall, The Writing's on the Wall or similar titles may also refer ...
influenced de Cleyre's ''Written in Red''


References


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * Palczewski, Catherine Helen. 1995. "Voltairine de Cleyre: Sexual Slavery and Sexual Pleasure in the Nineteenth Century". ''NWSA (National Women's Studies Association) Journal'', Vol. 7, No. 3 (Autumn 1995), pp. 54–68.


External links

* Voltairine.org. . Website about Voltairine de Cleyre, including articles and biography. * * * * * *
Poems by Voltairine De Cleyre
from the Daily Bleed * De Cleyre, Voltairine (1894)



at the Molinari Institute *

at Panarchy {{DEFAULTSORT:Cleyre, Voltairine De 1866 births 1912 deaths 19th-century American essayists 19th-century American non-fiction writers 19th-century American women writers 19th-century atheists 20th-century American essayists 20th-century American women writers 20th-century atheists American anarchists American anti-capitalists American anti-war activists American atheists American libertarians American women essayists American women non-fiction writers American women philosophers Anarcha-feminists Anarchist theorists Anarchist writers Anarchists without adjectives Burials at Forest Home Cemetery, Chicago Deaths from meningitis Free love advocates Freethought writers Individualist feminists Left-libertarians Libertarian socialists Neurological disease deaths in Illinois Infectious disease deaths in Illinois People from Leslie, Michigan People from St. Johns, Michigan Philosophy writers Sex-positive feminists American socialist feminists Writers from Chicago Writers from Philadelphia