Political Organizing in the 21st Century Concern with the problem of organization has meaning only for people convinced that they can and must struggle together (hence, by organizing) and who do not, from the very beginning, assume their own defeat is inevitable.35 — Cornelius Castoriadis
The project of autonomy, as articulated by Cornelius Castoriadis, is a concept whose relevance is nowadays rapidly growing. I’ll emphasize the contemporary social movements and the similarities of their activities with the project of autonomy. Today we are witnessing the rise of multiple crises, encompassing our society, our individual experiences of life, as well as the very nature that is keeping us alive, and thus the question of what is to be done is of ever-growing importance. But it seems that the conventional solutions can’t be of help anymore. If before we were saying that representative democracy was in crisis, now we can say with growing confidence that today it is on its knees. The abstention rates during elections are in their all time highest, even in countries with traditionally high electoral activi-
35 Cornelius Castoriadis: The Working Class and Organization (Solidarity Pamphlets No. 22 and No. 23., 1959) 51
