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a_ricketson

What is the anarchist take on personal debt and bankruptcy?

Do anarchists think that personal debt is an especially problematic aspect of capitalism, or is it just a detail within a broader system of oppression? Is debt cancellation a priority?

To get the conversation started, below are my thoughts on some recent developments on the issue (mainly in the USA).

  1. Laws in the USA increasingly favor lenders over borrowers. I felt that the 2005 Bankruptcy reform act was a major windfall for lenders (capitalists), at the expense of borrowers (workers).
  2. The most popular anti-debt activities seem to be superficial -- they may relieve pressure on the working poor in the short term, but they don't seem to challenge the basic power relationship between lenders and borrowers. Some of these solutions depend on the state to micromanage debt relationships --such as placing limits on interest rates and mass-cancellation of student debt. The Rolling Jubilee (by the Debt Collective) is a grass-roots effort, but it still works within the debt collection system and even seems to make that system more efficient.
  3. The Debt Collective has some other programs that seem to challenge the debt collection system (raising the cost of collection by legally disputing debt; creating a debtors union and strikes).
  4. Some groups promote 'mutual banking' as a way to avoid sending money to the high-finance system.

The only "debt reform" that makes sense to me is a complete elimination of forceful debt collection (wage garnishment and repossession) and otherwise making bankruptcy much easier. This goes along with the need to eliminate the social stigma around bankruptcy. Do you think this is an important issue? Should it be a priority for anarchists (at least in countries with large personal debt systems)?

Posted Dec 1, 2019, 1:34 PM UTC

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