Beyond the State: Mutual Aid and Deep Adaptation

• In Event: 50217 - State Violence and the Environment

Abstract

The rise of authoritarian and far-right political movements has further entrenched democratic erosion, state repression, and neglect, deepening vulnerability to environmental harms. The rollback of environmental protections under neoliberal authoritarianism threatens to exacerbate existing crises, while dehumanization and repression normalize social fragmentation. We critically examine foundational and contemporary theories of the capitalist racial state, focusing on its monopoly on violence, its role in the conditional provision of care, and its contradictions. Guided by a critical environmental justice (CEJ) perspective, we position mutual aid as a radical alternative model for survival and resistance in the face of authoritarian governance and ecological collapse. Deep adaptation underscores the urgency of building resilience beyond reliance on state structures, fostering collective care and community self-sufficiency. Mutual aid serves as a key mechanism of deep adaptation by cultivating alternative networks of connection and cooperation that resist the isolation and moral disengagement perpetuated by authoritarian violence. In doing so, it offers a transformative model of care that prioritizes solidarity, resource-sharing, and mutual survival over state dependency.

Authors

• Rachel G. McKane, Brandeis University

• David Pellow, UC Santa Barbara