First period of the Lyon anarchist press
Organs published during the period, in chronological order: Le Droit social, L'Étendard révolutionnaire, La Lutte, Le Drapeau noir, L'Émeute, Le Défi, L'Hydre anarchiste, L'Alarme, and Le Droit anarchique | |
| Founder(s) | Louise Michel Antoine Cyvoct Jean Grave Toussaint Bordat Vincent Berthout |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1882 |
| Ceased publication | 1884 |
| Political alignment | Anarchism Anarcho-communism |
| Language | French |
| Headquarters | Lyon |
The first period of the Lyon anarchist press, or the Lyon series of 1882-1884, is a period in the history of Lyon, the history of anarchism, and the history of the press in France marked by a proliferation of anarchist publications in Lyon and the broader Rhône department. These newspapers were among the first anarchist publications in France; they generally succeeded one another following government bans and served as an anchor for the anarchist thought and movement in France.
Although anarchists in France previously had an initial newspaper, La Révolution sociale, published in Paris, it disappeared at the end of 1881. Lyon was then considered one of the 'capitals' of the anarchist movement. Since Bakunin had participated in the Lyon Commune ten years earlier, anarchists had grown in number there, influenced by the proximity of neighboring Switzerland. Taking advantage of the new press law, Lyonnese anarchists raised funds and launched their first newspaper, Le Droit social, which featured contributions from several leading figures of anarchism, such as Louise Michel, Jean Grave, the Lyonnese Antoine Cyvoct and Toussaint Bordat, and Peter Kropotkin. This was the second anarchist newspaper in France and the first of the Lyon series.
In the months and years that followed, as repression against anarchists in Lyon intensified, following the Montceau-les-Mines troubles by the Black Band, the Assommoir bombing, and the Trial of the 66, they systematically recreated their banned newspapers. Le Droit social thus gave way to L'Étendard révolutionnaire, La Lutte, Le Drapeau noir, L'Émeute, Le Défi, L'Hydre anarchiste, L'Alarme, and Le Droit anarchique. Some of these newspapers, such as Le Drapeau noir, were influential in the broader history of anarchism, helping to transform the black flag of the Canuts into the anarchist black flag, a symbol shared by the entire movement in the 21st century. The banning of Le Droit anarchique marked the end of this first period. These publications also signaled the emergence of a female anarchist readership in France.