Far-left insurgency in Delkora
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File:Hammer torch and cog symbol Kaiserreich.svg Labor Underground Supported by:
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The far-left insurgency in Delkora is an ongoing low-intensity conflict in Delkora between the federal government and far-left groups such as the Labor Underground. Other notable participants in the conflict have included the Frikorps, a former right-wing militia, and organised crime groups such as the Madsen Group.
The conflict is rooted in the 1950s depression in Delkora, and was at its peak during that decade. The insurgency declined afterwards and has come to be concentrated in an area known as the "red corridor", with low-level armed attacks. Instead, the conflict is notable for the Labor Underground's successful switch to direct action and guerrilla theatre tactics, leading to the development of an anarchist network of autonomous social centres and occupied areas which had a profound impact on Delkoran alternative culture.
Background
The 1940s saw a decade of sweeping economic liberalisation and political polarisation as the third party system took shape. The right-wing Chancellor Veidnar Albendor took a hardline approach to governance, and encouraged a second red scare as a means to fight his rivals. These produced an upsurge in militancy and popular revolt, particularly as economic policies resulted in greater inequality to the benefit of the rich.
The Labor Underground grew out of the 1942 Gothendral riots and made itself known nationally during the 1946 Steel Strikes. By the 1950s, they were one of Delkora's largest far-left groups, and their combination of militant tactics and mutual aid networks was influential.
Timeline
1950s
The conflict began when the 1953 banking crisis engulfed the country in an economic depression. At a time of mass nationwide unrest, riots, and strikes, the Labor Underground declared guerrilla warfare against the Delkoran government, beginning a campaign of bombings, assassinations, kidnappings, and vigilantism.
This campaign was primarily targeted against political and corporate figures, and major actions included the assassination of Chancellor Hjalmar Madsen, National Revival leader Verner Mørk, and Delkoran Employers' Confederation president Hans Schou. Armed actions against hated figures took place in concert with the AU's provision of mutual aid and community social programs, helping them secure public support.
One crucial component of the far-left insurgency was the position of the General Labor Confederation of Delkora. Led by Mireli Sørensen, a firebrand syndicalist known for her motto "LO er rød til død!" ("The LO is red until it's dead!"), the LO refused to denounce the AU over its mutual aid activities or cut ties with its community programs. Sørensen saw the AU as an ally against the Conservative government, and was determined not to repeat the mistakes of the first red scare, when National Labor and the labour movement fractured between conservative and radical factions and were weakened for decades.
1960s–1970s
The armed phase of the conflict went into decline after the 1959 federal election. The landslide victory for National Labor and the implementation of the New Kingdom program undercut the radicalisation that had produced the insurgency.
The new situation caused a heated internal argument within the AU. The debate pitted the vanguardist faction, which advocated a continuation of "people's war" and a strict economic focus, against the libertarian faction, which advocated broader New Left concerns and the long march through the institutions. Several splits occurred — by and large, the vanguardists left to form their own organisations, exposing them to government prosecution, while the libertarians now gained power in the AU itself. The Mette Elvensar government also began a controversial program of disarmament, allowing AU groups not directly involved in major acts of violence to avoid prosecution by entering into agreements with the government to surrender their weapons.
The AU now formulated a Spaßguerilla ("fun guerrilla") strategy. With many AU groups disarmed but intact, the organisation changed focus towards building counterinstitutions, and adopted provocative and humorous direct action tactics, such as guerilla theatre, zapping, and pieing. The aim was to humiliate the authorities and ridicule them, disrupting the functioning of institutions and encouraging public mockery and distrust. The AU made a point of exploiting the mass media, staging pranks, turning trials into farce, and praised pop culture, viewing it as a terrain for revolutionary struggle.
The change of strategy aided the growth of a significant counterculture, forming ties between AU and other new social movements such as squatters, wildcat strikers, feminism, LGBT rights, minority rights, and environmentalism. The "red corridor" formed as a loosely linked series of neighbourhoods that were hotspots of radical activism, particularly among squats. The high rate of labour militancy during the New Kingdom provided opportunities for organisation and growing influence. AU members and insurgents also joined various leftist political parties and formed links with the broader LO and venstjerne phenomenon in politics.
Notably, the AU and insurgency benefited from broadly favourable coverage of the DBS, whose then-executives the NK Group were largely sympathetic to the movement. This contributed to a phenomenon of radical chic; one famous example was actress Valeria Ó hAodha, who supported the AU and coyly evaded the question of how involved she was with the organisation, with no negative impact on her career.
The contrast between the public's overall sympathy for the far-left insurgents and the revulsion and ostracisation of the right-wing led the latter to try to fight the insurgents by other means now that they were out of power. A right-wing militia named the Frikorps was organised, but this fell afoul of the authorities and ended disastrously. Right-wing figures also developed links with organised crime in an attempt to repress demonstrations and strikes, anticipating the later impact of the neoliberal conspiracy.
1980s
National Labor lost the 1983 federal election to a Conservative–Agrarian coalition led by Lars af Vellarand. Vellarand represented the national conservative faction and his government was strongly shaped by grievance about Delkora's leftist turn under the New Kingdom. It adopted a more hardline position towards the insurgency, pushing for "zero tolerance" policies on squatting, drugs, and similar culture war issues.
The Vellarand government provoked a spike in violence, as the insurgency reached a peak not seen since the 1950s. AU-affiliated groups once again resorted to kidnappings and bombings, such as the 1986 bombing of the Royal Delkoran Petroleum office. Vellarand initially used the hardline approach as a wedge issue against National Labor, managing to win re-election in 1987 largely on issues of national security. However, the strategy ultimately backfired, as the public perceived the AU more as pranksters than a threat and blamed the government for escalating the conflict.
1990s–2000s
The 1991 federal election marked the second high point of the insurgency, as the campaign was marred by events that included ongoing neoliberal conspiracy trials, the Lasermannen shooting spree, and the Siege of Gothendral. Ulrik Andersen narrowly managed to remain in office, but the right-wing coalition lost its majority. The years 1991–1994 represented a "de-escalation" period, in which ongoing investigations and exposure of government scandals meant that law enforcement retreated to a more reactive stance, and in turn the AU gradually wound down its campaign of bombings and assassinations.
After the 1994 federal election returned a National Labor–Liberal coalition to office, Emma Jørgensen began a renewed program of disarmament and announced an end to proactive government action against squats. "We can live with a peaceful red corridor", she famously declared.
The disarmament attracted less controversy than it had under Elvensar, as the spaßguerrilla years had made the public unable to see the insurgents as a serious threat, and thus Vellarand and Andersen had taken the blame for escalating violence in the first place. Although pro-compromise and anti-compromise factions emerged for a time in the AU, it was less affected as well, since the libertarians had long enjoyed predominance.
The subsequent decades saw the AU resume its counterculture-focused direct action, benefiting greatly from its broader association with Delkora's thriving alternative scene.
Diversity of tactics
The defining trait of the insurgency has been the diversity of tactics employed by insurgents and the coordination of various factions into a network of organisations based on shared opposition to the state and mainstream society.
The AU began the conflict by combining violent action with provision of mutual aid and community social programs, a highly influential tactic that secured a dedicated support base. The disarmament agreements with the government led to a shift towards the Spaßguerrilla strategy, characterised by street theatre and political pranksterism. AU figures took every opportunity to embarrass and humiliate the authorities, and were so effective at derailing several highly-publicised trials into farce that the Elvensar and Geirbjørn Feldengaard governments balked at taking further action for fear of riling up far-left voters.
Entryism was another significant insurgent tactic, in accordance with the long march through the institutions. Insurgents joined institutions such as the LO, leftist political parties such as National Labor and the Communist Party of Delkora, Greens and other anarchist organisations and frivolous parties. One significant tactic was to have insurgents become journalists and join various media outlets, particularly the DBS, where they formed secret branches that could steer narratives in a pro-AU direction.
Part of the success of AU tactics came from the Delkoran left's bitter experience with the first red scare. Eager to avoid another disastrous split, organisations like the LO and National Labor tolerated the presence of insurgents within their ranks, and were strongly opposed to "witch-hunts". The Vellarand and Andersen governments accused the DBS of being infiltrated by insurgents and launched investigations in this regard.
The governments of Emma Jørgensen and Adric Azengaard are notable for the presence of several cabinet members with AU backgrounds.
In popular culture
The AU's embrace of mass media and pop culture as a terrain of revolutionary struggle had a powerful impact on Delkoran society. The tactic of exploiting the mass media ensured highly publicised representation and dissemination of anarchist, anti-authoritarian messages and practices. By purging the vanguardist faction, the AU aligned itself fully with the Delkoran counterculture, forging influential alliances between radical activists, social movements, and the labour movement.
Delkora's alternative scene emerged from this context and was thus characterised by a broadly leftist and DIY ethic. Musicians and artists found in the insurgent milieu a significant network of contacts and mutual aid. The "red corridor" proved a fertile source of offbeat venues, including guerrilla gigs and basement shows. High-profile support from domestic and foreign acts brought significant prestige to playing concerts at autonomous social centres, on par with established venues.
One lasting legacy of the insurgency has been the emergence and popularisation of radical chic in Delkoran culture, which merged with the venstjerne phenomenon that politicised pop culture.