I don’t know about you but I sure as hell have been thinking about different ways to fight capitalism this year! But since you’re here I assume we’re on the same page about this, right? You’re wondering how to fight capitalism too?
There’s no denying, the world around us is getting worse and worse and people, us included, are worse and worse off. Even the Middle classes are struggling to make ends meet and dread trips to the grocery store. How much better would a world without capitalism be?!
There are tons of ways to fight capitalism in your daily life, despite your resources, circumstances, and level of commitment. In this article you can find 5 different categories, which include altogether 40 ways to live a more fulfilling life outside of the capitalistic box.
The thing to remember is that you shouldn’t nail all of the points. Pick the ones that are doable for you and focus on them. You can’t do everything and saving the world is not your responsibility alone.
40 Simple Everyday Tips to Fight Capitalism
Before we get to it, I’d like to share some thoughts on how did we come to this? Well, put simply, capitalism was never supposed to benefit the masses. It was designed to serve the richest percentage of the world despite the fact that money is a valueless asset. Wait, what? Okay, let me explain:
- Money was created as a means of exchange to make it easier to keep track of what is sold by whom and bought by who
- This evolved into prices forming around certain items, the price represented the value of the item
- In time prices started to be estimated according to demand and supply: scarcity made the price higher
- Government-issued fiat-money is a modern way to keep track of business operations and personal purchases. The value of each currency is decided, not representing anything of actual value (like gold)
- Thus the notes and coins in your wallet or digits in your online bank account are completely worthless as such
- Money only has value because we’ve been raised to THINK it has value.
Yes, it’s that simple; our monetary system is based on imagination. If we all start believing today that money has no value, it’s irrelevant, the whole capitalistic system we live in would collapse. Would that be a bad thing?
I don’t think so! Yes, there would be chaos at first! But from chaos solutions, new ideas and innovations, new and better ways to do things are born. For example, better ways to spend this one lifetime on this Earth other than working = creating money for someone else.
But until the system collapses (which is probable but will take time), we can fight capitalism on a private level. Believe it or not, detaching from capitalism automatically results in higher and better quality of life.
Here’s a list of 40 ways in 5 categories how to fight capitalism and/or participate in breaking it down:
Economic Resistance
This category is for the activists and the ones who want to make a significant impact that is seen and heard. The ones that want to hit capitalism where it hurts: the money. Because money is the one and only thing that capitalism is about.
So, let’s start with finding ways to fight capitalism through economic resistance:
1. Buy Less
An obvious one! In a world where we buy way more than we need and don’t understand the value of quality anymore, we are the ones who hold the power. And as such we can change things. We should all reduce consumption overall before it’s too late. The time may come when shopping isn’t possible anymore… What are you gonna do then?
More on the topic:
- Why Cheap Clothes Are NOT Your Privilege
- Paying Thousands for a Luxury Brand Bag is STUPID!
- How Capitalism Destroyed the Fashion Industry – 11 Examples
2. Buy Second Hand
One of the best, easiest and joyful ways to avoid contributing to corporate profits and fight capitalism is by thrifting, swapping, or using hand-me-downs.
Check with your friends if they have items in their closet they would be happy to let go. Or have a fun day out touring second-hand and vintage shops. Imagine all the treasures you could find!
3. Support Local & Worker-Owned Businesses
Preferring local produce is always best, and the best rebellion against capitalism. This is simply because it’s environmentally friendly and supports the local community and people. It is also healthier in every way than industrial level production.
Regardless of whether we’re talking about food items, clothes or cars, prioritising cooperatives, union-made goods, and small businesses over big corporations helps you and everyone around you.
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4. Practice Mutual Aid
One easy way to fight capitalism is to share information and to educate people. Share resources, time, and skills with your community, even if that’s just your family and friends. Organise local events to raise awareness on local producers and small businesses, etc.
5. Boycott Exploitative Companies
It’s also paramount that we all boycott companies that engage in worker exploitation, environmental destruction, or unethical practices. We all know exactly what these companies are!
Trying to pretend like you wouldn’t know doesn’t help, cause here you go:
- All fast fashion brands, like H&M and Zara, River Island, Uniqlo, Boohoo, Primark, etc., etc.
- Ultra fast fashion brands like Shein and Temu
- Amazon (oh yes!)
- Brands that support IsNOTrael, like Starbucks (a brilliant example of the power of boycotting)
- Apple and Microsoft, etc., etc., etc.
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6. Barter & Trade
Bartering is a practice that existed before money was invented as a trading tool. It means exchanging or trading goods and services without using money. You could educate yourself about circular economy to make this make sense a bit better.
7. Use Cooperative Banking & Credit Unions
You’ve probably noticed that cash is quickly becoming extinct. While paying with a swipe of a card or your smartphone is oh, so practical and quick, there’s a big downside to it.
You have zero control over your money. Basically the digits in your online bank are just that, digits. There is no actual money behind those digits. Unless you take control of as much of your money as you can now, you might lose all control in the near future.
Yes, your bank can actually deny your money from you. So, we should all consider moving our money out of big banks! Not just for personal reasons but because they fund destructive industries. Fight capitalism by taking control of your own assets!
8. Grow Your Own Food
Obviously a wee bit hard if you live in a big city BUT nothing is impossible. I, for one, don’t have a garden or even a balcony, but I have window sills. And at the moment those window sills are filled with pots to grow chilies.
Especially in European cities you can often find community gardens where you can rent a plot of land to grow your own produce. There are plenty of options for growing your own food regardless of your living circumstances.
And the benefits are obvious: Reducing dependency on industrial food systems and corporate grocery chains, which control the pricing of goods (it’s not the war in Ukraine that keeps grocery prices rising!)
9. Dumpster Dive & Freeganism
Okay, this is something that I personally wouldn’t consider doing (unless absolutely desperate) but it is an option. This way you can help battle food waste and consumerism by reclaiming discarded but still completely usable items.
10. Use Open-Source Software
As I already listed Apple and Microsoft as brands to avoid, this is where I provide you with alternatives. But first we must understand the reason for avoiding these corporate software monopolies.
First reason is our personal security and independence, especially online. Our freedom of speech is already under attack. Second reason is these companies’ complete lack of corporate responsibility and decency in every regard.
So, instead of of the obvious options, I would recommend these alternatives:
- replace Windows and iOS operating systems with f.ex. open-source Linux operating systems (I opted for Linux Mint, you can see why I chose it here and how it works here)
- replace Microsoft Office (which scrapes everything you create for its AI) with LibreOffice
- replace Gmail with f.ex. ProtonMail (by a Swiss company that’s been involved in CERN’s projects, offers stronger encryption and blocks tracking)
For more replacement options there is this brilliant resource: the European Alternatives website provided by the European Union.
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11. Practice DIY & Repair Culture
A brilliant way to fight capitalism is to maintain and take care of everything you already have (which is plenty, right?) So, learn to fix things instead of always buying replacements.
12. Support Anti-Capitalist Art & Media
One of the most frightening things for far right governments and capitalists’ is art. Art and culture can be very powerful messengers when the media fails us. Heck, art has incited revolutions throughout centuries.
So, be aware of what media you consume and whether it’s a media outlet that you should be gifting your time to. Promote media and content that critiques capitalism rather than glorifies it.
More on the topic: How to Fight the Rise of Far Right – 5 Steps to Freedom
Workplace Resistance
Ahh, one of my favourite ways to fight capitalism. When I was still employed I truly tested my employers, especially if they happened to be completely incompetent cunts. Which they often are!
Your boss is just a person, no more special than you are. In fact, the manager title often means that your boss is actually much less capable than you are. And they are abusive towards the workforce because they know that.
So, it’s time to start respecting yourself as part of the ONLY group of people that keep businesses running: the employees!
13. Unionize Your Workplace
For Europeans this is an obvious one, for US citizens probably not. Well, now is your time to civilise yourselves and unionise!
If joining an actual union seems too risky, you can organize with coworkers within a company. Start driving change for better wages, conditions, and rights. It’s for everyone’s good, also the bosses’!
14. Refuse Unpaid Overtime
If you work more than you’re paid, you’re an absolute idiot. That’s not bullying, that’s a FACT! Your extra work won’t bring you any perks but it does line the pockets of the stakeholders. And those stakeholders will fire you the first chance they get, and they do it just for the fun of it.
So, it’s about time you set some boundaries, learned to say ‘no’ and stopped letting corporations steal your time and energy. Those are valuable assets unlike money! GenZ are already paving the way by doing the right things, like quiet quitting. We should learn from their example.
15. Support Strikes & Labor Actions
If joining unions seems like a step too far for you, you can fight capitalism by supporting those who have unionised and who are striving for better rights for all. This means not crossing picket lines and showing solidarity with workers who are fighting for better treatment for you and them.
16. Sabotage Exploitation
Call me a rebel and I’ll admit to it with pride! For I have incited my colleagues to withdraw their services to a company that didn’t pay their salaries on time!
The effect of employees refusing to work is major, which forces the employers to make changes. For us, we started getting paid 2 weeks earlier to avoid future issues.
So, if you see any sort of exploitation at the workplace, slow down work and expose unfair practices. And for heaven’s sake, start sharing wages/salary info if you’re not doing so yet! The gender wage gap can NEVER be solved unless we talk about our salaries.
17. Help Coworkers Access Resources
As always, educating ourselves and others can never go wrong. So, don’t be a gate-keeper but instead share the knowledge you have! Especially about labour rights, unionisation, and legal protections.
18. Push for Workplace Democracy
All of the above add up to reaching for democracy not just on a state level but in your workplace as well. Because no organisation or country should be a dictatorship! Advocate for employee decision-making and cooperative management structures to further healthy, democratic developments.
Community & Political Action
In order to fight capitalism we shouldn’t focus on just the work/money side of things. We can and should also take significant steps in our personal lives and communities to detach from the abusive system.
At the end of the day, as long as we have a strong community around us we can get through whatever difficulties may lie ahead. Together we are always stronger!
19. Engage in Local Activism
You can get started by finding your local communities. You can do this by getting involved in tenants’ unions, mutual aid groups, or community organizations. Check your city’s or area’s websites and social media pages for ideas where and how you could get involved in local activism.
20. Redistribute Wealth
There’s no way around it, nobody needs billions of dollars. In fact, nobody needs 10 million dollars! That is more than you can spend by yourself in a lifetime. And when you die (which you will) you can’t take a penny with you to the next life.
So, if you have more than you need, give directly to people who actually do need it. Whether you do it through donating to charities, by donating straight to families in need or to organisations that organise for example food deliveries for the poor, etc.
Another important thing is advocating for wealth distribution on a national level. Wealth inequality is the biggest driver for inflation and the fact that you can’t afford to live. It’s one of the biggest reasons why capitalism has to be demolished!
21. Refuse to Call the Police
This point is specifically directed to US citizens: your police can’t be trusted, as you know. Quite often there’s a risk of becoming a criminal yourself just because the police who turned up at your door doesn’t like your face.
When possible, rely on community-based solutions instead of a system that disproportionately harms marginalized groups. There are plenty of low level issues in your community that can be solved efficiently without the police.
22. Resist Gentrification
In continuation to the previous point, to fight capitalism is to resist gentrification. This can mean supporting long-term residents and fighting against corporate developments that aim to push out entire communities.
23. Advocate for Public Services
A point that is obvious and a fundamental right for most of the world and a bizarre issue for the US: free public services. I can’t comprehend how anyone can ever say that free public services could be a bad thing. That’s a level of ignorance and idiotism that I thankfully can’t reach.
So, let’s all fight for accessible healthcare, education, and housing for all instead of privatization! That’s the best and the most efficient way to fight capitalism!
24. Organize Rent Strikes
There’s strength in groups, as we know, and we should utilise that strength more. Also in terms of rebelling against exploitative landlords and apartment rental companies. By taking collective action you can pressure these bad actors to change for the better.
25. Push for Land Back & Indigenous Sovereignty
In order to fight capitalism in a way that sticks, we need to replace the dysfunctional and abusive system with something that actually works. And in that we need the help and support if indigenous people.
By supporting movements that challenge capitalist colonialism we both further human rights and learn ways to live together with Mother Nature. Instead of exploiting the planet we need to learn to nurture, repair and care for it. That is literally the only way forward!
Lifestyle & Mindset
None of the above will be effective unless you accept the fact that we can’t keep going the way we have. We are destroying the only planet we can live on! And no matter what those delusional billionaires tell you, there IS NO other planet that we could reach that could sustain us. These men (always men…) are simply insane.
So, it’s time to fight capitalism by unlearning the harmful bullshite that we’ve been fed since birth and instead cultivate healthier and better values to live by!
26. Challenge Capitalist Productivity Culture
Did you know that ‘being busy’ actually means that you are incompetent? Well, now you know! If you’re always busy, it signals the simple fact that
- you have no idea how to manage your time
- you’re easy to abuse because you can’t say ‘no’
- you’re actually not doing anything at all, you just try to sound more important than you are and fail at it.
Now is the time you finally reject the idea that your worth is tied to work and productivity! They (the 1%) have done a stellar job at convincing us that working only as much as we’re paid is a shameful thing. Why is that?
Because that way you’re not creating them any extra income, just the regular millions, of which you yourself will never see a penny. As mentioned earlier, quiet quitting doesn’t mean you’re lazy; it means you’re not an idiot.
27. Rest & Care for Yourself & Others
In good continuation from quiet quitting, the biggest rebellion and one of the best ways to fight capitalism is to look after yourself. Oh yes, prioritising your well-being over constant hustle and burnout benefits you immensely. It certainly doesn’t fill your employer’s coffins as fast, which is actually not your issue since that money is not for you anyway.
Not your company = Not your responsibility!
28. Reject Status Symbols
As Hollywood and celebrity culture is going through a slow death, we need to also take a good look in the mirror. Why would you respect people who are clearly evil to the core just because they’ve got money??
You do understand that the only way to become a billionaire is by abusing people and the planet to the absolute maximum, right? That’s behaviour found only in cunts! Do you want to be a cunt?
Stop valuing people based on wealth, job titles, or other useless, meaningless accolades. And then consider who deserves respect, who has actually earned your respect?
29. Educate Yourself & Others
Why is it that right-wingers go so hard against education on all levels? Obviously because educated people are much more difficult to bamboozle. If you have a basic understanding on how the world (no, not the USA, but the actual WORLD) around you works, you can recognise propaganda more easily.
You must get that basic level education into good nick, otherwise you’re done for, with or without fascist regimes! And then you should fight capitalism by educating yourself further by reading anti-capitalist theory, discussing ideas, and raising awareness.
30. Raise Anti-Capitalist Kids
Education isn’t just the responsibility of the education system in your country. If you have kids, it is your responsibility as a parent to educate them as well. At the very least you should be able to hammer in (figuratively) at least the ability to separate right from wrong, good from evil.
This can be achieved by teaching children cooperation skills, empathy, sharing, critical thinking and resistance instead of competition and consumerism.
31. Build Alternative Communities
If you’re looking for ways to fight capitalism through hard core activism you could consider building alternative communities. In practice this means engaging in intentional communities, co-ops, and opting for collective living.
32. Create & Share Without Profit
In addition to education, culture and arts are the biggest enemy of fascist regimes. Why? Because art is a brilliant form of messaging and educating. So, whether you’re paid to or not, never stop creating! Make art and music, write, film, and make your creations freely accessible.
33. Live Off-Grid or in Communes
This is a point that I have been forced to consider after putain attacked Ukraine. In case the war spreads we need to flee to the countryside. Thankfully that is an actual option for us, but is it for you?
Even without war in the picture, disengaging from capitalist structures by building self-sufficient communities is a great way to fight capitalism. I’m thinking of solar panels for the summer house and of course a greenhouse.
34. Normalize Non-Monetary Exchange
Have you ever tried swapping clothes with your friends? That means that each of you goes through their closet, finds the clothes they’re happy to part ways with and then you gather to see if someone’s unwanted clothes could get a new home with you, and vice versa.
With the world being the way it is, it’s very much recommended to promote a culture of sharing and gifting instead of transactional relationships. Not everything should be up for sale.
35. Disrupt Wealth Hoarding
Nobody needs to be a billionaire. And nobody can become a billionaire without seriously abusing people and the planet. Every single billionaire has way too much money and the fact that they don’t even bother to use that money for something good begs the question, should they be able to have so much in the first place?
Leveling out wealth inequality by taxing those who have way too much is the only way forward. It’s not even about fighting capitalism, it just makes sense!
Environmental Resistance
Last but certainly not least we have environmental resistance as means to fight capitalism. In case you want your children to see their 40th, even 50th birthday, it’s already quite late to wake up and smell the hummus.
The environmental destruction that is 100% human-made has accelerated in the past 3 years. And what makes things worse is the fact that AI is now being fed false “information” about the climate crisis. If AI is taught using false information, it will provide us with that false information.
Climate crisis is real and we can literally see it every single day everywhere around us! If you wish to be able to actually grow old, here’s what you need to do:
36. Reduce Reliance on Corporate Food Systems
As Americans already know, corporate food production means toxic food production. As an example of this, about 90% of additives used in food production in the US are banned in the EU. The additives are known to cause cancer, skin problems, even mental issues.
The best way to make sure that you eat a healthy and balanced diet is to stay away from corporate food systems. This you can achieve by supporting local farms, growing food on your own, and composting.
37. Resist Fast Fashion
As we already covered earlier, you must change the way you shop fashion! Buy less and only when you actually need something; shop secondhand; support ethical brands as far as possible.
38. Use Renewable Energy & Off-Grid Solutions
A great way to fight capitalism is to reduce your dependency on capitalist energy monopolies. As electricity prices keep soaring, you now have the option to produce your own electricity!
By investing in small domestic-size wind farms or solar panels you can save a long penny in energy costs. If you invest in the right kind of solar panels you could even sell the electricity you produce into the national grid. It’s a win-win!
39. Resist Car Culture
Another tip that’s quite easy to perform in European countries, perhaps not so easy in the States. But nonetheless, as far as you’re able, prefer public transport, cycling and/or walking. This way you automatically fight capitalism by not supporting the fossil fuel industries.
40. Push for Climate Justice
And last, but certainly not least, support policies and actions that target corporations in regards to environmental destruction. We all must live as environmentally as possible but while corporations don’t do their part, our individual efforts don’t count for much.
So, here you have it: 40 simple ways to fight capitalism that you can implement to your everyday life. Pick and choose the ones that are doable for you, not every tip is possible everywhere.
Also take into account that these are just starting points, resistance looks different for everyone. What are some ways you’re already using to resist capitalism? ♥
