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Joseph Déjacque

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Joseph Déjacque was a French writer and a house painter. He was born in 1821 in France. His mother worked as a washerwoman to pay for his school.

Honoré Daumier - The Uprising (L'Emeute) - Google Art Project
Honoré Daumier - The Uprising (L'Emeute) - Google Art Project

During his youth, he saw a revolution in 1830. He later tried working in the French Navy in 1841. However, he did not like the strict rules at sea. He returned to Paris to work as a painter. By 1847, he was working for himself. During this time, he taught himself to write poetry. He called his work "social poetry."

In 1848, a big revolution happened in France. This event changed the government and created a new republic. Joseph joined this movement and fought on the streets.

Red flag II
Red flag II

He also joined groups that supported rights for women. After the revolution, many workers were still very poor. The government created National Workshops to give people jobs. Joseph joined one of these programs in May 1848. But the government soon shut them down. This led to the June Days uprising. Joseph fought on the barricades during this fight. He was arrested and sent to a prison in Cherbourg.

Life became very difficult for Joseph after that. Louis Napoleon Bonaparte became the President of France in 1848. His government banned many political clubs. Joseph was released from prison in March 1849. He still faced trouble with the law for his ideas. In 1851, he published a book of poems called Les Lazaréenes. The government charged him with causing trouble with his writing. He was sentenced to two years in prison. To avoid more trouble, Joseph fled into exile. He traveled to places like Brussels and London.

BlackFlagSymbol
BlackFlagSymbol

Joseph eventually moved to the United States in 1854. He lived in New York City and New Orleans. In New York, he helped start the International Association in 1855. This group included people from Britain, Germany, and America.

Libertarianism-groups-diagram
Libertarianism-groups-diagram

When he moved to New Orleans, he spoke out against slavery. He wanted a world where all people were treated fairly. He also wrote about gender equality for men and women. He believed that humanity should be equal. During this time, he became the first person to use the word "libertarian" to describe his political ideas. He wanted to show that all people could be free.

Joseph returned to New York to continue his work. He lived in poverty but kept writing and painting houses. In June 1858, he started a newspaper called Le Libertaire.

Le libertaire 25
Le libertaire 25

This was the first anarchist newspaper in the U.S. that was not in English. He also wrote a famous story called L'humanisphère. This story was about a perfect world in the year 2858. In his story, people lived without a government or religion. They made all decisions together as a group. Joseph died in France in the mid-1860s. Today, people remember him for his brave ideas and his new words.

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🖼️ Images & Media (11)
File:Rb-star.svg
Rb-star.svg
File:Libertarianism-groups-diagram.svg
Libertarianism-groups-diagram.svg
File:Red flag II.svg
Red flag II.svg
File:BlackFlagSymbol.svg
BlackFlagSymbol.svg
File:Symbol-hammer-and-sickle.svg
Symbol-hammer-and-sickle.svg
File:Honoré Daumier - The Uprising (L'Emeute) - Google Art Project.jpg
Honoré Daumier - The Uprising (L'Emeute)...
File:John Brown portrait, 1859.png
John Brown portrait, 1859.png
File:Benjamin Tucker.jpg
Benjamin Tucker.jpg
File:Karl Marx, May 1861.jpg
Karl Marx, May 1861.jpg
File:Lefrançais 1871.png
Lefrançais 1871.png
File:Le libertaire 25.png
Le libertaire 25.png
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