Photo: AP

If you have a pulse and have driven in a car, you understand our roadways suck. That’s also true in Portland, Oregon, where a group of self-described anarchists have reportedly patched a few potholes to call attention to the piece of shit that is the city’s roads.


According to The Oregonian, the group’s working anonymously with the intention of fixing roads and squashing the perception that anarchists are only into, well, anarchy.


“As anarchists, we seek to bring about a society in which coercive hierarchies, such as government and capitalism ... no longer exist,” a group member told The Oregonian in an email. “To be exceptionally clear, anarchists do not desire chaos, we desire freedom and equality.”

Officials aren’t entirely jazzed about the idea, saying residents should contact the city rather than conduct an “unauthorized repair.” Here’s more from The Oregonian:

The group said it’s is now exploring alternatives to patching potholes, including mobilizing people to fix roads in their own neighborhoods and increasing pothole visibility, particularly around bike routes. “By creating structures to serve the same purpose as state structures, such as our organization, we have the ability to show that government is not necessary for society to function, that we can have a truly free and liberated society,” the email said.

An official with the city’s transportation department couldn’t direct the newspaper to an ordinance that explicitly bans unofficial pothole repairs, but said it’s been hampered by a series of storms in recent weeks.

“We share that frustration,” the spokesperson told the Oregonian. “We’d like to repair more potholes more quickly, but our efforts have been thwarted by Mother Nature.”


Rain or not, until everyone collectively agrees to pay more to keep our roads in tip-top shape, they’re going to continue to be a mess, so, anarchists fixing roads seems like a fine idea to me.