A points of unity is a formal agreement that shows the terms of unity between persons and groups. It can be for shared practice or for shared theory and practice. A points of unity can help orient a project and spell out the minimal dimensions that such a project must necessarily contain. Such dimensions can hold persons and collectives accountable as well as demonstrate to other people what organizations and actions are in favor of and against. An agreed to points of unity can serve as a filter for decisions that can round out democracy. A crucial feature of a points of unity is the notion of a gestalt of features; one feature in reduction of other ones can be extremely insufficient and lead to terrible implications. The following is a template for a points of unity for libertarian socialist organizations. It should be rounded out, modified, and not considered a perfect good points of unity. At its best a points of unity is not merely a thin lower common denominator between persons and groups but a coherent, thick, and good lower common denominator.

Points of Unity:

Direct Democracy: Direct democracy is a decision making process where people get together and make collective decisions directly through talking with each other without having ruling classes and representative politicians. Discussions allows the greatest degree of understanding and agreement. The deliberative process is foundational to direct democracy and enables amendments, critiques, concerns, and questions to round out proposals. Furthermore, a good direct democracy exists bounded by other principles, freedoms, and duties.

Non-Hierarchy: Non-Hierarchy is the lack of ruling class relations and all forms of ruling strata. All forms of centralized rule over and above people and oppression should be abolished and replaced by egalitarian relations. Hierarchies can take the forms of capitalism, statecraft, patriarchy, racism, along lines of ability and more. Different kinds of hierarchies are distinct from one another and effect one another, but all contain institutionalized forms of command and obedience.

Communal Self Governance: If we want self management on every scale, then communities should be able to govern themselves. This should exist on every scale from the block, to the neighborhood, to the city, and beyond. Such communal self governance creates a non-statist political sphere for participation in public life. This principle should be combined with co-federation across different communities– as well as responsibilities communities have towards other communities. If there is not a community sphere for collective decisions, then power over the community sphere becomes privatized.

Co-Federation: Co-federation is a way for relatively local organizations to organize with other organizations in a way that enables larger scale decision making processes and implementation. In a co-federation of organizations, persons and organizations make decisions on a variety of scales. Co-federation is a way to make decisions together across assemblies when there are decisions that are beyond a local scale that still keeps decision making power on the lowest level possible and in the hands of people directly. Co-federal delegates between organizations should be merely communicative and coordinative and have no policy making power. At its best co-federation creates relations of complementarity and mutualistic interdependence between communities.

Communal and Cooperative Economics: Economics should be governed directly by communities and workers. This means building community controlled cooperatives as well as worker controlled cooperatives. More importantly, it also means aiming towards building a world where communal and cooperative economics supplant capitalism. Such a communalized political economic sphere would seek to not only communalize the economy but de-commodify it and provide people with free means of existence, means of production, and means of political participation.

Freedom and Egalitarianism: Freedom is a social relationship that enables participation in political and social life within egalitarian bounds. Freedom of persons and collectives should end where the freedoms of others should begin and we have a duty to respect such freedoms of others. All relations should be participatory and no persons should have their freedoms arbitrarily restricted.

Ecology: Capitalism and other hierarchical relations are destroying the ecosystems we all rely on. We should cultivate a mutualistic relationship with the ecosystems we are embedded within rather than one that instrumentalizes the planet and people to centralized power and endless accumulation. Ecological problems are caused by social problems and it is through us dismantling hierarchical systems and building communal and cooperative relations that we can relate to the environment in a way that is rooted in complementarity.

Liberatory technology: We should use technology in ways that are liberatory. We should develop alternative technologies that enable us to arrive at meeting people’s needs and reasonable desires with ecological concern. Technologies such as solar power, wind power, geothermal power, organic gardening, recycling, regenerative materials, library access systems, communal kitchens, and automation enable us to meet human needs, and create communal luxury while being in harmony with ecological relations.