Ebook: Blockchain Radicals

“Blockchain Radicals takes you through a part of the crypto space
that is very different both from its libertarian beginnings and from the
money and trading-obsessed world of three-million-dollar digital
monkeys. An important complement to the existing narratives about
the technology.”
VITALIK BUTERIN, FOUNDER OF ETHEREUM

“Joshua Dávila lifts the veil on the actual workings of crypto, offering
access to those working for social justice. The book bucks the lefty
knee-jerk norm of crypto-aversion. This is important because
dangerous power imbalances are addressed by social movements
armed with the tools of the day, not by critics sitting on the sidelines
tutting!”
RUTH CATLOW, CO-FOUNDER OF FURTHERFIELD

“The radical potential of blockchain technology lies not in its ability to
replicate existing power structures, but in its capacity to enable more
collaborative economies and participatory governance practices. In
this book, Davila engages in a critical and nuanced examination of
the ways in which blockchains can be used to create a more
equitable and sustainable society, by challenging — rather than
exacerbating — the extractive practices of traditional capitalism.
While the book is written for a contemporary audience, its insights
are likely to become ever more relevant in the years to come.”
PRIMAVERA DE FILIPPI, AUTHOR OF BLOCKCHAIN AND THE LAW

“Stripped of ideological presuppositions, blockchain technologies
offer both a spectacular technical exploration of value itself and
some of the concrete tools we need to build a new world in the face
of the looming capitalist crisis. If he was alive today, I am certain
Marx himself would be eagerly reading this book. The left has far too
long forgotten technology.”
HARRY HALPIN, CEO OF NYM TECHNOLOGIES

“Joshua Dávila’s timely and incisive examination both of
cryptocurrency and of the left’s reactions to it provides much-needed
critical resources for progressively engaging with blockchain’s
potential as a medium for alternative forms of organization and
exchange. Taking the capitalism out of anarcho-capitalist technology
in order to claim it for the left is no mean feat but Blockchain
Radicals does this and more. A must-read for anyone hoping to
extend their theoretical and practical reach in the era of hyperfinancialization.”
RHEA MYERS, AUTHOR OF PROOF OF WORK

“This is the guide to crypto for people who care about justice more
than tech. Dávila does not treat blockchains as salvation or
abomination, as most commentators have. Rather, he shows it is an
opportunity, and a set of choices — a chance to build a radically
freer world or a virtual enclosure. Here is a crypto-compass for antidystopians.”
NATHAN SCHNEIDER, AUTHOR OF EVERYTHING FOR EVERYONE

“Joshua Dávila’s book is a clarion call for the left to claim the
liberatory potential of crypto instead of ceding the field to techdeterminist
libertarians. By weaving nuanced analysis with a hopeful
vision for blockchains as a force for progressive change, Dávila not
only inspires his readers but also opens portals for them to join the
struggle and become rebels for justice.”
TREBOR SCHOLZ, AUTHOR OF UBERWORKED AND UNDERPAID

“Blockchain technologies have been subject to a polarised discourse
of glorification or condemnation, but each side has often relied on
the same hype-driven and technologically determinist narratives. In
Blockchain Radicals, Dávila cuts through these myths and unpacks
the different possibilities latent within this space. This is a
fascinating, provocative, and illuminating view on blockchains that
makes a strong case for taking them seriously as a possible tool of
liberation.”
NICK SRNICEK, AUTHOR OF PLATFORM CAPITALISM

“Revolutionary movements that succeed make use of emergent
technologies. As the megamachine complex rears its head, crypto
provides a safehaven refuge for the cyber-guerilla. This book is the
entrance into crypto for political radicals.”
AMIR TAAKI, FOUNDER OF DARKFI