Devo

Futurism

Left-Right Syncretism

Anti-imperialism

Anti-capitalism

**Devo,** short for **Devolution** is an American political organization formed in 1970 in Akron, Ohio. Formed by Kent State University art students Gerald Casale and Bob Lewis in June of 1970, Devo posits that American and western society as a whole is undergoing devolution and degeneration. The organization is known for its controversial political opinions that seem to synthesize traditionalism with futurism. Devo has been thus been criticized by all sectors of politics. The center has criticized Devo for being radicals, the left has criticized Devo for being "reactionary and fascist", while the right has criticized Devo for being "communist." Since their formation in the 1970s, Devo was able to achieve a moderate base of supporters and sympathizers and has influenced many political figures and thinkers in the following decades, such as Indonesian president Hussein Soetoro and Dr. Theodore Kaczynski.

Devo's ideology consists primarily of two concepts: "de-evolution" (a process by which society degrades or declines over time) and "re-evolution" (the opposite process through which society can be revitalized). Devo's first political manifesto, Jocko Homo, published in 1971, argued for the need for "re-evolution"—a change in society brought about by the masses through the agency of the individual. The first half of the manifesto describes an ideal future in which technology would have been used as a means to liberate man from degeneracy and to return to traditional values of the past. Devo members advocated an increase in technology to create an era of greater prosperity, a more efficient social order, and a general improvement in the standard of living. Their vision was for an industrial civilization based on advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence, computer controlled robots, and automated mass production; it also involved a rejection of all the materialistic values of Western culture that had been responsible for so much violence, misery and oppression over the last few centuries. Devo rejects feminism and the LGBT movement in favor of a return to traditional male-female heterosexual marriage as the cornerstone of the family.

Devo began to publish their first newspaper, Duty Now for the Future, in 1974. A major theme of the paper was its criticism of western democracy—which it described as a form of tyranny, which could never allow the will of the people to triumph over the elite—and for this reason they advocated the formation of an autocratic society with a charismatic leader in the form of "Jocko Homo". According to Devo, society could only be revitalized if the masses were educated and awakened from their slumber. Duty Now for the Future published both serious political commentary on current events as well as social satire in the form of cartoons and humorous articles. By the early 1980s Devo had established themselves as a counter-culture political movement with a following across the entire United States, with "Devolution Societies" being established in various cities throughout North America.

Devo has also been influential among some scholars and intellectuals, particularly within postmodernist thought. In an essay entitled The Death of Conservatism: Postmodernism, Modernity and the Subversion of Western Politics, Dr. Theodore Kaczynski described Devo as having a profound influence on his own political views. Kaczynski argued that Devo's ideas about a need for "re-evolution" are not simply reactionary but in fact represent a more sophisticated synthesis of conservative and socialist ideology than is usually realized. Devo was often viewed by critics as a sort of reactionary organization whose political views were rooted in traditionalism rather than in postmodernist thought, a position that Dr. Kaczynski argues is incorrect and uncharitable to Devo.

Devo's Casale, Lewis, Mothersbaugh, and Weitz (who would become known as "the four horsemen of devolution") published the book Freedom of Choice in 1980, which became their most successful publication to date. The book was a collection of writings published by Devo between 1970–1980, containing essays, poems, stories, cartoons, photographs, and drawings. Freedom of Choice was widely influential, prompting more interest into their ideas from other thinkers. George Weitz and Gerald Casale would publish another book, New Traditionalists, in 1984, which attempted to further solidify the political ideology of devolution and re-evolution. New Traditionalists became a bestseller and was praised by many writers, including Noam Chomsky, and was considered to be the definitive text on devolution by many scholars.

Although urged by their supporters to organize a proper political party, Devo was reluctant to do so and was satisfied enough by simply supporting the creation of Devolution Societies and distributing their literature. In an interview with Rolling Stone in 1985, Devo's Casale claimed that they were "not a political party" but rather a "cultural movement." He also claimed that devolution was not merely a political philosophy but rather a "way of life" that should be embraced by all. Devo would then encourage all Devolution societies to hold "DEVOtionals", where Devolutionists can congregate and discuss politics and philosophy while attracting new members.

Devo saw a decrease in its popularity during the early 1990s, though Devo saw a revival after the publication of Dr. Theodore Kaczynski's 1995 book Industrial Society and Its Future, which directly quotes from Freedom of Choice and New Traditionalists, and includes extensive discussion about Devo's beliefs. Since this point in time, Devo has seen an increase in mainstream popularity, being cited by Indonesian President Hussein Soetoro as a major influence of his shift in political beliefs in 1998; in 2008, when interviewed by BBC, Hussein Soetoro said that he admired the "political views of Devo" and that he wished "to follow the footsteps of the horsemen".

Multiple political parties around the world have been said to been inspired by Devo, such as the American Traditionalist Party (founded in 2003), the German New Conservative Party (founded in 2006), the Italian Party of the Will (founded in 2007) and the Australian People's Movement (founded in 2011). The Dutch New Traditionalist Party (DNT) was established in 1989, and has been described as having a similar ideology to Devo. Other American organizations which are associated with Devo include the Future Youth Network, the Traditionalist Worker Party.. Devo and associated Devolution societies are currently active in many European countries such as, Germany, Italy, Portugal, France, the Netherlands, and Scandinavia.