AK Press
AK Press is a worker-managed independent publisher and book distributor that specialises in radical left and anarchist literature. It is collectively owned and operated out of Oakland, California.
Contents
History[edit]
AK was founded in Stirling, Scotland by Ramsey Kanaan in 1987 as a small mail order outlet, named after his mother Ann Kanaan.[1] The project soon expanded, venturing into independent book publishing, and AK Press also now has a branch in Oakland, California. Kanaan and several other members of AK Press left in 2007 to form a new radical publishing company PM Press.[2] AK Press is organized as a workers' co-operative; the Press is owned by all members of the collective and works without bosses, with every member partaking in each function of the organization.[3] It operates online through akpress.org[4] in the United States, and through akuk.com in Europe.[5] In the US, it manages a "Bookmobile" (which is not a physical automobile, but "an announcement, an opportunity") that sells books at various gatherings around the country (to protests, activist conferences, etc.).[6] In the United Kingdom, AK Press manages stalls at similar events. Works published by AK Press include reprints of radical classics as well as original works; its book topics include anarchism,[7] globalization,[8] and animal rights,[9] and are often difficult to find through mainstream outlets.[10]
AK Press has released spoken word albums by figures such as Noam Chomsky, Howard Zinn, Jello Biafra, Arundhati Roy and Mumia Abu-Jamal and music by artists including David Rovics and Utah Phillips.[11]
The business also sells clothing, buttons, stickers, and various "anarchist props" like an upside down map of the world and the red and black flag of anarcho-syndicalism.[12]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Kanaan, Ramsey. "Part 1: What's Wrong With the American Anarchist Movement?". Melbourne Indymedia. Archived from the original on April 27, 2005. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
- ^ Carroll, Tobias (August 26, 2008). "I've Got a Name: Music, Radical Politics, and AK Press". yourbestguess.com. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
- ^ "About - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
- ^ "Home page - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
- ^ "Welcome to the AKUK Website - AKUK the European home of AK Press and Distribution". akuk.com. Retrieved 9 January 2017.
- ^ "Frequently Asked Questions - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
- ^ "Anarchsim - Published by AK Press - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
- ^ "Animal Rights - Published by AK Press - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
- ^ "Animal Rights - Published by AK Press - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
- ^ "About - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
- ^ "Audio - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
- ^ "Miscellany - AK Press". akpress.org. Retrieved 17 January 2017.
External links[edit]
- Anarchist publishing companies
- Book publishing companies of Scotland
- Book publishing companies based in California
- California media
- Companies based in Edinburgh
- Worker cooperatives
- Publishing companies established in 1987
- 1987 establishments in Scotland
- Stirling (council area)
- Companies based in Oakland, California
- Book publishing companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area
- Publishing collectives
- Far-left politics in Scotland
- Anarchism in Scotland