Infoshop
An infoshop is a place where alternative, subcultural or radical literature is distributed.[1] Subjects often include activism, anarchism, animal rights, art, economics, environmentalism, feminism, politics, permaculture, socialism, vegetarianism and veganism. Additionally, infoshops often serve as a meeting space and resource hub for local groups and activists.
Infoshops can be free standing or take the form of a store front or a few rooms that act as distribution, reading, library and meeting space. Alternatively, they may be part of a larger social center that provides other functions.[1]
Contents
Facilities[edit]
Often infoshops have a library of alternative, subcultural or radical literature. Infoshops also include a zine library, helping to preserve zine culture.[2]
Location[edit]
Infoshops are particularly prevalent in Western Europe and North America, but can be found around the world.[citation needed]
Origins[edit]
According to an Utne Reader article, author Chris Atton describes British infoshops as having grown "out of the squatted anarchist centres of the 1980s, such as the 121 Centre in Brixton, London."[3] Another big influence was the regular European-wide International Infoshop Meetings of the 1990s.
Writing in Maximum RocknRoll, anarchist librarian Chuck Munson places North American infoshops in the lineage of Vietnam War era peace and justice centers.[4]
Networks[edit]
In June 2006, the Infoshop Network, a network spanning Canada and the United States, was formed at the Infoshop Gathering in Baltimore, Maryland.[5]
List of infoshops[edit]
North America[edit]
Active[edit]
Oceania[edit]
- Black Rose, Sydney Australia
- Copy & Destroy Zine Library, Brisbane, Australia
- Freedom Shop, Wellington New Zealand
- Jura Books, Sydney Australia
- The Melbourne Anarchist Club, Infoshop, Library & Social Space, Melbourne, Australia
Europe[edit]
- 56a, Walworth, London, England, UK
- WORM, Rotterdam, Netherlands
- Ivar Matlaus Bokkafé, Trondheim, Norway
- Mustan kanin kolo, Helsinki, Finland
- Turku Book Café, Turku, Finland
- U Bodzia, Warsaw, Poland
Africa[edit]
Asia[edit]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ a b Atton, Chris (1999). The infoshop: the alternative information centre of the 1990s. Emerald Insight. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
- ^ "WE HAVE A BIG ZINE LIBRARY!". 56a.org. Archived from the original on June 27, 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2015.
- ^ Street Libraries: Infoshops and Alternative Reading Rooms
- ^ Maximumrocknroll article on infoshops
- ^ The Infoshop Network
External links[edit]
Infoshop Directories[edit]
- "Directory of Infoshops". Spunk Library.
- "Infoshops (North America)". Strangers In A Tangled Wilderness.
- "Listing infoshops by region (North America)". infoshopnetwork.org.
- "Radical Contact List (including infoshops)". Slingshot!.
Media[edit]
- Living Room Documentary - A documentary film about infoshop culture.
- Zine: The A-Zone & A Decade Of Anarchy In Chicago - A zine about the Autonomous Zone in Chicago, IL, one of many infoshops that started in the United States in the 1990s.
