MSRRT Newsletter's alternative news, views, and resource listings were sent via snail mail to members of the Minnesota Library Association Social Responsibilities Round Table (MSRRT). Others subscribed by making a donation ($15 suggested) payable to MLA/MSRRT. Editors: Chris Dodge/Jan DeSirey.
By Cathy Camper
At this summer's American Library Association conference in San Francisco, I kept hearing the same ominous message spelled out in different ways. Mega- and super-sized companies are setting the standards for the nineties. It's happening in the city itself, where run-down decrepit strip malls have been replaced by sterile mega-malls and the run-down central library supplanted by a new corporate-sponsored building which still lacks sufficient shelf space. In conference workshops there was bleak news about how big business is trashing fair use in copyright and threatening the publishing industry. License agreements were a topic of discussion at the ACRL Copyright Committee's panel session, "Sex, Lies and Electronic Reserves: Fair Use or Not?" Following the lead of software companies, many businesses are now issuing materials covered under licenses. By "opening the package," users automatically "agree" to comply. Unlike copyright law, these licenses may not make any provisions for fair use, which could be bad news for reviewers, educators, law-abiding zinesters and anyone else who puts fair use to good use. Big business is also wreaking havoc in publishing. According to editors, authors, and advocates at the program "NO KID'in Around: Womyn's Presses in the New Millennium," superstores like Barnes and Noble have large and small publishers by the throat. Books that don't sell are returned, at the publishers' loss. This has especially hurt independent presses, but bigger ones aren't immune. It's feared that if the large chain bookstores fail, they'll bring publishers down, too. A mega-happening that is exciting to see, the Gay Pride Parade, effectively shut down Market Street again in celebration of queerness. Still, even that event has been latched onto by profiteers. The burgeoning number of "Pride" travel packages and souvenir vendors caused some writers in the local gay press to question if "acceptance by the mainstream" was really a good thing. Definitely on the conference plus side, however, were free ALA-sponsored poetry readings held in the exhibit hall. Faithful fans and curious passersby heard Gary Soto, Diane DiPrima, and Quincy Troupe, among others. The voices of these poets reading their own works was a welcome reprieve from the hucksterism of vendors selling library wares.
[Two issues ago we noted how retail giant Wal-Mart influences the content of pop music recordings. A front page article in the August 12 New York Times ("Book chains' new role: soothsayers for publishers") indicates that bookstores like Barnes & Noble are having an undue effect as well. In this case it's not simply influencing content, but "helping" decide what gets published at all. On October 3 at the Minnesota Library Association conference in Bloomington, MSRRT will sponsor a session titled "Invasion of the Superstores." The program will include such panelists as Hungry Mind Bookstore's David Unowsky and Collette Morgan from Wild Rumpus. -Editors]
Corporate publishers have discovered zines this year, with predictable results. According to the flacks at Hyperion, publishers of Veronika Kalmar's laughably lame Start your own zine, these "hip magazines" are a "lucrative alternative to the conventional workplace." Are they serious? New and prospective zine editors interested in getting their publications into stores nationwide, willing to be businesspeople dealing with contracts, bar coding, and late payments, would be far better served by reading Bill Brent's Make a zine (see below) or Antonio Lopez' Zine publishers distribution handbook and resource guide. The latter, an insiders' advisory on doing a zine "without losing your shirt," at least notes another scenario, namely "to continue doing what zinesters have always done: trade zines among themselves, do subscriptions only, sell direct to a few counterculture newsstands and bookstores and fuck the whole distribution scene." Besides the idiotic Hyperion "how-to" guide, there are also several zine anthologies out this year from publishers owned by media conglomerates. One of them, Chip Rowe's The book of zines (Holt), weighs in at 14.1 ounces, which prices out to a relatively whopping $16.96 a pound. Focusing on pop culture zines, it includes a few entries photographically reproduced from the original (a good thing), as well as an index. Seth Friedman's The Factsheet Five zine reader (Random House), a hefty 19.4 ounces ($11.55 per pound), contains less white space and features selections which are a tad edgier and longer. On the other hand, its complete text re-typesetting uncomfortably homogenizes things. Somehow the whole of these books is less than the sum of their parts; they are to zines what the "Hooked on the Classics" recordings are to Beethoven and Mozart. Torn from meaningful context, short compiled snippets from important publications like Pathetic Life and Cometbus are ultimately disappointing. These anthologies don't especially lend themselves toward inspiring new do-it-yourself efforts (though each contains a directory), nor does their Library of Congress (LC) cataloging help matters when it comes to findability in libraries. Rowe's The book of zines, assigned not a single subject heading by LC, was pigeonholed in the Dewey number for general American collections (081), while The Factsheet Five zine reader was put in 810.8 (American lit) and assigned four more-or-less accurate headings. Rowe and Friedman are zine experts (and Factsheet Five an incredible resource), but their books are fodder for mass consumption, remaindering, and recycling bins. Public libraries ought to purchase them, but also consider Jen Angel's self-published compilation The 1996 zine yearbook. Connected to a biosystem of punk rock, engaged living, and creative dissidence, it too standardizes format and fonts (adding typographical errors in the process), but this selection of articles taken from "zines published in 1996 with circulations less than 5,000 copies" rocks with energy. Looking through the other anthologies is like channel surfing cable TV, but this seems more participatory and vital. Truth be told, at $7.40 a pound, it's also a better value. Included are interviews with zine editors, a postal worker, and a public school teacher who is a punk musician, as well as practical material on relationships and sex, historical and contemporary reports on rallies and uprisings, accounts of riding the rails, and an essay on the politics of the Universal Product Code. On that latter topic, the Lopez guidebook lists two barcode sources, noting that one is "better suited for a Kafka novel than DIY culture" and the other "a totally bureaucratic organization that wants to code everything, including your forehead." Let the buyer beware.
The 1996 zine yearbook. [Edited by Jen Angel.] J. Angel, 1997. 108p. (Box 590514, San Francisco, CA 94159, 415-923-9814, jenangel@mindspring.com; $5, paper).
The book of zines: readings from the fringe. Edited by Chip Rowe. H. Holt, 1997. 178p. ($14.95, paper, 0-8050-5083-3).
The Factsheet Five zine reader: the best writing from the underground world of zines. Edited by R. Seth Friedman. Three Rivers Press, 1997. 190p. ($14, paper. 0-609-80001-9).
Start your own zine. By Veronika Kalmar. Hyperion, 1997. 144p. ($9.95, paper, 0-7868-8217-4).
Zine publisher's distribution handbook and resource guide. By Antonio Lopez, with hypertextual commentary by David Hirschi. Lost World Communications, 1996. 67p. (216 Paseo del Pueblo Norte, #181, Taos, NM 87571, 505-751-1914; $5.95, paper).
The Factsheet Five Web site is officially up and running, with selected reviews from the current issue: http://www.factsheet5.com
Chip Rowe's zine resource pages on the Web (http://thetransom.com/chip/ zines/resource) continue to be updated, with new articles and links added regularly. One recent addition is a page of "zine libraries".
Straying a bit from his field of expertise, sports news editor Robert Armstrong reviewed A girl's guide to taking over the world: writings from the girl zine revolution in the August 10 issue of the Star Tribune. After asserting that zines contain no advertising, Armstrong mentions such titles as Pucker Up and Ben is Dead, both of which--last we looked--were chock full o' ads. The piece also nonsensically refers to Fat! So? as Far! So?
City Pages, the Stern Publishing-owned "alternative" Twin Cities weekly (whose longtime editor Steve Perry has just resigned), is now running an occasional zine review in their "Culture to Go" section. Unsurprisingly, their August 6 review of "the wonderful fanzine" Doris did not provide a contact address, however. Get a clue, people!
AMERICAN-ARAB ANTI-DISCRIMINATION COMMITTEE news & action alerts
FEMINA women's Web directory
INDEX ON CENSORSHIP, international magazine for free speech and human rights; includes back issues from the past two years, as well as a country-by-country round-up of free speech abuses, gallery of censored cartoons, and links to related sites
LIBRARIES FOR THE FUTURE (advocacy news, policy updates, etc.)
NATIVE AMERICAN HOME PAGES, organized by librarian Lisa Mitten
SPUNK PRESS anarchist texts and images
UBUWEB VISUAL & CONCRETE POETRY, including a great "found poetry" page
YOUTH ASSISTANCE ORGANIZATION, queer (& "questioning") teens' resources
YUSH PONLINE, Afro-British pop culture and commentary
Tales from the clit: a female experience of pornography. Edited by Cherie Matrix for Feminists Against Censorship. AK Press, 1996. 144p. Refreshing, frank, and occasionally hilarious, this book documents a range of sympathetic views by women who encounter pornography, actively seek it out, or actually create and distribute erotica. "Erections are elegant," one writes. "Looking at a picture of insertion is just like seeing a painting of someone coming through the gate after a hard day's work, with smoke coming out of the chimney of the house and you can almost smell the supper. 'Oh, yes,' you go, 'home!'" Many of the twenty-six women, most British, who contributed pieces to this book came from an initial feeling that pornography is an "affront" or degrading. Avedon Carol's tone is not atypical: "It was entirely confusing," she writes, "that males were neither embarrassed about having yucky bits themselves nor averse to looking at, touching, smelling, and even tasting yucky bits on girls (and sometimes even on other men). But I suppose it seemed typical of boys that they would like something yucky, and of course they would think having bigger yucky bits was somehow superior to having only small yucky bits." From childhood discoveries of sexuality (and excited encounters with their parents' collections of erotica), these women now write about how pornography could and can be done better. Too often, discussion of sexuality is dominated by academics whose work is based in theory rather than practice. This collection of writings, on the other hand, has a straight-shooting working class feel, and represents marginalized voices: disabled women, women of color, and women who have been told they are "fat, ugly, smelly, pathetic." It's also worth noting that many of them stress the importance of underground presses in promoting healthy sexual attitudes. (P.O. Box 40682, San Francisco, CA 94140-0682, 415-864-0892, FAX: 415-864-0893, akpress@org.org).
Dangerous drawings: interviews with comix & graphix artists. Edited by Andrea Juno. Juno Books, 1997. 223p. Previously the domain of children and nerdy teens, comic books became adult entertainment in the 60s, thanks to artists like R. Crumb. Barriers down, a subsequent wave of comics artists began to address more somber and seditious issues. This collection of discussions with many who have further pushed the boundaries of what is possible in art, cartoons, and comic books begins with Jewish Holocaust-chronicler Art Spiegelman (Maus). Most accurately fitting the "dangerous" label, however--and especially interesting--are Toronto artist Eli Langer (charged in 1993 with making, displaying, and possessing obscene material), J.D.'s co-editor G. B. Jones (whose lesbo-erotic Tom Girls subvert the famous gay male porn images by Tom of Finland), and medical illustrator Phoebe Gloeckner, creator of autobiographical comix detailing a childhood marked by sexual abuse. As Gloeckner does, Chester Brown talks about comics which cover events in his own life, while Julie Doucet responds to questions about her depictions of explicit sex. Others describe what it's like to be young Black hip-hop illustrator Matt Reid or an editorial cartoonist who really questions the status quo (Ted Rall). On the bitchy side, Twisted Sisters editors Aline Kominsky-Crumb and Diane Noomin diss 70s-era "politically correct" Wimmen's Comix collective, without rebuttal. A minor annoyance: many of the book's graphic reproductions cry out for enlargement, and several are blurry or faded. Otherwise, recommended for public and academic libraries, as well as art school collections. (180 Varick St., 10th Floor, New York, NY 10014, 212-807-7300, FAX: 212-807-7355).
I am my lover: women pleasure themselves. Edited by Joani Blank. Photographs by Phyllis Christopher, and others. Down There Press, 1997. 99p. Joycelyn Elders got fired for mentioning it; Ann Landers recommends it. As an aid to sound sleep, it can't be topped. No prescription is required. With this matter-of-fact collection of explicit black-and-white photos and personal narratives, masturbation comes further out of the closet. This book shows real women "jilling off" in their own places, not stereotypical nymphets posed primarily for the gaze of heterosexual men. Ranging somewhat in age and appearance (though not skin color), they include women indoors and out, seen in both sharp and soft focus--with tattoos, tit clamps, and vibrators, as well as one accompanied by her cat companions. Writing about self-pleasuring as if it were a dear friend (one first masturbated to orgasm on the day of her first communion), they talk about fantasies, safe sex, and consolation, as well as how masturbation fits in with partner sex. As one proclaims, "We all need more pleasure." Six photographers--three women and three men--contributed work to this book, an update to a long out of print edition published by Down There in 1978, for which the plates have been lost. (938 Howard St., #101, San Francisco, CA 94103, 415-974-8985, FAX: 415-974-8989, goodvibe@well.com; $25, paper, 0-940208-18-0).
25 years on the move. MOVE, 1996. 72p. Ostensibly nonbiased books about the revolutionary MOVE organization have described their struggles as a "neighborhood squabble provoked by conflicting lifestyles" (Assefa and Wahrhaftig's The MOVE crisis in Philadelphia). This revised and expanded edition of 20 years on the move, on the other hand, focuses on systematic and long term police and judicial harassment, and represents important source material by the group itself. Including material on MOVE philosophy and the case of MOVE supporter Mumia Abu-Jamal, it traces an unhappy sequence of events. After a seven-week starvation blockade failed to drive them from their Powelton Village house in the spring of 1978, members of MOVE were attacked on August 8 that year by hundreds of flak jacket wearing Philadelphia police. One officer was killed; MOVE women and men were arrested and beaten. By noon, police bulldozers had leveled the house and its foundations, destroying all evidence. Despite this, nine MOVE members were sentenced to 30-100 years in prison after convictions on third degree murder, conspiracy, attempted murder, and aggravated assault charges. On May 13, 1985, six MOVE adults and five children were killed when police bombed their house on Osage Avenue and burned down the entire block. While no indictments were returned against the city, MOVE member Ramona Africa was convicted on charges of riot and conspiracy. Today, all nine MOVE members arrested in 1978 remain in prison, but the organization lives on. (Box 19709, Philadelphia, PA 19143, 215-387-9955, FAX: 215-476-7551, movellja@aol.com; $5, paper).
Still can't keep a straight face. By Ellen Orleans. Illustrations by Noreen Stevens. Laugh Lines Press, 1996. 109p. The author of Butches of Madison County continues to provide the perfect combination of humor and politics in her outrageous commentaries on lesbian and gay life. Orleans' targets include such diverse topics as Colorado's Amendment 2, technology, lesbian travel, and new lovers. These witty vignettes are nicely complemented by the artistic drawings of Noreen Stevens. (Box 259, Bala Cynwyd, PA 19004, 610-668-4252, 800-356-9315; $8.95, paper, 1-889594-01-6). -Kim Edson
Goodness. By Martha Roth. Spinsters Ink, 1996. 320p. This is a story of one woman's breast cancer and its impact on a close-knit community of peace activists and feminists, friends and lovers. A first-time novelist, Minnesota author Martha Roth seamlessly interweaves the lives of this group of friends, from the 1960s peace movement that brought them together, to their continued activism in the 1980s. The rich character's distinctive viewpoints are clearly articulated and artfully integrated into this tale of personal growth. (32 E. First St., #330, Duluth, MN 55802, 218-727-3222; $10.95, paper, 1-883523-11-7). -Kim Edson
Make a zine! By Bill Brent. Black Books, 1997. 192p. With Mike Gunderloy's How to publish a fanzine (Loompanics Unlimited, 1988) out of print, the time was ripe for this useful handbook. Well-designed and easy to read, it contains practical details about technical things like layout and typeface, questions and answers about financial issues, and even suggestions about how to conduct and transcribe interviews. It also addresses such concerns as content and liability. Aimed primarily at beginners, it nonetheless contains material which veteran self-publishers should appreciate, including up-to-date appendices listing zine-friendly bookstores and distributors, along with annotated bibliographies and resource data (e.g., Ashley Parker Owen's site). Heck, there's even an index. Considering the author's special interests (Brent edits the pansexual Black Sheets), it's not too surprising that there's also a short chapter here on sex zines and queer zines, along with a directory of "sex-positive stores." (P.O. Box 31155, San Francisco, CA 94131-0155, 415-431-0171, FAX: 415-431-0172, blackb@queernet.org, $10, paper, 0-9637401-4-8; http://www.queernet.org/BlackBooks ).
A world of options: a guide to international exchange, community service and travel for persons with disabilities. Edited by Christa Bucks. Mobility International USA, 1997. 658p. Annotated directories, personal accounts by disabled travelers, Web site listings, and info about educational exchange programs and volunteer work camps are all part of this awesome resource. It includes material on financial aid and fundraising, lists of organizations, and details not just about accessibility of specific hotels, airlines, and rental vehicle companies, but even yurt camping and homestays. Well organized, it contains a bibliography describing a wide assortment of disability-related pamphlets, guidebooks, magazines, and other media. Despite its focus, this guide would even be useful for able-bodied travelers as well as anyone with an interest in disability resources. Its suggestions for embracing the spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act ought to be read and heeded. Highly recommended. (P.O. Box 10767, Eugene, OR 97440, phone/TDD: 541-343-1284, FAX: 541-343-6812, miusa@igc.apc.org; $30 individuals/$40 organizations, paper, 1-880034-24-7).
For a free humanity: for anarchy (Compact disc). By Noam Chomsky & Chumbawumba. AK Press, 1997. Two CDs in one package--one a Noam Chomsky lecture from late 1995, the other a performance by British rockers Chumbawumba--provide both political analysis for punks and dance music for eggheads who need to get out more. Listening to Chomsky cover economics is like watching an ugly puzzle being pieced together. Though his focus here is contemporary union busting, workplace tyranny, economic doublespeak, globalization, and the temp worker explosion, he also gives background on the Madisonian principles of "benevolent aristocracy" upon which the United States government is based. Chumbawumba, on the other hand, recorded live in Leeds (1994), offers joyously cathartic anthems guaranteed to provoke sing along. Set to a modified punk rock infused with both folk elements and Hugh Masekela-like horn riffs, the band's radical lyrics are presented enthusiatically. None, though, is sung with more verve than this refrain to Prime Minister Tony Blair: "Can't hear 'cause your mouth's full of shit!" (P.O. Box 40682, San Francisco, CA 94140-0682, 415-864-0892, FAX: 415-864-0893, akpress@org.org).
Who speaks English in America? The controversy over Ebonics in America (Audio tape). By Amiri Baraka. Radio Free Maine, 1997. Part lecture, part poetry reading, part question-and-answer session, this animated performance recalls Lenny Bruce when his comedy shtick had turned political and serious. Making its way from Black language and its influence on American speech ("discovered" equals "dissed and covered," Baraka says), it ranges from American history and W.E.B. DuBois, to thoughts on the O.J. Simpson trial and commentary on visiting Atlanta during the 1996 Olympics. Like a jazz musician, Baraka's presentation is dynamic, featuring different voices and modulation. It's also vernacular, punctuated frequently by "y'understan' what I mean?" Recorded on February 6, 1997, at the University of Maine, Orono, it includes several provocative short poems of a genre Baraka refers to as "low-ku". (P.O. Box 2705, Augusta, ME 04338, 207-622-6629; $10.50).
Poor Magazine is a new nonprofit publication of creative writing, art, and "analysis of issues pertaining to people suffering from class, race, and gender oppressions." Edited by a mother-daughter team, the 48-page second issue focuses on "hellthcare" and contains a searing first-person account about being driven to fraud in order to have emergency dental work done (with a sidebar listing low cost and free dentistry sources in San Francisco and Berkeley), as well as articles about alternative medical care for women prisoners and poor women, criticism of the new "patient as product" corporate health care, an argument for mental health care alternatives, and a review of Vicente Navarro's Dangerous to your health. Also: an interview with a "lowrider bicycle" creator and short reports on poor people's experiences with food and restaurants. (1326 Larkin, San Francisco, CA 94109, 415-541-5629; sliding scale, $14-45; poormag@sirius.com, http://www.slowburn.com/poor.html).
NAPO News is a publication of Canada's National Anti-Poverty Organization. The 4-page July 1997 newsletter (#59) includes statistics, commentary on "poor bashing," and resource listings, as well as news about local rate hike requests by Canadian telephone companies. (316-256 King Edward Ave., Ottawa ON K1N 7M1, Canada, 613-789-0096 FAX: 613-798-0141, napo@web.apc.org, http://www.napo-onap.ca).
Lackluster is a zine of interviews. The 40-page issue #2 focuses on architecture and "shelter utopias," and features conversations with the amateur creators, caretakers, and residents of a revolving house, Tressa Prisbrey's Bottle Village, and "Broken Angel" (a reassembled nine-story building at 4 Downing Street in Brooklyn), as well as material about the Forestiere Underground Gardens in Fresno, Howard Finster's Paradise Garden, and the Winchester Mystery House in San Jose (complete with hand-drawn maps of how to get there). A forthcoming issue will cover "architecture which hosts entire communities;" the initial edition featured conversations with people about their jobs as bail bond agent, taxidermist, diver, and paramedic. (Amy Balkin/James Harbison, 456 14th Street, #8, San Francisco, CA 94103, lacklstr@sirius.edu).
McJob is Julie Peeslee's "zine for the disenchanted employee of low-paying jobs." The 32-page issue #3 contains "shitty job stories" (from the editor and others), about working as a waiter, photographer's assistant, food court cashier, and telemarketer ("The summer I robbed blind people and broke up marriages!"), as well as a comic by Wendy Darst (from her Wandromedia) about working as a housekeeper at the Aqua City Motel in Minneapolis. Also: a convenience store clerk's pet peeves, letters from readers, commentary on (and examples of) coincidences, and an "anti-resume" by Ashley Parker Owens. (P.O. Box 11794, Berkeley, CA 94712-2794; $2).
Trustworthy ("The zine of public trust") is put together by artist/cartoonist/unemployed art historian Rachael Buffington. The hand-stitched Summer 1997 issue (#5) contains an illustrated library romance, thoughts of a beginning driver, and information about Julia Dzwonkoski's The Museum of the Double, as well as sketchbook pages describing both artists' books and the editor's pet fish which survived a twenty-five hour train ride. Also: an idiosyncratic list of "joyful things" and an item about the Boll Weevil monument in Enterprise, Alabama. (Rachael Buffington, 1502 Noble Creek Dr., Atlanta, GA 30327; $1).
Plotz ("The zine for the vaclempt") focuses on Jewish culture. Two unnumbered issues examined explain Yiddish terminology, relate personal experiences of anti-Semitism, out Jewish celebrities (like David Lee Roth and "Jerry Rivers [who] goes by his stage name of Geraldo Rivera"), and interview members of rock bands about their Jewishness ("What's your favorite kosher food?"). Editor Barbara also includes an "ask a goy" column by Crank editor Jeff Koyen. (Box 819, Stuyvesant Station, New York, NY 10009, plotz@pipeline.com, http://www.flotsam/plotz).
Infiltration calls itself "the zine about going places you're not supposed to go." Illustrated with black-and-white photos, issue #4 focuses on "exploring steam tunnels in various colleges and universities across North America," and includes an interview with the creator of the "official" College Steam Tunnels website, as well as letters from urban spelunkers. The 24-page issue #5 covers tunnels of the Toronto subway system, with a mind toward "risk-to-thrill ratio." (P.O. Box 66069, Town Centre Post Office, Pickering, ON, L1V 6P7, Canada; $1/issue).
Concave Up ("An illustrated dream anthology") is a comic zine put out three times a year by nonDairy Publishing. The 24-page issue seen (#4) illustrates dreams about giant rabbits as a mode of transportation, contact lenses the size of plates, and dead aliens who taste like imitation pie filling, with commentary offered by "participants in the email-distributed journal Electric Dreams." Included is material on Carl Jung and the development of his theory of the "collective unconscious," as well as a dream reported by celebrity Pamela Anderson. Previous editions focused on nightmares (#2) and the creative aspects of dreams (#3), while the next issue's theme is religion. (Jesse Reklaw, P.O. Box 200206, New Haven, CT 06520-0206, reklaw@nondairy.com; $8.95 for 4 issues; http://www.nonDairy.com/concav e/up.cgi).
Da X-Factor Newz is a new Twin Cities African American arts tabloid. The Spring 1997 issue includes recipes, poetry, artwork, photos, book recommendations, concert reports, music reviews, and a list of Black websites, as well as information about such events as the Twin Cities Black Journalists' Poetry and Jazz Set and a Minority Media Coalition forum on the Walker Art Center's "no place (like home)" exhibit. (1900 Columbus Ave. S., Minneapolis, MN 55404, 612-871-2614).
First Day is the publication of the revolutionary Move Organization, a group whose philosophy centers around belief in natural law and the sanctity of life. The 12-page issue #12 focuses on the case of political prisoner Mumia Abu-Jamal, and includes "Mumia and Move: What's the Connection?" and an appeal from International Concerned Family & Friends of Mumia Abu-Jamal, as well as statements by Angela Davis and other supporters. Also: case studies in miscarriage of justice in the United States, dating from the 1930s. (P.O. Box 19709, Philadelphia, PA 19143, 215-387-9955, FAX: 215-476-7551, movellja@aol.com, http://www.webcom/nattyreb/move).
Chi-Tavo-Bus is a personal zine put out by Octavio ("Chicanobus") De La Rosas. The 48-page "Renaissance Issue" (#31) contains a piece about a conversation with an old man on a bus (which inspired Tavo to start the zine in 1986), a love letter from a dead girlfriend, and a paean to the editor's beat-up shoes (a taped-together pair of Doc Martens given him by a friend who thought they were too trendy), along with excerpts from Tavo's brother's diary ("Marijuana mornings"). Also: original graphics and writings about death, family, and hanging with friends in East Palo Alto. Good luck getting hold of the elusive editor who was Mexico-bound last we heard. (751 Laurel St., #518, San Carlos, CA 94070).
The Archive is the journal of the Leslie-Lohman Gay Art Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to furthering "the awareness, appreciation, and preservation of lesbian and gay art." The 12-page Spring 1997 edition (v.3 #1) contains interviews with artists Delmas Howe and Ted Titolo, an article about painter Philip Osborne, and a conversation with a Foundation volunteer, as well as reproductions of paintings and drawings. (131 Prince St., New York, NY 10012-3154, 212-673-7007, FAX: 212-260-0363, wsnel17166@aol.com, http://www.3wnet.com/corp/Les lie_Lohman).
Women's Work is a nationally distributed quarterly women's magazine. The 32-page Spring 1997 issue focuses on "herstory," with an article about the omission of women in art history, a report on National Women's History Month, and personal pieces about culture clash in rearing a teenage daughter (Latha Viswanathan's "Third eye") and the importance of preserving family stories. Also: poetry, networking info, book reviews, a Donna Barr comic strip about guys who are B.W.S. ("Born With Servant"), and an interview with artist S.A. Bachman. (606 Ave. A, Snohomish, WA 98290, 360-568-5914, FAX: 360-568-1620; $12; dammit@eskimo.com, http://www.eskimo.com/~dammit).
More than a Paycheck is a publication of the National War Tax Resistance Coordinating Committee. The 8-page April 1997 issue includes information about a video on war tax resisters Randy Kehler and Betsy Corner ("An act of conscience"), an article covering Palestinian tax resistance in the West Bank, and an "ideas & actions" column, as well as local group reports and resource listings. (P.O. Box 774, Monroe, ME 04951, 207-525-7774; $10; enwtrcc@igc.apc.org, http://www.nonviolence.org/wtr).
'I Am Your Spy' is the newsletter of the U.S. Campaign to Free Mordecai Vanunu, the Israeli anti-nuke whistleblower who has now served more than a decade in solitary confinement after his 1986 kidnapping. The 4-page Summer 1997 issue reports on congressional efforts on Vanunu's behalf (by Paul Wellstone, Russell Feinstein, and others), commentary by two rabbis who call for Vanunu's release, and news briefs about protests, resolutions, and responses from officials. (2206 Fox Ave., Madison, WI 53711, 608-257-4764).
BorderLines ("Information for Border and Cross-Border Organizers") is a newsletter published monthly by the Interhemispheric Resource Center. Each issue usually features one or two detailed articles, along with news briefs on such topics as immigration policy and NAFTA environmental concerns. The 8-page May 1997 edition (v.5 #5) includes a piece about community-based microcredit projects, along with reviews of four recent video documentaries on the U.S.-Mexico border, while the June edition focuses on hazardous waste problems, especially in Mexico's cement industry. (P.O. Box 4506, Albuquerque, NM 87196-4506, 505-842-8288, FAX: 505-246-1601; resourcectr@igc.org; editorial: P.O. Box 2178, Silver City, NM 88062, 505-388-0208, FAX: 505-388-0619; $20; http://www.zianet.com/irc1/bord erline; 1065-1411).
Tibet Monitor is a monthly publication of the nonprofit Tibetan Rights Campaign. The 8-page April 1997 issue (v.7 #4) includes articles about Tibet and China from wire services and the national press (including an A.M. Rosenthal New YorkTimes editorial on the death of Deng Xiaoping), as well as the text of a statement by the Dalai Lama on the 38th anniversary of Tibetan National Uprising Day, March 10, 1959. (P.O. Box 31966, Seattle, WA 98103-0066, 206-547-1015, FAX: 206-547-3758, trcseattle@igc.apc.org, http://members.aol.com/Tibetan; $30 membership).
Ocean Alert is a publication featuring "campaign news on dolphins, whales, and the marine environment" from Earth Island Institute's International Marine Mammal Project. The 8-page Winter/Spring 1997 newsletter covers new legislation which would weaken dolphin protection requirements in tuna fishing (calling H.R. 408 and S. 39 the "Dolphin Death Act"), reports on a schism in Washington's Makah Indian Tribe over whale hunting, and criticizes anti-environmental rulings by the World Trade Organization. (300 Broadway, Suite 28, San Francisco, CA 94133, 415-788-3666, FAX: 415-788-7324, marinemammal@igc.apc.org; http://www.earthisland.org).
No Compromise describes itself as "the militant, direct action newsmagazine of grassroots animal liberationists & their supporters." The 28-page March/April 1996 tabloid includes articles about civil disobedience ("Macy's corporate HQ invaded"), an annotated guide to grassroots animal rights organizations, and a special section about A.L.F. (Animal Liberation Front), as well as material on a campaign against Dayton Hudson Corporation, press clippings, and letters from readers. (Student Organization for Animal Rights, 235 CMU, 300 Washington Ave. SE, Minneapolis, MN 55455; $15, $10 student/low-income).
The Bear Essential is a semi-annual magazine published by Orlo, a nonprofit devoted to "exploring environmental issues through the creative arts." The 72-page Summer 1996 edition (#7) focuses on advertising, and includes an article about possible corporate sponsorship of national parks, an essay on "why you never see an anti-car ad on TV," a user's guide to watching television "without becoming the product," and a look at how images of the West have been used to sell cars and cigarettes, as well as related cartoons and comic strips. Also: interviews with Henry Rollins and John Fowles, poetry and short fiction, book reviews, an article about "the public's fixation with unusual pets." (Box 10342, Portland, OR 97210, 503-242-2330, FAX: 503-243-2645, $10, $15 in Canada, orlo@teleport.com, http://www.teleport.com/~orlo).
Wild Rabbit News ("Mail art for you!") is a bilingual (Italian-English) mail art zine put together by Graziella Caroni and Anna Boschi. The 4-page February 1997 issue (#4) includes information about thirteen international shows and projects, with themes including "the monsters," Renoir, shopping bags, and cheering up a friend. (c/o Graziella Caroni, Via Irma Bandiera N.10, 40060-Osteria Grande, BO Italy).
Poetry Flash is a well-written nonprofit "poetry review and literary calendar for the West" which should interest most poetry readers and writers. Though its event listings focus regionally, they include conferences and festivals being held elsewhere in the U.S. The 44-page June/July 1997 tabloid (#272) features the transcription of an interesting interview with Allen Ginsberg (originally broadcast in December 1996), an essay about Ginsberg by Stephen Kessler, and two poems on the occasion of Ginsberg's death, as well as a review of Fanny Howe's O'clock. (P.O. Box 4172, Berkeley, CA 94704, 510-525-5476, FAX: 510-525-6752; $16).
Inner Voices, a magazine of "creative writing from prisoners and their loved ones," is published twice yearly. Highlights of the 51-page issue examined (#4) are a stark short story about a botched robbery attempt and a humorous one about Santa Claus's code violations, along with a poem about not being allowed to give a prisoner a red washcloth. Forced rhyming mars some of the verse here, but there's no denying the feeling that lies behind it. Also notable: prisoner-related resource listings--many involving publishing opportunity leads, along with hand-colored cover art. (P.O. Box 4500, Bloomington, IN 47402, eviltwin@indy.net, http://www.indy.net/~eviltwin/; $8, 10 institutional, $5 for prisoners).
Taking Liberties, published by the Anarchist Black Cross in London, is a paper featuring "news about prisons and prisoners from a revolutionary perspective." The 12-page edition examined (#18) contains articles on prison suicides, a call to "stop imprisoning asylum-seekers," a case study in police frame-up ("Resisting fitting up"), and a report on the state of British prison security ("Supermax prison for the U.K.?"), along with international news, information about political prisoners, and letters. (c/o London ABC, 121 Railton Rd., London, SE24 0LR, England).
Campaign for Labor Rights is a project of the nonprofit Nicaragua Network Education Fund, with an eponymous newsletter covering general labor concerns. The 12-page issue #8 (July 30-Sept. 10, 1997) contains material on combating sweatshops, an article about child labor in soccer ball construction (focusing on unethical practices by Nike and Reebok), and an update on a Disney clothing subcontractor moving from Haiti to China (where wages are lower, "13 cents an hour as compared to 28 cents"), as well as news from Guatemala ("Phillips-Van Heusen negotiations continue") and a report on worker organization at Case Farms poultry plant in Morganton, North Carolina. (1247 E St. SE, Washington, DC 20003, clr@iqc.apc.org, http://www.compugraph.com/clr; $35, "low income subscriptions on request").
Cultural Survival Quarterly (MSRRT Newsletter, Sep 88, Mar 93) has new contact data: 96 Mount Auburn St., 2nd Floor, Cambridge, MA 02138, 617-441-5400, FAX: 617-441-5417, csinc@cs.org, http://www.cs.org
Fourth World Bulletin (MSRRT Newsletter, Feb 93) and the Fourth World Center for the Study of Indigenous Law and Politics have new FAX and e-mail contact data (FAX: 303-556-6041, fwc@carbon.cudenver.edu), as well as a Web site: http://www.cudenver.edu/fwc
L'Ouverture (MSRRT Newsletter, Jan/Feb 97) is now titled Contraband and has a new email address and Web site: louve@mindspring.com, http://www.mindspring.com/~louve
Mesechabe: The Journal of Surre(gion)alism (MSRRT Newsletter, Nov 89) has a new address and phone number: 1539 Crete St., New Orleans, LA 70119-3006, 504-944-4823.
Task Force Report (MSRRT Newsletter, Feb 94 and Apr 90) and the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force have new contact info: 2320 17th St. NW, Washington, DC 20009-2702, ngltf@ngltf.org; http://www.ngltf.org
Turning the Tide (MSRRT Newsletter, Oct 90) and People Against Racist Terror (PART) have a new address: P.O. Box 1055, Culver City, CA 90232-1055.
WHY Magazine (MSRRT Newsletter, Aug 89) has new contact data: World Hunger Year, 505 Eighth Ave., 21st Floor, New York, NY 10018-6582, 212-629-8850, FAX: 212-465-9274, whyria@aol.com; http://www.iglou.com/why
Worldviews (formerly Third World Resources; MSRRT Newsletter, Feb 89) is now indexed in Alternative Press Index, and on the Web: http://www.igc.apc.org/w orldviews/index.html
X Magazine (MSRRT Newsletter, Oct/Nov 95) is now Elixir. Note also new contact data: P.O. Box 3273, Eugene, OR 97403, 541-710-0553, xmag@e-volve.com, http://www.x.e-volve.com
Tzadik, John Zorn's label dedicated to avant garde and experimental music, includes a series of new Japanese music and a Radical Jewish Culture series featuring such titles as Klezmer madness! (61 E. 8th St., Suite 126, New York, NY 10003; http://kochint.com/tzadik.html).
Sound of America Record Distributors (SOAR) features CDs, cassettes, and videos of Native American music, from traditional pow-wow songs to urban rap and rock by the likes of Julian B and Tiger Tiger. (P.O. Box 8606, Albuquerque, NM 87198, 505-268-6110, FAX: 505-268-0237).
New from Manic D Press: cartoonist Keith Knight's Dances with sheep: a K Chronicles compendium, spoken word artist Beth Lisick's Monkey girl, and Bruce Jackson's Growing up free in America. (P.O. Box 410804, San Francisco, CA 94141, 415-788-6459).
The Sexuality Library catalog from the women-run Good Vibrations offers erotic books and tapes, as well as how-to manuals. (938 Howard St., Ste. 101, San Francisco, CA 94103, 415-974-8990, FAX: 415-974-8989, goodvibe@well.com, http://www.goodvibes.com).
Recent titles from Clarity Press include Devon Mihesuah's American Indians: stereotypes & realities, Binka Le Breton's A land to die for (about peasant land struggles in Brazil), and Y. N. Kly's Societal development & minority rights. (3277 Roswell Rd. NE, Ste. 469, Atlanta, GA 30305-1840, clarity@islandnet.com, http://www.bookmasters.com/cla rity.htm).
Sign Enhancers offers videos and CD-ROMs on American Sign Language, interpreting, and deaf culture, for adults and children. (1535 State St., Salem, OR 97301, TTY/V: 1-800-767-4461).
Plain View Press publishes feminist fiction and nonfiction by women and men. New and recent titles include Up from the soles of my feet, Feminist family values forum (keynote addresses by Angela Davis, Mililani Trask, and others), and Genevieve Vaughan's Forgiving: a feminist criticism of exchange. (P.O. Box 33311, Austin, TX 78764, 512-441-2452 , http://www.eden.com/~sbpvp).
China Books & Periodicals publishes and distributes a wide variety of books, including such titles as Outrageous Chinese: a guide to Chinese street language and Mutant Mandarin: a guide to new Chinese slang. (2929 24th St., San Francisco, CA 94110, 415-282-2994, http://www.chinabooks.com).
Spinifex Press is an Australian feminist publisher whose new and recent titles include Wee girls: Irish women's writing, Radically speaking: feminism reclaimed, and Nattering on the Net: women, power, and cyberspace. (U.S.: 173 Slater Blvd., Staten Island, NY 10305, 718-351-9599, FAX: 718-980-4262, mkpubserv@aol.com, http://www.publishaust.net.au /~spinifex).
New from Lee & Low, publisher of books for children of color: In Daddy's arms I am tall: African-Americans celebrating fathers, Richard Wright and the library card, and Say hola to Spanish, otra vez (again!). (95 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016, 212-779-4400, FAX: 212-683-1894, info@leeandlow.com).
New titles from Working Press include Writing on the line: 20th century working-class women writers and Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp: a history of nonviolent resistance, 1984-1995. (54 Sharsted St., London, SE17 3TN, UK).
Brookline Books specializes in titles on disability and education, but also has such new and forthcoming items as Hans Koning's Pursuit of a woman on the hinge of history, Gretchen Josephson's Bus girl: selected poems, and Mayra S. Febres' Urban oracles. (Box 1047, Cambridge, MA 02238-1047, 617-868-0360, FAX: 617-868-1772, brookline@delphi.com).
The Human Sexuality Collection at Cornell University Library contains over 5000 books, 1000 periodicals, and 600 cubic feet of manuscript collections. A bibliography of its nonfiction titles from the 1880s to the 1970s ("From the sexologists to sexual liberation") is available for $15. (Brenda J. Marston, Curator, Rare and Manuscript Collections, Carl A. Kroch Library, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853-5302, 607-255-3530, bjm4@cornell.edu; http://rmc-www.library.cornell.edu ).
Deschooling our lives. Edited by Matt Hern. Foreword by Ivan Illich with Aaron Falbel. New Society Publishers, 1996. 150p. PARTIAL CONTENTS: The public school nightmare. Family matters: why homeschooling makes sense. Summerhill School. Liberating education. (Box 189, Gabriola Island, BC, Canada, V0R 1X0, 604-247-9737, FAX: 604-247-7471, nsp@ island.net, http://www.newsociety.com; $14.95, paper, 0-86571-342-1).
Winter's edge. By Valerie Miner. Afterword by Donna Perry. Feminist Press, 1996. First published in the U.S. by Crossing Press in 1985, this novel by University of Minnesota English professor Miner "centers around the lives of two working-class women in their sixties." (311 E. 94th St., New York, NY 10128-5684; $10.95, paper, 1-55861-150-9).
Gay resistance: the hidden history. By Sam Deaderick & Tamara Turner. Introduction by Roger Simpson. Red Letter Press, 1997. 55p. Revised edition of a work first published as an eight-part series in Freedom Socialist. (409 Maynard St., Suite 201, Seattle, WA 98104, 206-682-0990; paper, 0-932323-03-0).
Talking union. By Judith Stepan-Norris and Maurice Zeitlin. University of Illinois Press, 1996. 277p. An oral history of "one of the most militant, radical, yet democratic unions in the United States," the United Auto Workers' Ford Local 600. (1325 S. Oak St., Champaign, IL 61820; $15.95, paper, 0-252-06489-5).
Cole's secret journal, 1962-1963: a study in erotic inhibition. By Ronald Jones. R. Jones, 1996. 93p. Diary "novel" about the life of a racist sex addict in a dysfunctional marriage, who jerks off to mental images of Jayne Mansfield farting. (P.O. Box 3502, Camarillo, CA 93011; $11.95, paper).