Fwiw, I think the list of workshops sounds a lot better than the list of stalls. Although I can see why people might not go that far out of their way to attend the "Anthropocentrism, green anarchism, revolution!" or "Interfaith and Social Justice" talks.Not really exceptions though are they. Who on the workshop programme would you consider to be bohemian riff raff? Most of the workshops seem to be run by anarchist groups, a few aren't but that's always likely to be the case and important imo.
And anarchist stalls aren't very few. They dominate the stalls list and many of the others are anarchist aligned. Almost all of the main UK anarchist groups are represented. I don't think your criticism is very objective.
Personally, looking at the list of stalls I'd be less bothered about them not being specifically anarchist enough, and more about them not having that much connection to ongoing struggles. Say, London Renters Union, Housing Action Southwark & Lambeth, Palestine Action, UVW, IWGB, Troublemakers at Work, whichever antifascist groups the organisers have least beef with - maybe none of them are explicitly 100% anarchist, but all have varying degrees of similarity to anarchist practice and probably all have some anarchists involved in them, they seem like the sorts of groups you might want to have at a more struggle-focused event.I can see the point, but I think it's important to have other groups who may be sympathetic to anarchist ideas or to support struggles that are going on right now. There is probably a place for a more finely tuned event as well, but the London bookfair has always included groups which aren't specifically anarchist.
There are a lot of bits from Fabbri that have aged depressingly well.Decades ago, back in the days when I regularly attended the London anarchist bookfairs, I would often complain about the excess of bohemian and counter-cultural claptrap that was on offer. But I'd remain optimistic and hope that the then minimal interest in class struggle revolutionary anarchism/libertarian communism would increase. Looking at this year's offerings, aside from several possible exceptions, it looks like the bohemian riff-raff won
We should really do a modern edit of Luigi Fabbri's Bourgeois Influences on Anarchism (we probably wouldn't need to change that much really as Fabbri was pretty much writing about the same old bollocks a hundred years ago). Then we do a dead cheap print out and give it to everyone at the bookfair, only with the words "That's you, that is" on the cover. Trouble is, the only people who'd actually bother to read it would be the handful of disgruntled oldies like me who are already moaning about it.
Some workshops listed now
That's why I think it'd be good to have a 2024 updated version. Trouble is, I worry any prospective authors would just get denounced and ostracised by the milieu's more shouty elements.There are a lot of bits from Fabbri that have aged depressingly well.
We have become so accustomed to shouting about everything, that we’ve been gradually losing our appreciation of the value of words and their differences in meaning. The same depreciative adjectives serve equally to tar the priest, the monarchist, the republican, the socialist, and even those anarchists who have the misfortune not to think as we do — and this is a basic defect...
It’s a commonplace that fights are most common between brothers... and that makes a miserable brotherhood. I would urge against these sad and painful methods. To me, the only adequate method appears to be not to resort to insults, or at most, limiting ourselves to exposing those who use abusive language or come to sow confusion and discord in our camp.
I still believe that it would be best that we get to know each other and above all to work without losing sight of the fact that we have before us our enemy, our true enemy who awaits the moment of our weakness in order to attack us.
CWO and who else? They had one openly trot stall last year, but they don't seem to be back.Interesting to see they have a few vanguardist stalls at this year's bookfair. Is that a novelty or has it been like that for a couple of years?
i'm clearly out of the loop, the NYC one was weekend before last and I didn't even know it was going on. when i used to go, it was a very big tent, big enough that an-caps had tables. but there was some class-struggle stuff too, i was kind of haging out with those people at the time.
here's the program from this year. 2024 NYC Anarchist Book Fair – NYC Anarchist Book Fair there are some presentations that i'd gladly have attended, and there was good representation from booksellers, but there is one word that appears nowhere in any program title.
CWO and who else? They had one openly trot stall last year, but they don't seem to be back.
Also just realised that, at a time when we have a lot of people in or facing prison for Palestine/arms trade actions, several people in prison for climate actions (whatever you think of their effectiveness), seven people still inside for defending themselves against police violence in Bristol and another comrade serving time who's been a major target of counterterrorism police, there's no ABC stall.
Aren't L&W connected in some way to the CPB?I was thinking of the publishers who have stalls.
Lawrence & Wishart, Haymarket and Left Book Club stuck out like sore thumbs. I'm sure they'll all claim that they're very broad church these days.
I've only been to one NYC Anarchist Bookfair, and it was years ago. Without looking it up, I think it was at Judson Church in the West Village.
Aren't L&W connected in some way to the CPB?
ayup, that's where it was. more than any odor i remember how dark it was. i was perplexed. even if the church was running on a shoestring, surely they could afford higher wattage light bulbs?
Fwiw, I think the list of workshops sounds a lot better than the list of stalls. Although I can see why people might not go that far out of their way to attend the "Anthropocentrism, green anarchism, revolution!" or "Interfaith and Social Justice" talks.
Personally, looking at the list of stalls I'd be less bothered about them not being specifically anarchist enough, and more about them not having that much connection to ongoing struggles. Say, London Renters Union, Housing Action Southwark & Lambeth, Palestine Action, UVW, IWGB, Troublemakers at Work, whichever antifascist groups the organisers have least beef with - maybe none of them are explicitly 100% anarchist, but all have varying degrees of similarity to anarchist practice and probably all have some anarchists involved in them, they seem like the sorts of groups you might want to have at a more struggle-focused event.
Yeah as long as I'm not organising it I'm not going to get too high strung about the selection.I think there's a tendency when looking at this (and other events) to demand why aren't they there, why are you doing this, why isn't this happening and so on when the reality of organising large events is that space/money/resources are limited, people aren't available, things get filled up, people apply late, emails go unanswered etc etc. No event will ever be perfect, and often what is assumed to be ideological decisions are in reality people just working with what's available and possible at the time.
Oh yeah, now I come to think of it, it was L&W who threatened to sue the Marxists Internet Archive for making the works of Marx & Engels too freely available.Longstanding CP publishers. Not sure if they have a cute at-arms-length relationship with them now . . . like the CPB has with the Morning Star.
Thats true of all the organised left in GB right nowIt just seems limp now. Energy dissipated.
And preferably, the room should have no form of heating whatsoever, especially in December and January.My memory is clouded with images of grotty rooms above pubs in which I attended meetings when I was young. Any serious left-wing movement needs to meet in gloomy smelly places.
Yes, for socialising the worksOh yeah, now I come to think of it, it was L&W who threatened to sue the Marxists Internet Archive for making the works of Marx & Engels too freely available.
Can't goI am enjoying the annual moaning* about the Bookfair and am looking forward to this:
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*I am nostalgic for the moaning about the Bookfair when I was younger though.
Kids today don't know what moaning about the Bookfair is, tbh.I am nostalgic for the moaning about the Bookfair when I was younger though.
I have posted my “I am annoyed about the London Bookfair” dance already. What of it?tiktok
Does it contain the sort of moves like those of Harry Enfield's Kevin the teenager?I have posted my “I am annoyed about the London Bookfair” dance already. What of it?
More like Nijinsky, dahhhling.Does it contain the sort of moves like those of Harry Enfield's Kevin the teenager?
The racehorse?More like Nijinsky, dahhhling.