POC ZINE PROJECT

Posts tagged woc

Meet POCZP’s West Coast Coordinator Liz Mayorga!
Part of POC Zine Project’s advocacy is empowering new and seasoned zinesters of color in the U.S. (and soon worldwide) to share their stories while supporting other POC. Liz is the second official regional coordinator for POCZP (meet Joyce, our Midwest Coordinator, here). We are excited to share developments as this part of our experiment in activism and community through materiality unfolds. 
LIZ, IN HER OWN WORDS
Liz was born in Los Angeles, California, but moved back and forth between Mexico and LA throughout her childhood. She is the youngest of three and the only female in a traditional, Catholic, Mexican-American family. 
Though her brothers taught her how to throw a good punch, she was often confused by the strict gender roles in rural Mexican society, which told her to be passive and meek. Luckily, Los Angeles was a place where contradiction could exist, a place where you could an aggressive girl, and a Mexican Punk. LA and the influence of popular culture gave Liz an identity she could be proud of.
She moved to the Bay Area for school, but ended up falling in love with SF Zine Fest, and community of artists. They pushed her to pursue her passion for Art and Literature. 
Liz now writes fiction and non-fiction, makes comics (check out Inked), and is a working illustrator. Her inspiration comes from her crazy family and Chican@ Pop Culture. She is the Co-Director of San Francisco Zine Fest (SFZF) and is now happy to be a part of the POC Zine Project.
See Liz in action at a recent POCZP Youth Zine workshop in San Francisco, where she led activities with assistance from POCZP intern Itoro Udofia.
Liz hopes to expand and connect the DIY West Coast community and serve as a resource. She wants DIY projects (and zines) by people of color to be especially accessible to youth, because she needed community this open and empowering as a teenager. 
It is also a goal of hers to promote multi-media as a part of zine/DIY culture and expand the limits of what a zine could be, because artists, especially artists with a story to tell, need to be more visible.
Learn more about Liz here: lizmayorga.com
COMMUNITY: Join us in welcoming Liz. We are excited to support zine culture and POC storytelling on the West Coast! We will have several events in this region during the 2013 Race Riot! tour. Stay tuned for details …
DO YOU WANT TO BE A COORDINATOR LIKE LIZ?
If you want to support POCZP with Liz, other coordinators, interns and our touring members, let us know! 
We are also looking for representatives in every state, as well as regional  support, as we build toward the National POC Zinester & Ally Conference/Convergence. Ideally you have some experience with organizing events and building community, but experience is not required. All are welcome. Priority will be given to people of color who apply but allies are definitely welcome.
Contact poczineproject@gmail.com for more details with “regional coordinator” as the subject line.
If you are outside the U.S. and want to be a part of our emerging POCZP Global Ambassadors program, email poczineproject@gmail.com as well to stay informed as opportunities arise.
SUPPORT POC ZINE PROJECT
If everyone in our community gave $1, we would more than meet our fundraising goal for 2013. If you have it to spare, we appreciate your support. All funds go to our 2013 tour, the Legacy Series and the poverty zine series.
DONATE link via PayPal: http://bit.ly/SHdmyh

Meet POCZP’s West Coast Coordinator Liz Mayorga!

Part of POC Zine Project’s advocacy is empowering new and seasoned zinesters of color in the U.S. (and soon worldwide) to share their stories while supporting other POC. Liz is the second official regional coordinator for POCZP (meet Joyce, our Midwest Coordinator, here). We are excited to share developments as this part of our experiment in activism and community through materiality unfolds. 

LIZ, IN HER OWN WORDS

Liz was born in Los Angeles, California, but moved back and forth between Mexico and LA throughout her childhood. She is the youngest of three and the only female in a traditional, Catholic, Mexican-American family.

Though her brothers taught her how to throw a good punch, she was often confused by the strict gender roles in rural Mexican society, which told her to be passive and meek. Luckily, Los Angeles was a place where contradiction could exist, a place where you could an aggressive girl, and a Mexican Punk. LA and the influence of popular culture gave Liz an identity she could be proud of.

She moved to the Bay Area for school, but ended up falling in love with SF Zine Fest, and community of artists. They pushed her to pursue her passion for Art and Literature.

Liz now writes fiction and non-fiction, makes comics (check out Inked), and is a working illustrator. Her inspiration comes from her crazy family and Chican@ Pop Culture. She is the Co-Director of San Francisco Zine Fest (SFZF) and is now happy to be a part of the POC Zine Project.

See Liz in action at a recent POCZP Youth Zine workshop in San Francisco, where she led activities with assistance from POCZP intern Itoro Udofia.

Liz hopes to expand and connect the DIY West Coast community and serve as a resource. She wants DIY projects (and zines) by people of color to be especially accessible to youth, because she needed community this open and empowering as a teenager.

It is also a goal of hers to promote multi-media as a part of zine/DIY culture and expand the limits of what a zine could be, because artists, especially artists with a story to tell, need to be more visible.

Learn more about Liz here: lizmayorga.com

COMMUNITY: Join us in welcoming Liz. We are excited to support zine culture and POC storytelling on the West Coast! We will have several events in this region during the 2013 Race Riot! tour. Stay tuned for details …

DO YOU WANT TO BE A COORDINATOR LIKE LIZ?

If you want to support POCZP with Liz, other coordinators, interns and our touring members, let us know!

We are also looking for representatives in every state, as well as regional  support, as we build toward the National POC Zinester & Ally Conference/Convergence. Ideally you have some experience with organizing events and building community, but experience is not required. All are welcome. Priority will be given to people of color who apply but allies are definitely welcome.

Contact poczineproject@gmail.com for more details with “regional coordinator” as the subject line.

If you are outside the U.S. and want to be a part of our emerging POCZP Global Ambassadors program, email poczineproject@gmail.com as well to stay informed as opportunities arise.

SUPPORT POC ZINE PROJECT

If everyone in our community gave $1, we would more than meet our fundraising goal for 2013. If you have it to spare, we appreciate your support. All funds go to our 2013 tour, the Legacy Series and the poverty zine series.

DONATE link via PayPal: http://bit.ly/SHdmyh

POC Zine Project’s 2013 ‘Race Riot! Tour’ Dates & Cities

Community,

Last year’s inaugural tour was amazing but that was just the beginning. 14 cities last year = 12 more cities this year <3 

Dates may shift slightly before October and we are still accepting invites from academic and community spaces, collectives, orgs and individuals. If you haven’t contacted us already, please do: poczineproject@gmail.com.

If you look at this list and think “Why the heck do they keep missing the full Midwest?” Don’t trip, chocolate chip. The 2014 NATIONAL Zinester Conference is going down in YOUR house! Yeah! Midwest all the way! And we’ll be bringing in FIVE international zinesters/activists to share their work! Yeah, buddy! If you want to help, reach out! 

Thoughts become things. Be intentional with your thoughts.

2013 TOUR DETAILS: What we know so far

#IdleNoMore solidarity will be a core component of this tour. If you’re actively involved in local efforts in your city, please reach out. We want you to speak at our events & help you distribute your printed zines/materials nationwide. We hope our small platform helps to make a difference.

We will be doing TWO events in each city, just like last year’s tour. There will be an academic event at a participating university in the daytime and one DIY/community show in the evening. The academic events will be free and open to the public, while the evening DIY shows will be a sliding scale cover. NO ONE TURNED AWAY FOR LACK OF FUNDS <3

The DIY show covers pay for our gas and food, so give what you can.

We will be able to share accessibility/child care details for each city once we have more information.

The Race Riot! touring member lineup will be revealed in the coming weeks. HINT: Think more people, rotating members and lots of guest readers in each city.

OK, enough context. Here are the dates & cities!


1) 10/1: Atlanta, GA (Tuesday)

2) 10/2: Montgomery, AL (Wednesday)

3) 10/3: Jackson, MS (Thursday)

ALERT: Jackson has the only remaining abortion clinic in the entire state, which is in danger of being shut down.

4) 10/4: New Orleans, LA (Friday)

10/5: Travel Day (Saturday)

10/6: Research/Advocacy Day (Sunday)

5) 10/7: Austin, TX (Monday)

10/8 Research/Travel Day (Tuesday)

6) 10/9: New Mexico - but where??? Let us know! (Wednesday)

7) 10/10: Tucson, AZ (Thursday)

It is very important for POC everywhere, and especially in Arizona right now, to have access to independent publications by and for people of color.

10/11: Travel Day (Friday)

8) Los Angeles, CA as recharge zone/multiple events

10/12: Research/Advocacy Day in L.A. (Saturday)

10/13: Los Angeles, CA (Sunday evening DIY show)

10/14: Los Angeles, CA (Monday academic daytime event)

10/15: Travel Day (Tuesday)

9) 10/16: Bay Area, CA (Wednesday)

10/17: Research/Travel Day (Thursday)

10) 10/18: Sacramento, CA (Friday)

10/19: Travel Day (Saturday)

11) 10/20: Portland, OR (Sunday)

12) 10/21: Seattle, WA (Monday)

——

All details subject to change. We will share specifics about each city as we finalize tour logistics.

MICHIGAN FOLKS: Wow, such love! We’ve received a few requests from y’all to come out this year. We did two events there in 2012 and cannot return in 2013 (we are not a funded entity - we rely on donations and have day jobs/other obligations <3). If you’re in Michigan and want to support this tour in other ways, contact us, thanks.

We can only do so much, and we do a lot with very little. Richmond, VA and other cities: We wish we could be everywhere for this tour, but we can’t. Let’s figure out ways to partner that will yield long term outcomes for local POC orgs and collectives. Thanks for understanding.

OTHER WAYS TO PARTICIPATE

We are looking for the following:

  • Guest readers in every city (you must be a person of color)
  • Rotating tour buddies: Join us on the road and participate in 1-3 tour events as a panelist/reader/tabler
  • POC (or POC fronted) bands to perform at each #raceriottour event!
  • More POC & ally tablers for each city: come to a POCZP event in your town and table for your zine/org/collective/creative project (check out some of the POC artists/merchants who tabled last year) <3

We’re also looking for folks to help us produce #raceriottour fundraiser events between now and September. This might be a good solution for you if you are unable to travel.

Contact poczineproject@gmail.com for more details. Make sure to use “2013 RACE RIOT TOUR” as the email subject.

ABOUT THE RACE RIOT! TOUR

POC Zine Project held its first Race Riot! Tour in 2012, producing 20 events in 14 U.S. cities, which included speaking engagements at six universities. Click here to view photos from the POC Zine Project: 2012 Race Riot! Tour tour finale at Death By Audio in Brooklyn and access all the tour stop recaps.

We will be taking the Race Riot! Tour through 12 more U.S. cities in 2013. Stay tuned for updates as we work on partnering with POC-affirming orgs overseas. If you are outside the U.S. and want to be a part of our emerging POCZP Global Ambassadors program, email poczineproject@gmail.com. 

SUPPORT POC ZINE PROJECT

If everyone in our community gave $1, we would more than meet our fundraising goal for 2013. If you have it to spare, we appreciate your support. All funds go to our 2013 tour, the Legacy Series and the poverty zine series.

DONATE link via PayPal: http://bit.ly/SHdmyh

Community,
The second #raceriottour is going down in October of 2013 through twelve more U.S. cities and we want YOU to come with us.
We are looking for the following:
Guest readers in every city* (you must be a person of color)
Rotating tour buddies: Join us on the road and participate in 1-3 tour events as a panelist/reader/tabler
POC (or POC fronted) bands to perform at each #raceriottour event!
More POC &amp; ally tablers for each city: come to a POCZP event in your town and table for your zine/org/collective/creative project (check out some of the POC artists/merchants who tabled last year) &lt;3
We&#8217;re also looking for folks to help us produce #raceriottour fundraiser events between now and September. This might be a good solution for you if you are unable to travel.
Contact poczineproject@gmail.com for more details. Make sure to use &#8220;2013 RACE RIOT TOUR&#8221; as the email subject.
COMMUNITY QUESTIONS
We’re connecting with people and holding events through the Southwest and West Coast, including (but not limited to) Atlanta, New Orleans, Austin, Los Angeles, Sacramento and Seattle.
If we were to come to your town, what are the POC run/led spaces that have a history of serving communities of color? We are committed to to holding every event on this tour in a POC-affirming space. Tell us in the reblog note or send us a message.
If you’re down to help us organize an event as part of our second Race Riot! tour in YOUR city, let us know!
&lt;3
POC Zine Project
*We will announce the full list of confirmed 2013 #raceriottour cities on February 14 15, 2013.
ABOUT THE RACE RIOT! TOUR
POC Zine Project held its first Race Riot! Tour in 2012, producing 20 events in 14 U.S. cities, which included speaking engagements at six universities. Click here to view photos from the POC Zine Project: 2012 Race Riot! Tour tour finale at Death By Audio in Brooklyn and access all the tour stop recaps.
We will be taking the Race Riot! Tour through 12 more U.S. cities in 2013. Stay tuned for updates as we work on partnering with POC-affirming orgs overseas. If you are outside the U.S. and want to be a part of our emerging POCZP Global Ambassadors program, email poczineproject@gmail.com. 
SUPPORT POC ZINE PROJECT
If everyone in our community gave $1, we would more than meet our fundraising goal for 2013. If you have it to spare, we appreciate your support. All funds go to our 2013 tour, the Legacy Series and the poverty zine series.
DONATE link via PayPal: http://bit.ly/SHdmyh

Community,

The second #raceriottour is going down in October of 2013 through twelve more U.S. cities and we want YOU to come with us.

We are looking for the following:

  • Guest readers in every city* (you must be a person of color)
  • Rotating tour buddies: Join us on the road and participate in 1-3 tour events as a panelist/reader/tabler
  • POC (or POC fronted) bands to perform at each #raceriottour event!
  • More POC & ally tablers for each city: come to a POCZP event in your town and table for your zine/org/collective/creative project (check out some of the POC artists/merchants who tabled last year) <3

We’re also looking for folks to help us produce #raceriottour fundraiser events between now and September. This might be a good solution for you if you are unable to travel.

Contact poczineproject@gmail.com for more details. Make sure to use “2013 RACE RIOT TOUR” as the email subject.

COMMUNITY QUESTIONS

We’re connecting with people and holding events through the Southwest and West Coast, including (but not limited to) Atlanta, New Orleans, Austin, Los Angeles, Sacramento and Seattle.

If we were to come to your town, what are the POC run/led spaces that have a history of serving communities of color? We are committed to to holding every event on this tour in a POC-affirming space. Tell us in the reblog note or send us a message.

If you’re down to help us organize an event as part of our second Race Riot! tour in YOUR city, let us know!

<3

POC Zine Project

*We will announce the full list of confirmed 2013 #raceriottour cities on February 14 15, 2013.

ABOUT THE RACE RIOT! TOUR

POC Zine Project held its first Race Riot! Tour in 2012, producing 20 events in 14 U.S. cities, which included speaking engagements at six universities. Click here to view photos from the POC Zine Project: 2012 Race Riot! Tour tour finale at Death By Audio in Brooklyn and access all the tour stop recaps.

We will be taking the Race Riot! Tour through 12 more U.S. cities in 2013. Stay tuned for updates as we work on partnering with POC-affirming orgs overseas. If you are outside the U.S. and want to be a part of our emerging POCZP Global Ambassadors program, email poczineproject@gmail.com. 

SUPPORT POC ZINE PROJECT

If everyone in our community gave $1, we would more than meet our fundraising goal for 2013. If you have it to spare, we appreciate your support. All funds go to our 2013 tour, the Legacy Series and the poverty zine series.

DONATE link via PayPal: http://bit.ly/SHdmyh

FIND US ON INSTAGRAM AND TWITTER!
After three years, we&#8217;ve finally set up a dedicated @POCZineProject IG account. It will be connected to our existing Twitter with the same handle.
Here are some helpful ways to engage with POC Zine Project on IG and Twitter:
* Use the hashtag #poczines when you share information/photos/links about zines by people of color (or featuring work by POC).
* Give our photos &#8220;&lt;3&#8221; on IG to help surface POCZP news and resources to more people.
* RT and reply to our tweets on Twitter so that more people find out about our upcoming events and services.
Some of the benefits of following @POCZineProject on IG and Twitter:
* Get photo and text updates in real-time during our live events. This will be especially useful when we are on tour.
* Get behind the scenes images from our advocacy work.
* See photos of the latest zine donations for our archive, images of poc zinesters and allies, and more!
Thanks y&#8217;all &lt;3
- POC Zine Project
Editor&#8217;s Note: If you use #poczines as a hashtag on your Flickr uploads, or any content that has a tag field (YouTube videos, blog posts, Tumblr posts, etc.), that will help us find your content and incorporate it into our research, advocacy and outreach. We will always credit sources. Thanks!

FIND US ON INSTAGRAM AND TWITTER!

After three years, we’ve finally set up a dedicated @POCZineProject IG account. It will be connected to our existing Twitter with the same handle.

Here are some helpful ways to engage with POC Zine Project on IG and Twitter:

* Use the hashtag #poczines when you share information/photos/links about zines by people of color (or featuring work by POC).

* Give our photos “<3” on IG to help surface POCZP news and resources to more people.

* RT and reply to our tweets on Twitter so that more people find out about our upcoming events and services.

Some of the benefits of following @POCZineProject on IG and Twitter:

* Get photo and text updates in real-time during our live events. This will be especially useful when we are on tour.

* Get behind the scenes images from our advocacy work.

* See photos of the latest zine donations for our archive, images of poc zinesters and allies, and more!

Thanks y’all <3

- POC Zine Project

Editor’s Note: If you use #poczines as a hashtag on your Flickr uploads, or any content that has a tag field (YouTube videos, blog posts, Tumblr posts, etc.), that will help us find your content and incorporate it into our research, advocacy and outreach. We will always credit sources. Thanks!

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT: Mimi Thi Nguyen, Golnar Nikpour and more at ‘Punk Anteriors’ event TONIGHT

POC Zine Project tabling at Jan. 31, 2013 event

We know some of you are bummed that this rad event is 1) far away from you and 2) 21+. We hear ya. Sometimes it seems like all the cool shit is in NYC, right? But that’s just not the case. We know from our travels that people are doing amazing things all over the world, including in small towns.

But this amazing thing is actually going down in NYC tonight, so if you can make it, show some love and stop by our table and For The Birds Collective’s! POCZP founder Daniela Capistrano will be there in solidarity with Mimi and the other readers, along with our Chief Fanalyst Julia B. and Race Riot! tour vet Cristy C. Road.

We’ve been thinking about all the people who can’t afford to purchase Women & Performance’s “Punk Anteriors” special double issue (it’s $85) or attend tonight’s event, so we’ve snagged a copy and made it available to read online, zine-style. <3

We’re also going to live-tweet when we can from @poczineproject using the hashtag #PunkAnteriors. Look for our tweets! <3

“Punk Anteriors: Theory, Genealogy, Performance” is issue 22.2-3 of Women & Performance: a journal of feminist theory and was co-edited by Beth Stinson and Fiona I.B. Ngô.

The issue emphasizes punk feminist spaces and times by bringing them to the forefront to forge and generate “punk anteriors.” We use the word “anteriors” in the title of this issue to think through the included articles that specifically address punk spaces and remnants—plotting what might come before, or anterior to, the telling of punk’s stories in two senses. First, punk anteriors point to the temporal, interrogating punk’s (always seemingly) resistant genealogy and questioning the source of politics and performances for punk. Second, we mobilize punk anteriors in the material and spatial sense of place, bodies, and archives. That is to say, we re-consider the context for the everyday performances of punk as occurring within atmospheres of imperial design; racial, feminist, and anarchist social movements; and immigration, poverty, and dislocation. 

Along with the hope of re-centering people of color in punk’s narratives, part of the goal with this issue has been to expand the places where we find valuable knowledge and aesthetics, to re-imagine who counts as an intellectual producer in punk’s history, and to work across genres.  Though the process was not always perfect, we have found this track productive and insightful, and hope that this model might inspire others to explore these topics and others in similar and even more brilliant ways.

COMMUNITY: After reading “Punk Anteriors,” let us know what you think! Click here to submit your review of excerpts of the journal or the entire publication.

EVENT DETAILS

Big thanks to tonight’s organizers for creating punkanteriors.tumblr.com/ and making this roundtable discussion as accessible as possible to the general public.

We also want to give an especially BIG thank you to this issue’s co-editors Beth Stinson and Fiona I.B. Ngô <3 Thank you for disrupting problematic facets of academia in your own ways.

Women & Performance’s “Punk Anteriors” special double issue release party

Thursday, January 31, 2013
@ The Gallery at Le Poisson Rouge
on Bleeker St b/n Thompson and Sullivan

6pm doors // 6:30pm start // 21+ // bands first

Aye Nako, Mon Mecs, and a roundtable discussion panel w/ Tavia Nyong’o, Mimi Nguyen, José Muñoz, Golnar Nikpour, M.J. Zilla, and the co-editors.

Also, zine tabling by the POC Zine Project and for the birds collective.

FREE!

For more venue information, please visit:
http://www.lepoissonrouge.com/lpr_events/women-performances-punk-anteriors-double-issue-release-party-jan-31st-2013/

RSVP on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/events/178101808980490/?fref=ts

BIOS

Aye Nako

http://ayenako.org/

Mon Mecs

See M.J. Zilla below

José Muñoz

Muñoz is Professor of Performance Studies at New York University, where he writes, researches and teaches Comparative Ethnic Studies, Queer Theory, Marxism, and Performance Art. His books include Disidentifications: Queers of Color and the Performance of Politics (Minnesota, 1999) and Cruising Utopia: the Then and There of Queer Futurity (NYU Press, 2009). Muñoz has published articles on punk, art, queer theory, critical ethnic studies, poetry, and performance art in venues such as Women & Performance: A Journal of Feminist TheoryGLQSocial TextTheatre JournalThe South Atlantic QuarterlyAmerican Quarterly, and Criticism.

Mimi Nguyen

Nguyen is Associate Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies and Asian American Studies at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Her first book, called The Gift of Freedom: War, Debt, and Other Refugee Passages, focuses on the promise of “giving” freedom concurrent and contingent with waging war and its afterlife (Duke, 2012). She is also co-editor with Thuy Linh Nguyen Tu of Alien Encounters: Popular Culture in Asian America (Duke, 2007), and co-editor with Fiona I.B. Ngo and Mariam Lam of a special issue of positions on Southeast Asians in diaspora (Winter 2012). She publishes also on queer subcultures, the politics of fashion, and punk feminisms. She is the author of Slander and Evolution of a Race Riot zines and has contributed her writing to Punk Planet and Maximum Rocknroll. In 2012, she went on a couple POC Zine Project/Race Riot! Tours to discuss and read from zines by people of color.

http://mimithinguyen.com/

Golnar Nikpour

G. S. Nikpour served as co-coordinator of Maximum Rocknroll — the longest running DIY punk fanzine in the world — from 2004-2007. She is also a founding editor ofB|ta’arof, a magazine featuring art, historiography, and cultural critique related to Iran and its diaspora. She was born in Tehran, Iran and lives in NYC where she still writes for MRR, plays drums in a hardcore band called In School, and is a PhD candidate researching Iranian political modernity at Columbia University.

Interview

Tavia Nyong’o

Nyong’o is Associate Professor of Performance Studies at New York University, where he writes, researches and teaches critical black studies, queer studies, cultural theory, and cultural history. His first book, The Amalgamation Waltz: Race, Performance, and the Ruses of Memory (Minnesota, 2009), won the Errol Hill Award for best book in African American theatre and performance studies. Nyong’o has published articles on punk, disco, viral media, the African diaspora, film, and performance art in venues such as Radical History ReviewCriticismTDR: The Journal of Performance StudiesWomen & Performance: A Journal of Feminist Theory,Women’s Studies QuarterlyThe Nation, and n+1. He is co-editor of the journal Social Text.

http://nyongo.wordpress.com/

M.J. Zilla (aka Mec Jagger)

Former co-producer/songwriter/front woman for The Slack Republic. A visionary extraordinaire she launched her own boutique music label, wynott records (former Rxlngr) in 2007 and has since managed artists such as Muhsinah, Jneiro Jarel & 00Genesis and consulted other acts like J*Davey, Viktor Duplaix & Dante Fried Chicken. While she continues to expand her brand designing YNA, her product line which debuted at the 2012 Afro-Punk festival, M.J. is quietly writing, producing and recording the debut solo release of her new indie-rock outfit, “Mon Mecs” with plans to also release a several rap songs early this year under the moniker “Mec Jagger.”

http://mecjagger.com

POC Zine Project

Meet POCZP’s Chief Fanalyst for the Legacy Series: Julia B. aka Ju!

Julia B., or Ju: First Official Fanalyst to participate in the POC Zine Project's Legacy Series

NAME: Julia B. (also goes by Ju)

ROLE: Chief Fanalyst for POC Zine Project’s Legacy Series

REGION: East Coast (Brooklyn), USA

COMMUNITY: Ju has been a POCZP member since the beginning. You’ll be seeing more of their contributions manifest on this Tumblr and in other digital and physical spaces very soon …. <3

IN JU’S OWN WORDS

Hi there. I’m Julia B., or Ju (if we’re being informal, which suits me fine), and I’m the first Official (and Chief) Fanalyst to participate in the POC Zine Project’s Legacy Series!

I’m very excited to be part of this series, and I’m looking forward to sharing more about the first Legacy Series selection: Fire!!: A Quarterly Devoted to the Younger Negro Artists, published in 1926. I should probably begin by explaining what my role will be.

fan: As in, amateur. I’m not a professional historian, just an enthusiastic history lover with library access. Whether it’s sci-fi fans swapping self-written stories through the mail, or specialized distros offering up all manner of self-published work at concerts, zine readings and the like, zine culture has consistently been defined by its place outside of the traditional publishing world. Keeping that in mind, the folks writing this series are taking part because we genuinely love the works we’re talking about, and want to share those works as laypeople in an accessible way.

analyst: I’ll be doing a close read and giving background details about the magazine, page by page. Sort of like “Pop-Up Video” but in written form.

Graphic for Ju's Chief Fanalyst bio In lieu of elaborate on-location choreography, I’ll be taking you further into not only the text of Fire!!, but also the world in which it was published—from the author’s contemporaries to the neighborhood in which their office was situated, and more. Ideally, by the time you’re done checking out what I’ve got for you, you’ll have music to listen to, visual artists to check out, books you’ll want to look for. Like I said, I’m enthusiastic about history, and my goal is to make sure that you’re just as thrilled about learning more as I was doing the research.

So why exactly am I so thrilled to be working on Fire!! in particular? Well, as a literature fan, I’ve loved Zora Neale Hurston’s, Langston Hughes’, and Countee Cullen’s writing for years. For many, those names might be the most familiar in the list of contributors to Fire!!, and I’m sure a lot of you out there are already fans of their work. But what of the other contributors alluded to in the “younger negro artists” of the magazine’s title? I see this as a chance for those who are more familiar with the writers in this publication to learn more about the visual artists who contributed, and vice versa, while I take a look at the perspectives that link them all together.

I’m also excited because Fire!! was controversial in its time. The contributors were not interested in perpetuating the politics of respectability. They did not create the magazine to keep in step with the artists of generations before them. In short, they were uncomfortable because they refused to conform to more (Black middle-class) palatable sensibilities.

I mean, check out some of the stuff people were saying when this little magazine out of Harlem made its way into print:

Rean Graves of the Baltimore Afro-American [newspaper] was incensed by the magazine and wrote in his review, “I have just tossed the first issue of Fire!! into the fire.” Benjamin Brawley went so far as to say that if the U.S. Post Office found out about Thurman’s “Cordelia the Crude,” the magazine might be barred from the mail.[1]

Pretty strong reactions to a fledgling publication! The contributors wrote about touchy subjects such as colorism among Black Americans and prostitution. They made deliberate use of Black American vernacular, in an effort to make the voices of their works ring true to the people they represented. And pissed off a bunch of uptight people in the process, even though only one issue of Fire!! was ever published. It’s easy to think of “cutting edge” in the present tense, but in exploring the magazine, we get the chance to check out what the Black American nonconformists of 1926 had to say, and what value those messages hold for us in the present day.

Anyway, enough out of me! I’m looking forward to talking with you further… hopefully we can start a cool conversation (or several) about this classic work. Stay tuned!

[1]: Patton, Venetria K., and Maureen Honey. “The Harlem Renaissance.” Oxford African American Studies Center: Guest Scholars. Oxford University Press. Web. <http://www.oxfordaasc.com/public/featureded/guest_5.jsp>

DO YOU WANT TO BE A FANALYST FOR THE LEGACY SERIES?

The only criteria is that you have to be a person of color! Submit here and tell us a little about yourself. Please include links to some writing samples. Good luck!

White allies: There are other ways for you to support the Legacy Series. Please email daniela@dcapmedia.com for details.

ABOUT THE LEGACY SERIES

Kicking off with FIRE!!, POC Zine Project will make zines by people of color created from the 1700s-1990s available to read and share.

Every Friday (Editor’s note: date pushed to February), you will find a legacy zine by a person of color on poczineproject.tumblr.com. We will share more details in 2013.

WHY WE ARE FOCUSING ON LEGACY ZINES

People of color in the U.S. have produced independent publications (zines) for decades. Many of these zines were political in nature, creating cracks in the lens of white supremacy that shaped (and continues to inform) popular culture and legislation.

These zines were new maps to our liberation, countering the negative propaganda of what people of color looked like, thought and were capable of achieving.

We want the world to know about these legacy zines, so we are going to archive and share them to the best of our ability.

We look forward to partnering with distros, academic spaces, libraries, anti-authoritarian collectives, literary journals, bloggers and more to share the Legacy Series.

“NEW” ZINESTERS: We will still share information about new and upcoming zines by people of color :) Please continue to submit your zines to the archive.

ABOUT THE RACE RIOT! TOUR

POC Zine Project held its first Race Riot! Tour in 2012, producing 20 events in 14 cities, which included speaking engagements at six universities. Click here to view photos from the POC Zine Project: 2012 Race Riot! Tour tour finale at Death By Audio in Brooklyn and access all the tour stop recaps.

We will be taking the Race Riot! Tour through 14 more cities in 2013. Stay tuned!

SUPPORT POC ZINE PROJECT

If everyone in our community gave $1, we would more than meet our fundraising goal for 2013. If you have it to spare, we appreciate your support. All funds go to our 2013 tour, the Legacy Series and the poverty zine series.

DONATE link via PayPal: http://bit.ly/SHdmyh

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT: '1 IN 3: THESE ARE OUR STORIES'

40 stories of women’s experiences with abortion for the 40th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade!

You can read a preview here:

Click here to order the paperback edition. This is available as an ebook from the Kindle store too. Nook and iBookstore availability coming soon.

1 in 3 women in the United States will have an abortion in her lifetime. The 1 in 3 Campaign is about ending the cultural stigma and shame women are made to feel around abortion. By sharing stories, we can empower others to end their silence and encourage all supporters of abortion access to publicly take a stand.

Read these stories and more on the 1 in 3 Campaign website.

The 1 in 3 Campaign is a project of Advocates for Youth.

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Having the legal right to make decisions about how and when we reproduce is a critical component of our liberation as POC.

Community: If you found this publication inspiring and informative, please signal boost!

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT: Support OOMK, a new zine by Muslim female artists

OOMK’s fundraiser video is super DIY-cute, and looks like it was a lot of fun to animate:

Music by Vivian Girls - Tell the World

Message from the OOMK team to POCZP: 

OOMK zine is nearly here but we need a little help to get it on its way!

Featuring the work of 25 women, OOMK is set to be a highly visual small press publication. The zine explores the imaginations, creativity and spirituality of women and our first issue is packed with activist and feminist work from a range of different women. 

We’re really keen to share the thoughts of young active, creative women, especially Muslim women, like ourselves, who don’t really get heard. We’ve finished putting issue 1 together and its looking great, but we need to raise £800 to get 300 copies printed.

We’ve set up this fundraising page to help us reach our target: http://www.pleasefund.us/projects/oomk-zine

OOMK is a submissions based zine and future issues will be open to all to submit work.

We need your help to get the word out and to reach our target!

https://www.facebook.com/oomkZine

https://twitter.com/oomkzine

xx

MORE INFO

The Team:

Rose Nordin: Graphic Designer and MA Design student (isamok.tumblr.com)
Sofia Niazi: Illustrator and MA Design student (www.sofianiazi.co.uk)
Sabba Khan: Architect and freelancer (cosmicsabba.tumblr.com)

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We’re into it! Join us in making a donation, if you can spare any amount <3

COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT: Support the Dari Project, first bilingual publication of LGBTQ Korean American stories!

SIGNAL BOOSTING and we’re going to make a donation on 11/15/12 (click here for thoughts on supporting beyond the re-blog):

Please consider supporting this wonderful project to publish the first bilingual publication of LGBTQ Korean American stories designed as a resource by and for queer Korean Americans and their families:

http://www.crowdrise.com/dariproject/fundraiser/dariproject1

Like and keep up to date with Dari Project on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DariProject

Dari Project is a volunteer-led, grassroots organization that develops resources to increase awareness and acceptance of LGBTQ people of Korean descent in Korean American communities.

Dari Project seeks to build bridges among Korean American families, social networks, institutions and faith communities by documenting and sharing the life stories of LGBTQ Koreans.

Since its inception in 2006, the Dari Project leadership has dreamed of publishing the first collection of personal narratives of LGBTQ Koreans as a bilingual resource for LGBTQ Koreans and their friends and families, and they’re so close to making this dream a reality!

They’ve solicited 27 stories from members of their community, which represent a wide range of experiences, including homo/bi/transphobia in Korean American communities, coming out as an LGBTQ person, building relationships with family, and membership in faith communities.

This publication is designed to provide young Korean Americans coming into LGBTQ identities with stories in which they can see their lives reflected and as a resource for Korean American families coming to terms with having LGBTQ children.

Thanks to some friends and supporters they’ve been able to get started, but they need your help to publish this collection as a bilingual print resource for our community.

Your generous contributions will help edit, translate, design, and print their stories as a book.

If they can make their goal of $7000, it will help make this book available for FREE to your friends, families, communities, and people you care about.

Your generous contributions will go towards:

  • Full Korean and English translation services
  • Editing Korean and English Stories
  • Publication Design
  • Publication Printing
  • Dari Project Marketing

Point of awareness: Mark in the Queer Commons google group

Help POC Zine Project find a publishing partner for the poverty zine series

COMMUNITY: We need referrals to publishers who can help us print the first poverty zine series issue. Email daniela@dcapmedia.com or submit here.

Folks who actively support us finding a publisher will be credited on a special “thank you” page within the zine on on the upcoming resource website.

TALKING POINTS

We want to print an initial release of 500 copies of a 30 page zine (equivalent of 8-10 pieces of letter sized paper folded to 30 pages, double sided).

The zines need to be printed on waterproof material so that they are durable and withstand being exposed to the elements (we want to be realistic about community needs - a paper zine won’t work).

PROGRESS SO FAR

We received an initial quote of over 10k. This is unrealistic for us, at around $20 per zine. We are hoping to get in-kind donations or a significant discount, which we would use in conjunction with funds raised through a publishing partner network.

HOW YOU CAN HELP

1. Recommend and connect us with potential publishers! We’re especially eager to partner with independent publishers with a history of supporting community-based movements addressing poverty.

2. If you are an individual, or part of a university/collective/etc. who can support fundraising efforts for publishing the poverty zine series, contact Daniela at daniela@dcapmedia.com.

She will explain the process and detail the mutually beneficial outcomes of collaborating as part of this publishing partner network.

WHY WE NEED SUPPORT

The zines will be given away for free through DIY distribution partners nationwide, including participating agencies that serve populations living at or below the poverty line. This series will also be available as paper-based zines that anyone can reproduce and share, and available as an e-zine and (coming soon) website.

POC Zine Project is a grassroots advocacy platform. We do not have a consistent source of funding and this is intentional. We are for finding solutions by building community with like-minded individuals and organizations.

Please share! #signalboost ♥ Thank you.

- POC Zine Project

P.S. We are still looking for submissions from people (of any background) who have experience living at or below the poverty line. Click here for submission criteria and please share this with anyone you know who might be interested in participating.

We are especially eager to include stories from folks affected by Hurricane Sandy.