BASE (Base for Anarchy and Solidarity in Easton) is a social centre with many parts. The library and archive occupy an upstairs room in the building. It contains a large collection of radical books, zines, pamphlets and ephemera from Bristol and around the world. Regular publications we hold include Class War, Peace News, Black Flag, Freedom News and Earth First! newsletters, as well as one-off zines and local publications including Bristle, Stuffitand the West Country Activist news. There are direct action guides and resources for activist support, local Free Information newsletters, maps, and personal zines.
We have big plans as the BASE Library and Archive collective. The library is organised into categories, but as yet has not been catalogued. This is what our volunteer collective is trying to do currently. Once we know what is in the collection and have given away any duplicate or unwanted items, we can try to expand the collection with new books as well as improving access to the space and preservation of our archived zines and ephemera. We hope this will increase access for local anarchists, activists and historians to undertake research projects using materials held at BASE.
If you’d like to get involved in any aspect of the library, we’d love to hear from you. We’re always in need of help with fundraising, cataloguing, generally helping keep the space tidy and functional, advising us about best practices for preservation, or putting on reading groups, exhibitions or DIY history projects.
To find out more or to get involved email us on baselibrary@riseup.net
Opening Times
The library is open when BASE is open for events and the Library Collective is currently meeting every Friday from 2-4pm to continue cataloguing and working on the library.
Accessibility Note: The Library is on the upper floor of BASE and can only be accessed via a narrow staircase with a hand rail.
BASE Library Donations Policy
What we want:
- Books, zines, comics, pamphlets
- Anything about radical politics, anarchism, anti racism, feminism, trans rights, indigenous struggles, land rights, environmental and climate protests, class struggles, cultures of resistance, radical histories from around the world.
- Fiction/poetry ONLY if it’s on a radical theme, covering topics and perspectives that are underrepresented in mainstream publishing or by an author from a group which is underrepresented in mainstream publishing.
What we DON’T want:
- Books about cookery, yoga, healing, alternative lifestyles, conspiracy theories etc
- Fiction unless it meets the definition described above
- Multimedia (videos/CDs/DVDs etc)
