An Anthology Zine!
in times of collapse: this is how we find the wiggle room of freedom
“Freedom is a heavy load, a great and strange burden for the spirit to undertake. It is not easy. It is not a gift given, but a choice made, and the choice may be a hard one.” – Ursula K. Le Guin, The Tombs of Atuan
I wanted to make this anthology zine because I had a feeling some of us would like to talk about our relationship with freedom — even though it often feels out of reach—or you know, none of us are free until we all are free. So basically, even when we feel glimmers of it, there is still so much we need to do to end the horrors and birth collective freedom for all.
Sometimes I wonder if perhaps freedom is unmeasurable, slightly elusive to us, at least under empire. Maybe, then, we should be more aware of the moments of subtle freedom welling up in ourselves and our communities. To remember to hold those precious moments in our bones, to feel what we are fighting for… I am not sure, but I try.
When I think about finding the wiggle room of freedom these days I often tune into a feeling that my body is stuck in a massive field of brambles. “be careful how you move!” it’s not necessarily dangerous but it is fraught with unknowns and it often hurts to move.
Yet, my heart reminds me that it’s when I feel truly connected with my friends that I feel glimmers of freedom. Oh yeah, right, I knew this, right? Anyhow, is it just me? Because I am having a harder time tending to the garden of friendship these days… but I still know it is worth the effort, so I still try.
My instinct to create this zine has helped me too; within these pages are beautiful writings that offer some pathways towards these moments of feeling into freedom...
Thank you so much Elia, Eleanor, Sonya, So, Berit, Grant, jams, Sharon, Nicol, Julie, and chris for sharing your wonderful feeling-thinkings with us all!
Below you can download a pdf version of the zine for screen reading or download the other version to print it yourself (share them around, too)! For printing, you can drop the pdf into this handy zine maker! (thanks to William Gillis!)
ps: you can print either b/w version – I made two different cover versions to help with ink savings! but if you're just printing one, you might like the first one better!
Written pieces by: Elia Ayoub, Sharon Arnold, Eleanor Goldfield, Sonya Gracey, So Mayer, chris time steele, Berit Fischer, carla joy bergman, and (Nicol) Darling Udy i.e. Desert Naiad. Art by: jams, aka Jamie-Leigh Gonzales and Grant, aka Gadzooks Bazooka. photos by Sonya, carla, and Nicol. And thank you Julie Flett for letting me use your beautiful art for the back-cover!
