The primary focus of the Anarchist History Nerd Brigade is producing short zines that tell untold stories of somewhat recent (post-1970) anarchist history in the United States.
Below are the zines that have been published thus far. If you have suggestions for additional titles, please get in touch.
Johann Most by Emma Goldman
This biographical sketch by Emma Goldman is paired with a critical introduction that looks at the ways Johann Most has been portrayed over the years. Johann Most is consistently misunderstood and the subject of wild exaggeration and this text does a good job of presenting an alternative view of Most as a tireless anarchist organizer. While far from our primary focus on post-1970 history, this zine was put together because the text has largely gone unread over the years.
- Download the PDF: Imposed / Screen Reading
Neither East Nor West NYC: A De Facto Anarchist Black Cross History, 1980-1994
Neither East Nor West NYC (NENW-NYC) was a group that formed in the 1980s to form relationships of solidarity with comrades in the East. They organized, published, and otherwise raised awareness of repression in the East. With a focus on political prisoners, in many ways, NENW-NYC functioned as a de facto anarchist black cross.
- Download the PDF: Imposed / Screen Reading
The A-Zone & A Decade Of Anarchy In Chicago
This zine is an updated version of a history of The Automonous Zone (The A-Zone) in Chicago, IL. This second edition features an updated history that provides further insight into both the history of the A-Zone and the political context it came out of in the 1990s. Beyond the main essay, four people involved in the A-Zone at different points in its history share reflections on the A-Zone. It’s an important zine for those interested in anarchism in the U.S. in the 1990s.
- Download the PDF: Imposed / Screen Reading
Yalensky’s Fable: A History of the Anarchist Black Cross
This zine is a reprint of an article by Matthew Hart that tells the history of the Anarchist Black Cross (ABC). The Anarchist Black Cross is one of the longest running anarchist initiatives, with a history going back nearly 100 years.
- Download the PDF: Imposed / Screen Reading
Claim No Easy Victories: A History and Analysis of Anti-Racist Action
Claim No Easy Victories: A History and Analysis of Anti-Racist Action is a piece that was written by Rory McGowan in the early 2000s on the history of Anti-Racist Action (ARA). The article originally appeared in the Northeastern Anarchist, a magazine published by the North Eastern Federation of Anarcho-Communists (NEFAC).
- Download the PDF: Imposed / Screen Reading
Mob Action Against the State
This zine is a reprinted version of Mob Action Against the State: Haymarket Remembered …An Anarchist Convention, a long out of print book that provides a collection of experiences from the 1986 Haymarket Remembered conference in Chicago.
- Download the PDF: Imposed / Screen Reading
The Political Pre-History of Love & Rage: Anarchist Struggle in the 1980s and 1990s
This zine is a reprint from a conference bulletin published by Love & Rage in the mid-1990s. It presents a history of anarchist organizing efforts in North America through the lens of their political analysis.
- Download the PDF: Imposed / Screen Reading