Hello friends,
My name is Erin. Welcome to Fringe Stack, home of my personal magazine/newspaper collection.
I'm not sure how any of this happened, really. One day I found a newsprint called "Ain't I a Woman" in a small bookstore in Lancaster, PA--looking at you DogStar Books--and the next thing I know, I'm living in print chaos with vague intentions of remembering my roots as an archivist and a half-baked will to make a cruddy website.
Well, here it is. Chaos wrangled, somewhat. Searchable and growing. Hey, look for a newsletter some time in the future, won'tchya?
But really, friends, I have a deeper reason for hosting this project at this particular time. I wonder if you've noticed, like me, that our culture in these here United States is getting flatter, grayer, you know, somewhat same-samey? I've sub-titled this project as the Counterculture Breakfast Club, because I've heard that "culture eats strategy for breakfast"--one of those oft-repeated business aphorisms you hear around the company town. It means that if the office culture doesn't tolerate policy, said policy won't get done.
You might be asking how that has anything to do with an archive of counterculture material? Well, I'm asking you: who is running the country? What policies might they be forcing on the american people? And what algorithm is currently gnawing on you?
I built Fringe Stack to remember that there are other ways of existing in the world, simple as. Wilder ways, funny ways, beautiful ways, ways of irreverence and agnosticism, ways of being bold and inventive, acid trip ways, mycelial ways, fractal ways, sleepy ways and and and. Friends, I built Fringe Stack to remember that nothing is inevitable, even when we are being alienated from one another as I write this.
So why counterculture rags, you say? Personally, I think a lot of answers reside at the edge of culture, from people who understand what it means to be different in a world that delights in its great lumbering towards conformity. Simply put, yesterday offers us truths for today.
Scope
The scope of this archive will include the years 1960 - current date. Originally, I decided to implement a cut-off date of ~the year 2000,~ but there are too many good counterculture rags on offer today--not to mention the DIY world of zines! Reader, I will include anything that bucks a trend--movements and publications that experimented with expanding freedom rather than restricting it. Hate movements dolled up as counterculture need not apply.
Provenance
Provenance is less important to this archive for the sake of time--I am one person buying, cataloging, preserving and storing. Most publications are purchased from eBay and random book stores. The day I start getting publications donations, however, will be the day you see provenance. For now, trust this poor archivist to scrounge the digital grounds and the bookstore cast-offs.
Digitization
Further, you'll notice that I've linked to other websites that are hosting digitized versions of the material where I can find them. However, I've noticed that there are quite a few publications that are not available online--I will work towards digitizing these issues, with a focus on underground newspaper prints first. These are most in danger of being lost to time, and they contain too much relevant cultural information to let go. Once I start digitizing, I'll add specs here.
Tagging
Ah, always a fun endeavor. How best to tag these publications that never really wanted to be wrangled to begin with? In that spirit, I've decided to forgo standard taxonomy for folksonomy--it just makes sense. However, I'll publish an updated tags list monthly. I've employed a three-tiered approach: tags for people (notable authors), tags for themes (the meat of the article, including people as content subjects), and tags for content type.
Copyright
Copyright for these publications, especially the underground press, can be somewhat iffy. Where there is clear copyright, I will link to their site or simply reference the magazine without hosting the digitization--unless I have permission. Where it is unclear, I'm happy to host them--If anyone has legitimate claim to copyright for these publications, please let me know and I will pull the digital copy.
Please enjoy this chaotic little big project. If it never passes into recognition, well, it delights me. Send me your thoughts and criticisms. I'll read it all, but I may not reply ;)
Erin