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Showing posts with the label Freedom Shop

Book Launch: Splendid Bush

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The Freedom Shop and Book Haven invite you to the launch of Splendid Bush by Clare Havell-Shufflebotham. Splendid Bush is a queer reckoning with love, its warpath, motherhood and ghosts (of capital, of violence, of sweet lemon trees). Part protection spell, part map of self-dissolution, this collection is an ode to hookgrass and an offering of dirt. The works are at times ruthless, at times tender nano-essays on the rebound, queer haunting, the parties you should have left, and all that you want to stay. This is not a break up album, although the greatest hits do make an appearance. Rather, it takes the wounds that motherhood lays bare, and produces queer nature magic as antidote and as mirror. Written in the crucible that is suburbia with young children, Splendid Bush questions the spaces between ourselves and ‘nature’, macho colonial bodies, violent bodies of the state, and our own. Above all, it is about the power of Bush. Havell-Shufflebotham arrived home to Aotearoa not long bef

From the Holocaust to public hangings

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Join us for a discussion evening with Giacomo Lichtner , Associate Professor of History at Vic Uni. The slogans at the protest at Parliament earlier this year were sometimes frightening. On the one hand a public vaccination campaign was compared to the holocaust, on the other hand Jacinda was labelled ‘a Jew’, resulting in demands for public lynchings. It seems the imagery of Europe’s fascism of the 20th century is fair game for anyone to use. Exactly one hundred years after the Italian establishment allowed Mussolini to become Prime Minister we want to discuss why so few people seem to be worried about the rise of far-right groups. Giacomo Lichtner will give an introduction on the subject, followed by discussion. See Giacomo´s previous article on this subject. Tuesday 1 November, 6:30pm  at Book Haven 160 Riddiford Street Newtown

Tinkering at the edges

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A discussion about what is really needed to avoid climate disaster Currently no political organisation is even advocating for the kind of change required to avoid the effects of catastrophic climate change. Some say that the solutions being put forward by the current government are worse than doing nothing. Yet we all know that drastic change is required. Let's talk about how we can get there. Tuesday, 11 October  2022, 6:30pm at the Freedom Shop, 160 Riddiford St, Newtown For further reading see this interview with Mike Joy . This is the first in a series of talks and discussions we have lined up. Coming up are a talk about the rise of fascism (one hundred years after Mussolini became Prime Minister) and a talk about investigative journalism. Stay tuned.

The Freedom Shop has moved

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It's happened - we've moved. We're now next door at the front of Book Haven , a second-hand book shop that shares the alley way with the Opportunity for Animals . It's exciting stuff for both the OpShop and us: the OpShop gets more space and are able to expand and we get to be open seven days a week from now on! So please do come and check the new space out, and when you're visiting us also drop in and see what Opportunity for Animals are doing with their reclaimed space at the back.  And once more, thank you so much to all the people at Opportunity for Animals for the support you have given us over the years whilst we have lived in a corner of your Newtown shop. It was great, we may not have been able to survive without your support. Thank you.  

The Freedom Shop is moving!

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The Freedom Shop will soon be moving to a new location - next door! From mid May you will be able to find us inside Book Haven at 160 Riddiford St, Newtown, literally next door to Opportunity for Animals where we have been for the last 10 years. Until then the shop will be closed while we sort out the move. These will be exciting new times for the collective and the best thing is that we will be able to be open 7 days a week! There will be an official opening (COVID permitting), so keep an eye out for further announcements.  We would like to thank Opportunity for Animals for the incredible support they have given us over the years - we would not be around without you! See you all soon!

Local Heroes

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The impact of punk on the lives of local activists is examined in a new pamphlet recently released by the Freedom Shop: Dumb Enough to Actually Try It: How Punk Rock Can Make You a Better Manager by Sam Buchanan. Part history, part self-help guide for aspiring managers, the essay sets out how punk developed an economic structure and organising methodology. This not only sustains it, but has given many people skills which have proved effective well beyond the punk movement. Punks have taken these skills into many areas, both expected and unexpected. Several local punks are quoted in the essay, including Kate Pussycat who went on to establish fundraising opshops and a rural animal sanctuary. “ Years of being broke living on the dole and loving opshopping prompted me to set up an opshop in Wellington as a way to fundraise for animal rights work. It was wildly successful! So then we got ambitious and borrowed money from anyone we knew who had anything to lend and bought 26 acres of land t

Local Heroes

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The impact of punk on the lives of local activists is examined in a new pamphlet recently released by the Freedom Shop: Dumb Enough to Actually Try It: How Punk Rock Can Make You a Better Manager by Sam Buchanan. Part history, part self-help guide for aspiring managers, the essay sets out how punk developed an economic structure and organising methodology. This not only sustains it, but has given many people skills which have proved effective well beyond the punk movement. Punks have taken these skills into many areas, both expected and unexpected. Several local punks are quoted in the essay, including Kate Pussycat who went on to establish fundraising opshops and a rural animal sanctuary. “ Years of being broke living on the dole and loving opshopping prompted me to set up an opshop in Wellington as a way to fundraise for animal rights work. It was wildly successful! So then we got ambitious and borrowed money from anyone we knew who had anything to lend and bought 26 acres of land t

New opening hours

We are overjoyed to announce that we are able to have the shop open more often. We are going to be open Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons, as well as on Saturdays. So the new opening hours are: Tuesday: 12 - 5pm Wednesday: 12 - 5pm Saturday: 11am - 4pm Of course we are still a volunteer collective, so we cannot guarantee those hours, but we will try our best.

Partial Freedom

The Freedom Shop is back under Level 2D - open Saturdays 11am -4pm. Take the opportunity to stock up on books and zines. If we are in Level 1 by then, the Wellington Zinefest will take place on October 23 and 24 in the atrium at the Victoria University of Wellington, School of Design Innovation ( Te Aro Campus ) on Vivian Street, so save the date.  Keep safe!

Film Screening: The Lie About Saving Lives At Sea

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Film screening and discussion   In 2015, a boat with refugees from Sri Lanka tried to reach New Zealand, but was intercepted in international waters by the Australian Border Force. They forced the refugees onto another boat and paid the skipper to take them to Indonesia. The boat was shipwrecked on an Indonesian island.  Why did the Australian Navy intercept a boat that was heading for NZ? Is the Australian Navy doing the bidding for the NZ government? Why is NZ still refusing to accept these refugees? Watch the film "Stop the Boats - the lie about saving lives at sea" and join the discussion about the rights of asylum seekers.  Tuesday, 22 June, 7pm at the Newtown Hall, 71 Daniell St, Newtown (near Constable St). Free entry. Organised by the Freedom Shop and Right2AsylumNZ

Featherston Booktown

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Featherston Booktown Karukatea 2021 Festival  The Featherston Booktown Karukatea festival runs from the 6th to the 9th of May this year. Wellington Zinefest are officially part of it and will be holding workshops for zinesters in the Featherston School Hall . The FreedomShop, Food Court Books and 5ever will be joining them on Saturday May 8th and Sunday 9th. For more details and the complete programme see here .

Palmy Zinefest 10 April

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The second Palmerston North Zinefest is coming up on Saturday, 10 April 21 from 11am to 4pm. After a fantatstic event at Snails Space last year, this year it's going to be at the City Library. The Freedom Shop will be among the 35 or so stall holders, so if you're in the area, make sure you come along. On Sunday, there will also be a collage making workshop from 2-4pm. Listen to Chris, one of the organisers, talk about zines and zine fests on Manawatu People's Radio here .

Radical Zine Redesign

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Zinefest and the Freedom Shop have teamed up to redesign a few of our zines. We are looking for designers, artists and illustrators to spruce up some text-heavy zines. And the best thing is that this work is even funded.  Check out the details of the project here .

We’re 25!

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Twenty-five years ago, on May 1, 1995 members of the anarchist group Committee for the Establishment of Civilisation (CEC) started up Anarchist Books in the existing space of the National Organisation for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), called the Freedom Shop in a tiny building at 272 Cuba St. The Freedom Shop in 1995 A lot has changed since then – the building made way for the ill-named “bypass”, the Cuba St district was thoroughly gentrified, the Freedom Shop is now in Newtown and the future of printed material is uncertain. But some things haven’t. Plans for yet more roads and more destruction of neighbourhoods that resulted in the bypass back then are still election issues today with catchy slogans like “4 lanes to the planes” - a reminder that building more roads inevitably creates demand for even more roads. And this year will see the referendum on cannabis law reform, the result of the campaign to “normalise” marijuana that created the original Freedom Shop. 25 years is

We’re 25!

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Twenty-five years ago, on May 1, 1995 members of the anarchist group Committee for the Establishment of Civilisation (CEC) started up Anarchist Books in the existing space of the National Organisation for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML), called the Freedom Shop in a tiny building at 272 Cuba St. The Freedom Shop in 1995 A lot has changed since then – the building made way for the ill-named “bypass”, the Cuba St district was thoroughly gentrified, the Freedom Shop is now in Newtown and the future of printed material is uncertain. But some things haven’t. Plans for yet more roads and more destruction of neighbourhoods that resulted in the bypass back then are still election issues today with catchy slogans like “4 lanes to the planes” - a reminder that building more roads inevitably creates demand for even more roads. And this year will see the referendum on cannabis law reform, the result of the campaign to “normalise” marijuana that created the original Freedom Shop. 25 years is

Freedom Shop News

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The Freedom Shop had a spontaneous working bee and we have now a new layout making it feel like a roomier shop. Now Tee-shirts are hanging on the side and badges are up on the wall. Come in and check us out.

Freedom Shop News

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The Freedom Shop had a spontaneous working bee and we have now a new layout making it feel like a roomier shop. Now Tee-shirts are hanging on the side and badges are up on the wall. Come in and check us out.

Plan B for 2020 - Your Diary Planner for the year

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It's that time of the year - the time to get your diary for 2020! And what could be better than having an organizer that lists you all the important dates for Aotearoa, produced right here by the Freedom Shop? Plan B 2020 is even bigger, brighter and better than the 2019 edition, and still only $10.  For those who are hooked on the traditional Slingshot diaries - they are on their way and will be here by the end of the month.

Plan B for 2020 - Your Diary Planner for the year

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It's that time of the year - the time to get your diary for 2020! And what could be better than having an organizer that lists you all the important dates for Aotearoa, produced right here by the Freedom Shop? Plan B 2020 is even bigger, brighter and better than the 2019 edition, and still only $10.  For those who are hooked on the traditional Slingshot diaries - they are on their way and will be here by the end of the month.

Plan B for 2020

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It's that time of the year - the time to get your diary for 2020! And what could be better than having an organizer that lists you all the important dates for Aotearoa, produced right here by the Freedom Shop? Plan B 2020 is even bigger, brighter and better than the 2019 edition, and still only $10.  For those who are hooked on the traditional Slingshot diaries - they are on their way and will be here by the end of the month.