We have labelled ourselves a radical bookshop, but what does that actually mean?
When we think of radicalism or even the word radical, the mind usually goes to ANTIFA, or Ché Guevara, The Black Panthers, revolution and uprisings. And looking at the definition of the word "radical", they do go hand in hand with all of the above. But radical in the mainstream usually gets a bad rep and a lot of people shies away from it, are scared by it, or thinks it isn't for them. When action is demanded by radical people, the thought process of many may be along the lines of "Radicalism is bad", "I like it the way things are", "They are so disruptive of daily life - can't they just go away?".
More often than not this is a reaction to the context of what we see on the news with the Black Life Matters protests, the environmental protests etc. Protests cause a disruption to affect action or raise awareness. And as the general public is affected, they are annoyed or upset that it is hard to get to work that etc. Generally speaking, the best (and often only way) to produce results and action from a powerful entity, such as governments or corporations, is to hit them with disruptions to their monetary gains or daily routines for the masses so that the requests can't be ignored as easily. This sort of grand, radical action are what comes to peoples mind as the only way of being radical, hence ruling it out of being characteristics they have or being something they would ever partake in. At A S Bookshelf we think of radicalism on a more fundamental level.
Oxford language defines the word radical as below:
adjective
(especially of change or action) relating to or affecting the fundamental nature of something; far-reaching or thorough.
advocating or based on thorough or complete political or social change; representing or supporting an extreme or progressive section of a political party.
noun
a person who advocates thorough or complete political or social change, or a member of a political party or section of a party pursuing such aims.
Advocating is a reoccurring word for the description. Someone radical is someone who advocates for social or political change. Affecting the fundamental nature of something. And this really comes down to impacting or disturbing the status quo. Protesting and advocating for change in political settings takes manpower, organisation and funding. A lot of us think we cannot be radical unless we are part of an organisation and that we must align ourselves with all of their political views and endeavours. But advocating for change can be done everywhere. At work, in your social group, neighbourhood or even online communities.
If you advocate for a new policy at work which would disrupt how things are presently done to benefit the people at work, then that is radical action. If you advocate with your local coffee shop that they should take action to make their venue more accessible for people with wheelchairs, that is radical action. If you speak up at your family gatherings that your racist uncle needs to mind how he speaks, that is radical action. The term radical can be applied to a lot of small and large actions that you take in very different settings. Essentially, anyone can, and most likely will, be a radical at some point in their lives. This sort of mindset is what we at A S Bookshelf want to encourage.
The A S Bookshelf motto
Knowledge and history plays a huge part in finding your way to affect change. Since we all have our biases ingrained in us, being critical to the world around your doesn't always come naturally. It needs to be taught and practiced. Our school systems, workplaces, family values, and media outlets does a good job in building in to us a world view that aligns with the drive for keeping the current systems in place, that there is only a certain way of life and that the enemy is always the same and always someone else. Most of the values ingrained in us comes from a history of keeping people controlled, keeping people quiet, and keeping people in the capitalist machine to keep turning over profit for someone else. Since the power of Kings and Queens were abolished, politics and corporations are at the top of the power chains and controls everything we read, hear, learn and are exposed to from a very young age. People who can conform and act within these rules set out by the powerful, generally speaking have it "easy" in life. But for people who cannot, or will not, conform, the current world we live can be a nightmare.
To break the status quo bubble you have been raised in and live comfortably in can be scary. But all it takes is seeing the struggles or injustices, of someone else to spark that internal discomfort that feeds a desire to affect change - no matter how big or small. We want A S Bookshelf to be the safe stepping stone to turn to when to when people need a place to find information to feed their radicalism. To start their journey on changing the status quo. Or is simply tired of all the escapism promoted in mainstream bookshops and are looking for specific titles that can feed their changing mindset. Although we don't conform to or support any political party, we are a left leaning bookshop because we believe in inclusivity, and in change that will benefit the many not the few. Wee want to be a space where people feel welcome and safe to explore new grounds and find information to their purpose - even if the purpose of social action is only for themselves for now.
Feeding the radicals
Although we love to partake in big social action events, sign petitions and advocate, our main purpose is to exist for other people in every stage of their personal journey of social action. To break your bubble of the status quo you need knowledge that informs you of how the world looks like from other perspectives, what it can be like if we take all the necessary steps, and how to avoid ending up on the same tracks as we have been running on up until now which has been detrimental to so many people (and our planet).
We don't want people to feel like they need to know everything, be part of a specific group or organisation, in order to access the material they need. There is no requirements to be of a specific economic bracket, age, social group, or carry any other labels that society likes to divide us in to. If you have a desire to change something for the better, we want to help feed you the knowledge and provide you the space to carry out your social changes.
The main sceptic at A Sceptics Bookshelf
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