History Bloc
finding ways to study, comrades to study with
This site was set up by writers Alex Charnley and Michael Richmond. We planned to use this website as a repository to upload writing, books, interviews, and so on. But since social media has gone full nazi, the plan is now to use it as an experiment in informal conferencing, collective study and writing. This mode of study builds from Black, queer, trans, feminist and anti-colonial histories, which are put into tension with Marxist theories of history, value form analysis, and the fascism question. At present, the site is mostly our writing, but we are seeking collaborations with comrades all the time, and will be looking to republish, review, and promote writing we have a kinship with. If you want to collaborate, please get in touch, or just get in touch for a chat!
alexcharnley1984@gmail.com / micr86@yahoo.co.uk
Links/Comrades
some kin
The following is a list of links to check out (comrades, archives, groups, people we admire) including the archives of the Occupied Times and Base Publication, which we co-edited with other comrades. We will keep adding these as we go and are in no particular order. We often talk to young communist/anarchist curious people, who want to find people and groups to organise with, but don’t know what ways in or who to trust. The left has a far from noble history of bringing people through so we are writing up a list of groups/sites/people that have helped us on our journey, as well as people we still hang around with, or things we are currently working on. A mix of writers, editors, archives, left publishing outlets, networks, posters, nerds, community spaces, and active social movements, orgs or parties. Multi-tendency! Marxism, anarchism, Black radicalism, anti-imperialism, academics, non-academics, etc. We want to keep building this up, so please send in recommendations.
Libcom: a rich archive of anarchism, liberation communism and marxism. We have spent endless hours here and are also proud to have published the first essay of Fascism and the Women’s Cause with Libcom before it grew into a book.
Ebb: a marxist anti-imperialist platform for British left publishing. It has quickly become a very important go-to for reviews, books, essays, and commentaries. We were really happy to publish with such a thoughtful group of editors.
Neda Tehrani: our editor on Fractured, who was patient enough to help us bring together 200,000 words into a 80,000 word book. Has left Pluto and is now working independently. A special thinker, editor, and person.
Trans Safety Network: a hugely important collective of trans journalists, radicals and anti-fascists, who have been meticulously tracing, spotting, and analysing transphobia for a long time. An essential platform on the British radical left.
David Renton A historian who has always been very positive about our work, which means a lot, considering the breadth and quality of his. Writes a great blog that is regularly updated and covers the main anti-fascist and left issues of the moment, as well as book reviews.
Rs-21 Lots of sound and serious people in this ecosocialist, feminist, anti-racist and anti-imperialist organisation based in Britain. A hopeful development for British socialist party-based tendencies and movement building. Non-sectarian and post regularly and intelligently on what’s going on. We are mutuals with comrades in this, and Mike has shared our research with the group.
56a: radical social centre in Elephant and Castle and hub for local organising. Mike’s been in the archive and bookshop for over a decade now, and regularly meets anarchists and communists and organisers locally, and from around the world, who come to visit.
Alana Lentin: a massive influence on us. Everything Alana has written is essential to race-critical thought. Constantly pressing in on the wrong world, tracing it, and unravelling it. A brilliant teacher and person.
Occupied Times/Base: we co-edited these publications with comrades for nearly a decade, or just under. Grew out of the Occupy LSX movement as its anti-capitalist anarchist platform. The group commissioned many great writers internationally and created a platform for anti-raids, housing, and anti-fascist conversation in London from 2011-2018.
Reactionary Politics Research Network / RPRN: a growing network of academics, independent researchers, and activists who study the far right and reactionary politics. Radically inclusive in the way the network is trying to bridge academic/non-academic militant research, established/precarious workers in academia, and pushing back at organised transphobia, racism, and respectable fascism in the university. If you are an independent researcher thinking about doing a phd and looking for supervisors, there is a growing list of academics on the site.
More to come.