The Web Is Not Enough - Why These Left Media Workers Are Opening Physical Spaces

"For years, PM Press operated out of Ramsey Kanaan's cozy apartment, and Dan Fedorenko's ramshackle garden shed. From these humble headquarters in Oakland, California, they packed and shipped books exploring anarchist, Marxist, and abolitionist ideas. Much like anarchist punks who distributed zines at shows throughout the '90s, the publishers sold many copies through tabling, setting up at book fairs, academic conferences, flea markets, and rock shows."

"Nineteen years later, PM still publishes radical books and still relies heavily on in-person sales, but its leaders aren't tripping over boxes at home anymore. Instead, they've joined a small, quietly growing ecosystem of leftist media workers and publishers opening physical spaces, alongside outlets like The Kansas City Defender in Missouri, and publishers like Binch Press in Providence, Rhode Island; OR Books in New York City via the Francis Kite Club; and Haymarket Books in Chicago."

"PM's path to opening a community space was contingent on crisis. In 2017, the press rented a small warehouse in Oakland, only to find that its own workers couldn't afford to live in the Bay Area amid rising rent. The pandemic hit amid these pressures and - ironically enough for an anti-state publisher - government relief offered them a crucial boost. A surge in mail order sales helped too, which was more profitable than selling books through distributors."

PM Press began as a small operation run from an apartment and a garden shed in Oakland, packing and shipping radical books on anarchism, Marxism, and abolitionism. The press relied heavily on in-person sales through tabling at book fairs, conferences, flea markets, and rock shows. Over nearly two decades, PM continued publishing radical titles while joining a growing ecosystem of leftist media and publishers opening community spaces, including outlets in Kansas City, Providence, New York, and Chicago. Financial strain from Bay Area rents and a 2017 warehouse move led to crisis. Pandemic relief and a surge in profitable mail-order sales improved finances and enabled access to bank loans for a mortgage.

Read at Truthout