Boston is full of funny little secrets: curious places tucked into unexpected corners, vibrant creativity hiccuping into the city's mainstream cultural life. Exhibit A: The Papercut Zine Library, a free lending library that specializes in independent and DIY media (print and A/V) that opened in 2005 in Harvard Square. It's amassed an impressive collection of nearly 13,000 titles and is run by a volunteer, consensus-based collective. The hand-made, goofy, smart, clever, hilarious, heartfelt, charming, and all-around beautiful zine collection is unparalleled, so far as I know, and absolutely inspiring. As well, the library is a dynamic community space--hosting punk, folk, and indie music shows, among many other events, as well as helping to organize the amazing Boston Zine Fair, which happens to be another of the city's best-kept secrets.
Which is why this news from BoingBoing is such a downer:
(The Papercut Zine Library has) been kicked out of their space in Cambridge, MA and are desperately looking for a new home. Their needs are relatively small, but it can be tough getting the word out.
As outlined on the collective’s Myspace page, Papercut is looking for at least 180 square feet of space in an accessible area. Joining an existing community/arts/organizing space is an option, and so is renting low-cost commercial space. There’s just one absolute: “that the freedom to make decisions about the library’s internal operation stay within our collective. That is, we are not interested in another library absorbing our collective if it means the collective will not be involved.”
Utne asks anyone with a tip for Papercut to get in touch with them immediately. The sooner the library finds a new home, they sooner their amazing collection becomes available again.
Clara, a member of the Papercut collective, answered a few questions about their situation for Bitch Magazine:
What has displaced the zine library?
In short, the economy. For five years were hosted at a house owned by a foundation, and during our time as residents, the house changed into a more formal organization itself with staff, interns, and events of its own: The Democracy Center. The foundation lost a lot of its money due to the economic downturn, and in order to attract new donors to the Center, it decided to revamp the physical space. Part of this plan involved Papercut vacating our longstanding spot in order to make room for new offices and change the "face of the Center." We occupied a room at the front of the building and were often the first thing people saw when entering.
The foundation and Center staff have been very helpful to us in our transition. They have provided us with free storage space and offered to write recommendations to potential landlords. However, we were given a very short period of time to find a new space that fit our needs, and has not been able to find an adequate place to move by the time we had to vacate.
Don't have any ideas or tips about a space that Papercut can move into? You can still help! Here's Clara and Bitch once more:
Aside from donating space, how can people help?
Spread the word! If you know people in Boston, let them know we need help. We are counting on our connections to get us a great new location, and so far our patrons, friends, and supporters have been extremely helpful in supplying ideas and contacts for potential spaces. If you don't have contacts in Boston, you can always donate to the library to help us pay rent when we find a new space.
Image Credit: Bitch Magazine
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