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L.B. anarchist
bookstore caters to dissident views
By Adrienne Figueroa
Daily Forty Niner
If Long Beach residents
have ever had to search tirelessly for information on anarchist
and revolutionary ideologies, the hunt may be over.
A small group of activists and anarchists have introduced
a new book and music store to the city.
Located at the corner of Seventh Street and Redondo Avenue,
The Long Beach Community Co-op opened two months ago with
the intention of providing a permanent space for members of
a local feeding organization, "Food Not Bombs,"
to cook food for the city's homeless. Now, the store has doubled
as a platform for the expression of dissident political beliefs.
The shop is managed by a collaboration of about 15 people,
most of whom are high school and college students from Long
Beach and the surrounding area.
Absent of an individual boss or a chain of command, the group,
also named the collective, uses a consensus vote to determine
operations within the store.
"No one person in the collective has more decision-making
power than anyone else," said 18-year-old group member
"Opal," who declined to use her real name.
Senior history major and co-op affiliate Jeb Sprague thinks
that this process is an ideal way to run a business because
it enables everyone involved to communicate with one another
and share their own individual thoughts rather than answer
to a supervisor.
With the store opening to the public two months ago, the collective
is in the early stages of development, a period of time Sprague
refers to as "growing pains." They are presently
seeking advice from other collectives as a means to strengthen
their own.
Members, both activists and anarchists, come from political
backgrounds ranging from left-wing liberal to conservative.
Because society quite often attaches a stigma to the word
anarchism, sophomore political science major and collective
member Sheila Ketabian wants to dispel the myth that its supporters
encourage a chaotic environment.
"The most basic thing you could say about anarchy is
it's building healthy relationships between people to build
a healthy community," Ketabian said.
Opal, also scoffs at the common misconception that anarchy
is a disorganized free-for-all.
"[It is] a way of living without denomination or hierarchies,"
she said. "Everyone is free to live how they want as
long as it doesn't hurt someone else."
The shop is currently financed by donations from the community,
but hopes to acquire additional funds through ticket sales
to upcoming concerts they will hold in the patio area. They
aim to host shows with a variety of music, including punk,
hip-hop, indie and hardcore.
Money from these functions will be used to advertise, expand
their modestly-sized book and CD selection and eventually
replace the old sign donning their old name, "A Occasions."
The address for The Long Beach Community Co-op is 684 Redondo
Ave. and the telephone number is (562) 434-1649. Meetings
are held every Tuesday at 8pm and are open to anyone who is
interested.
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