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Title: Scope of the Library
Author: Albert Meltzer
Date: November 1992
Language: en
Topics: Kate Sharpley Library
Source: Retrieved on 19th May 2021 from https://www.katesharpleylibrary.net/jwsvk3
Notes: In KSL: Bulletin of the Kate Sharpley Library No. 3, November 1992

Albert Meltzer

Scope of the Library

What is the political scope of the KSL to be: is it restricted to the

anarcho-syndicalist tradition, or will it encompass the broad class

struggle anarchist tradition?

RC (Nottingham)

KSL Replies ….

We don’t want to lay down the law as to what is and what is not

anarchism but obviously there has to be some boundary or the collection

would need to take up the Albert Hall and be too unwieldy for reference

anyway.

The political scope will not just be anarcho-syndicalism but the “broad

class struggle anarchist tradition” is something impossible to mark the

boundary when dealing historically. The expression “class struggle

anarchism” comes from the ‘70s, with the growth of the hippie movement,

lifestylism, etc and the need to differentiate between one thing and the

other.

If one refers to the Cores pamphlet this is something new. Most

Anarchists of his generation would never have used the expression either

because they thought it tautological or suggested something different to

them or if they did distinguished between class war and class struggle

(so as not to be thought Marxists), or spoken unscientifically in terms

of social justice, but they would have meant the same thing.

What we’ve decided with regard to the books is to include everything

possible that relates to activist anarchism. We are omitting pacifism

and “non-violence” and what goes with it as there is already an

established library of Peace Studies in Bradford, which has an anarchist

section. They agree to letting us have their books on mainstream

anarchism, and we are passing them books on Tolstoyism etc. This will

strengthen both libraries, and perhaps at a later date we can advertise

mutually. There will obviously be overlap. This way we avoid censorship

or laying down dogma.

On the other hand we don’t want to go the way of the “anarchologists”

and consider anyone who uses the name anarchists, even though

pro-capitalist, is one. Their interest is making their chosen “subject”

bigger than it really is. For sheer room we will not include any

ephemera that passes itself off as libertarian, and if anyone is

interested they can try themselves and see how impossible it is, at

least without State funding. If we became State-funded we would not be

an anarchist library. We will not be middle class academic orientated.

But all books relative to the subject we can get will be included.

In regard to other documentation, KSL was originally compiled in

Brixton, and almost all of its contributors were from the

anarcho-syndicalist tradition. Since moving to Oundle (with reasonable

space) we have sent out more invitations to contribute material. We now

have a far wider selection relating to people who were not

anarcho-syndicalists but in the anarchist tradition, e.g. Guy Aldred

archives. A recently donated (as yet unopened) batch relates to the AWA

and ACF. Also we have an enormous unclassified Cienfuegos Press/Refract

Archive relating to trials and struggles all over the world, including

Angry Brigade trial coverage. There are also translations of Spanish,

Italian and French works unlikely within foreseeable time to be

published in English (though we hope any publisher interested will

on Anarchism and Revolutionary history).