56a Infoshop

56a Infoshop
Infoshop sign
51°29′26.5″N 0°06′00.3″W
Location	Crampton Street London, SE17, United Kingdom
Type	Social Centre and Archive
Established	1991 (33 years ago) (1991)
Branches	1
Collection
Items collected	Books, newspapers, magazines, pamphlets, and zines
Size	50,000+ items (2021)[1]
Legal deposit	No
Access and use
Access requirements	Open to anyone with a need to use the collections and services
Other information
Website	56a

56a Infoshop is a self-managed social centre, archive, and shop based in Elephant and Castle, Southwark, London. Its collection centres around left and far-left materials including information on anarchism, anti-gentrification, to squatting.^[2]

History

56a Infoshop was founded in 1991 initially as a squat and a self-managed social centre.^[3] From here, it eventually had to accept an agreement in 2003^[4] to pay a "peppercorn" rent by Southwark Council to remain functional within the area.^[2][5]

Services

The infoshop offers mixed, volunteered services from selling books, book exchanges, free bike workshops, squatter workshops, free meeting spaces, and a open-access archival collection.^[6]

Collection

56a Infoshop archive sign.

56a Infoshop's collection of over 50,000 items (2021) focuses on collecting left and far-left radicial and anarchical materials ranging from books, leaflets, magazines, maps, pamphlets posters, zines, and other print material.^[7][8] Their collection mainly spans items from the 1980s up to the present day with an active focus on conserving ongoing, although they have materials touching on subjects as early as the 14th century.^[9]

They have an ongoing digitisation effort through their online catalogue and take on scan-a-thons to preserve collection material. External partners including other archival spaces like MayDay rooms.^[10] 56a Infoshop also operates the online resources Southwark Notes^[3] that "is a campaigning group and research project concerned with the impact of the regeneration and gentrification of Southwark".^[4]

Governance

The infoshop is run by volunteers, largely unfunded, and presents an informal, DIY archival and resource space.^[4]

References

1. "56a Infoshop – Radical Social Centre, Elephant & Castle – 56a Infoshop since 1991". 56a.org.uk. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
2. Burgum, Samuel (11 September 2020). "This City Is An Archive: Squatting History and Urban Authority". Journal of Urban History. 48 (3): 504–522. doi:10.1177/0096144220955165. ISSN 0096-1442. S2CID 225222156.
3. Pell, Susan (2020), "Documenting the fight for the city: The impact of activist archives on anti-gentrification campaigns", Archives, Recordkeeping, and Social Justice, Routledge, doi:10.4324/9781315567846-9, ISBN 978-1-315-56784-6, S2CID 219402555, retrieved 3 October 2021
4. Carter, Elena (2 January 2017). "'Setting the record straight': the creation and curation of archives by activist communities. A case study of activist responses to the regeneration of Elephant and Castle, South London". Archives and Records. 38 (1): 27–44. doi:10.1080/23257962.2016.1260532. ISSN 2325-7962. S2CID 157359853.
5. Dee, E.T.C. (1 January 2016). "Squatted Social Centers in London". Contention. 4 (1). doi:10.3167/cont.2016.040109. ISSN 2572-7184.
6. Gilliland, Anne; Flinn, Andrew. "Community Archives: what are we really talking about? Andrew Flinn Keynote". studylib.net. Archived from the original on 3 October 2021. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
7. "56a Infoshop Archive". Community Archives and Heritage Group. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
8. Firth, R. (1 May 2014). "Critical cartography as anarchist pedagogy? Ideas for praxis inspired by the 56a infoshop map archive". Interface: A Journal for and About Social Movements. 16 (1): 156–184.
9. "Archive – 56a Infoshop – Radical Social Centre, Elephant & Castle". 56a.org.uk. Retrieved 3 October 2021.
10. "MayDay Rooms » Past events". Retrieved 2 October 2021.

External links

• 56a Infoshop website
• Catalogue