Anarchist library

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Through tens of years of communist dictatorship any studies about the idea and history of anarchist movement were appearing less than rarely, and most often, and to put it mildly – not in a very objective way. After the rebirth of anarchist movement in Poland, a slow process of finding and de-deceiving its roots. The anarchist publishers’ natural reluctance towards national libraries and also not very active winning collections over by employed librarians who got used to "obligatory copy" caused the situation that unofficial publications were almost unavailable. There were and still are private archives but they can be used by only few people.

Poznan's Anarchist Library was founded in 1997 inside squat "Rozbrat" in a small room. With time, the collection was becoming larger and larger and the activity of the Library was more and more popular. The number of people using the Library was increasing and people interested in collecting materials about anarchism as sources for their scientific essays started to appear. After moving the collection to a bigger room separate section of the Library – Archive was created. In archive only documents and later also book publications have been kept.

The Library is situated in the buildings of Rozbrat squat, it is opened three days a week. Currently, it is the largest and the longest functioning anarchist library in Poland. It is the largest and the longest functioning liberation library in Poland. Its collection is divided into archive and lending library. In archive there are documents, posters, books, magazines etc. describing the anarchist activity in Poland and abroad and about other social movements – you can use them only on the spot.

The Library still tries to support other librarian initiatives by e.g. sharing with the double copies and sharing with the experience.

We are trying as much as we can to perform scientific researches and to publish them in forms of studies, with what we are presenting historical facts about our movement that have not been widely known. Once in a while we organize presentations of collections on one concrete topic e.g. publications of underground printing, magazines from between WW I and WW II, art.-zines or poetry volumes from underground printing. As Library together "Trojka" Fellowship we started to publish pamphlets about the Library’s collection. Since the beginning we are trying to get in touch with other places like this in Poland and abroad, we use them to get new and exchange collections.

 

The Library is sustained by its own funds from selling its publications and support from its symaptizers and co-founders.