-----Original Message----- From: Van Gosse/Eliza Reilly <reillygosse at igc.org> To: H-RADHIST at H-NET.MSU.EDU <H-RADHIST at H-NET.MSU.EDU> Date: Sunday, February 11, 2001 12:12 PM Subject: Victor Serge Library in Moscow
>Date: Sun, 11 Feb 2001 19:28:03 +0000
>From: Sebastian Budgen <sebastian at amadeobordiga.u-net.com>
>
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> Appeal: Support the Victor Serge Public Library in Moscow
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> The Victor Serge Public Library in Moscow has been operating for more than
>three years. Named after the well-known socialist writer and fighter
>against totalitarianism, the library aims to acquaint the public with the
>greath wealth of radical and alternative ideas that were forbidden in
>Soviet times and are hardly heard in present-day Russia, including the many
>strands of democratic and libertarian socialism which opposed Stalinism.
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> The library opened in May 1997, when we were able to find a public space
>in high-rent Moscow to house a container-load of radical books donated by
>sympathizers in the US. Today the library=B9s unique collection has grown
to
>3,000 books, pamphlets and journals in Russian and other languages. It is
>the only place in Russia where readers can find many works written from
>critical perspectives on literature, social science, Marxism, anarchism,
>syndicalism, Trotskyism, feminism, trade unionism and the history of
>workers=B9 movement in various countries.=20
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> The library is thus a treasure house for Russian students, academics,
>activists and young readers who are trying to develop a critical view of
>the world and thinking about how to change it. The library is also used as
>a sort of club where discussions, lectures, seminars and gatherings of
>various left-wing organisations take place.=20
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> In 1999 the library=B9s supporters formed the Praxis Research and Study
>Center to undertake publications, research and the organization of
>conferences on political and social themes. The Center=B9s first
publication
>=AD our Russian translation (the first ever) of Memoirs of A Revolutionary,
>by Victor Serge =AD is due out later this year. Other projects, including a
>translation of Serge=B9s novel Conquered City, and a collection of=
> previously
>unpublished documents from the communist opposition of the 1920s, will
>follow.=20
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> The steady growth both of our collection and of our readership mean that
>we badly need to move to new premises. We need to establish an internet
>site, refine our computerized catalog, and ensure the regular receipt of
>periodicals. We need to grow, and that requires funds.=20
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> Since we opened the library, we have made many friends around the world
=AD
>radicals and progressives in academia, left-wing activists and others. Your
>collaboration and support mean a great deal to us. Now we propose to set up
>the Friends of the Victor Serge Library as an international organization to
>unite all those who have become, or are happy to become, our friends. The
>future of this library, unique in Russia, depends to a large extent on the
>solidarity of those who understand the importance of establishing genuine
>socialist traditions in our country =AD which has played in the past, and
>will play in the future, such a vital part in the development of
>international movements of social liberation.
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> This appeal is supported by:
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> Tariq Ali, writer and broadcaster, UK
> Bob Arnot, Glasgow Caledonian University, UK
> Ian Birchall, writer and translator, UK
> Terry Brotherstone, historian, University of Aberdeen, UK
> Pierre Broue, historian, France
> Alex Buchwald, former bodyguard of Leon Trotsky and labor activist, USA
> Kirill Buketov, Moscow representative, International Union of Food,
>Agricultural, Hotel, Restaurant, Catering, Tobacco and Allied Workers
>Associations (IUF) (in a personal capacity), Russia
> Aleksandr Buzgalin, editor of Alternativy, Moscow State University, Russia
> Marc Cooper, producer of Radio Nation, author of Roll Over Che Guevara and
>Pinochet and Me, USA
> Samuel Farber, Professor of Political Science, Brooklyn College, City
>University of New York, USA
> Don Filtzer, historian of Soviet labour, UK
> Frank Fried, veteran labor activist, USA
> Dan Gallin, chair, Global Labor Institute, Switzerland
> Richard Greeman, translator of Victor Serge=B9s novels, France
> Aleksei Gusev, historian, Moscow State University, Russia
> Christopher Hitchens, author and columnist for The Nation and Vanity Fair,
>USA
> Michael Hudson, president of Institute for the Study of Long Term Economic
>Trends, USA
> Boris Kagarlitsky, author and journalist, Russia
> Vladislav Kibalchich, son of Victor Serge, Mexico
> Ken Loach, film director (Land and Freedom, Carla=B9s Song, My Name Is
Joe,
>and many others), UK
> Jean-Jacques Marie, historian, France
> Ardeshir Mehrdad, editor, Iran Bulletin, Iran=20
> Cathy Nugent, editor, Action for Solidarity, UK
> Stephen Schwartz, journalist, USA
> Mohamad Reza Shalgouni, author, Iran=20
> Ahmed Shawki, editor, International Socialist Review, USA
> Daniel Singer, author of Whose Millennium? Theirs or Ours?, USA (deceased)
> Francisco Sobrino, editorial board of Herramienta, Argentina
> David Temple, former Durham Mechanics executive member, National Union of
>Mineworkers, and organiser of solidarity with Russian and Ukrainian
miners,=
> UK
> Hillel Ticktin, University of Glasgow, UK
> Esteban Volkov, grandson of Leon Trotsky, Mexico
> Mikhail Voyekov, Institute of Economics of the Russian Academy of
>Sciences, Russia
> Alan Wald, author and cultural editor of Against the Current, USA
> Suzi Weissman, St Mary=B9s College, USA
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> Please return this letter to us, indicating what support you are able to
>give:
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> 1. I would like to become a Friend of the library, sign this letter for
>further circulation, and receive information about the library.
> 2. I agree to make an annual donation of ( ) $50, ( ) $100 ( ) other.
> 3. I would like to donate some books. Please get in touch.
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> How to get in touch with the Victor Serge library
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> "" and sent by fax to +7 095 292 6511.=20
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> The postal address is: Russia, Moscow 113639, Balaklavskii prospekt
>4-6-365, Obshchestvennaya biblioteka imeni Viktora Serzha.=20
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> To send donations and/or join the Friends of the Victor Serge library
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> You may post letters and cheques to: Friends of Victor Serge Library, PO
>Box 32417, London SE18 2WY, United Kingdom. Cheques may be in sterling,
>euros or dollars.=20
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> Sterling and euro cheques may be credited directly to our account: Friends
>of Victor Serge Library, a/c number 20096078, Unity Trust bank, 9
>Brindleyplace, 4 Oozells Square, Birmingham B1 2HB, United Kingdom. Sort
>code 086001. Dollar cheques may be sent to our UK post office box; we
>expect to have a dollar account soon and will let you know the details on
>request.
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> Send correspondence for the Friends of the Victor Serge Library to
>friendsvsl at hotmail.com, or by fax to +44 20 8333 2152. Please note these
>should NOT be used for correspondence to the library itself.
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> =20
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